Lamb chops w/espresso balsamic sauce, herbed potatoes & roasted asparagus

An Easter(ish) dinner. First time ever making lamb chops, I think. My housemate gave me a bottle of espresso balsamic vinegar a little while ago, and you pretty much can't go wrong with that stuff!

Makes 2 servings

- Lamb chops (I used fairly thick "loin chops" - I thought there were two large chops in the package but it turned out to be 4 smaller ones)
- 1 lemon
- 1 large russet potato
- 1 shallot, chopped
- 1/2 bunch asparagus
- olive oil
- chopped fresh parsley & basil
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 cup espresso balsamic vinegar
- 1 Tbl butter

Grate the zest of the lemon into a small bowl. Season the lamb chops on both sides with salt, pepper and most of the lemon zest; set aside. Preheat the oven to 375.

Cube the potato into smallish cubes. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat, and saute the potatoes in a bit of olive oil. Turn every so often as they start to brown. Season with salt & pepper.

Trim the asparagus & put on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, salt & pepper.

Heat up a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. When the potatoes are about halfway done, add some olive oil to the cast iron pan and sear the lamb chops for about 4 minutes on one side. Put the asparagus in the oven. Add the chopped shallot to the potatoes. Flip lamb chops & cook for 4 minutes on the other side, or until they're done to your liking. Remove to a plate, and pour out any excess oil from the pan. Check the asparagus, it's probably done! Add the remaining lemon zest and squeeze a bit of lemon juice over the asparagus. When the potatoes are done, add the fresh herbs to them.

Add chicken broth & balsamic vinegar to the cast iron pan & scrape up any bits. Add butter. Cook for a couple minutes until it's reduced. Put the lamb chops in the pan & turn to coat with the sauce.

Seared Scallops & Lemon Pasta Primavera

I remembered after making this that you don't end up with awesome, truly *seared* scallops unless you buy fancy "dry" scallops (i.e., not what most grocery store seafood counters sell). Even though I followed all the procedures to get a good sear - dry them thoroughly, hot non-nonstick pan, don't move them around - they still released a lot of liquid and didn't get a perfect brown crust. But, whatever, they still tasted good!

This makes 2 hefty servings.
- 6 large sea scallops, rinsed & patted thoroughly dry
- 1/2 box whole wheat linguine
- 1/2 bunch asparagus, cut into 2-inch pieces
- 1/2 a red bell pepper, thinly sliced
- 1 shallot, halved & thinly sliced
- 1 lemon
- 1 Tbl. butter
- 1 Tbl. olive oil
- a bunch of chopped parsley and/or basil
- optional - splash of half & half and/or handful of parmesan cheese


Prep all your ingredients before you start cooking, as it goes quickly. Grate the zest of one lemon into a small bowl. Cut the lemon in half & squeeze the juice into the bowl. Season the scallops with salt & pepper. Bring a large pot of water to a boil & add a good amount of salt.

Heat a large saute pan (preferably not nonstick) over medium-high heat; add oil & butter. Start cooking pasta (it should take about 7-8 minutes which is enough time to cook everything else).

Add scallops to pan seasoned-side down, then season the other side when they're in the pan. Cook on one side for no more than 2 minutes. Flip and sear the other side for a couple minutes. Remove scallops to a plate.

Add bell pepper & shallot to pan and saute. When there are 2 minutes left on the pasta, add asparagus to the water. Scoop out about 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Add the lemon juice & zest to the pan, reserving about a teaspoon. Add the reserved pasta water & scrape up any brown bits (if you have some white wine already open, you should totally add some here). If the scallops have released any liquid on the plate, add that. You should have a thin sauce.

Drain the pasta & asparagus, and add to the pan. Toss and add the parsely & basil, and if you like, a splash of half & half and some parmesan. Taste the pasta for salt & pepper. I also added some Penzey's Red & Black (cayenne & black pepper).

Divide the pasta between two plates and put the scallops on top. Sprinkle the reserved lemon juice over the scallops.

Chocolate Chili Stout Cake with Chocolate Bourbon Frosting

I'm not much of a baker. And I'm not really a cake person. I think the only cake pan I own is a bundt pan. Forget layer cakes - too much of a pain. But, it was rob's birthday, and he'd hinted about chocolate cake. So I started searching the interwebs. We like spicy chocolate things...and things with alcohol. A chocolate stout cake sounded really good, and I had this Sam Adams Chocolate Cherry Bock that I thought would be delicious. So I took Smitten Kitchen's recipe and added some ancho chili powder and cinnamon to it. I also found this recipe and wanted to make the frosting. I worried that stout + spice + bourbon would be too much...for like, 5 seconds. Yeah, the instincts were good on this one. Definitely a keeper!

Ha - I just realized that I accidentally used half the butter called for in the cake...and it was fine!!

Chocolate Chili Stout Cake
- 1 cup stout (such as Guinness - I used Sam Adams Cherry Chocolate Bock)
- 2 sticks unsalted butter (I realized while typing this I only used one stick, and it was fine! Somebody should make this with 2 sticks and let me know how it is)
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 teaspoon ancho chili powder (this gave it the slightest warm edge. Next time I think I would try at least 1 tsp or maybe more)
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 2 eggs
- 2/3 cup sour cream


Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter or spray a bundt pan well; make sure you get in all of the nooks and crannies. Bring stout and butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.

Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, chili powder & cinnamon in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 35 minutes (mine took about 45 minutes). Cool completely in pan and frost with:

Chocolate Bourbon Frosting (I halved the recipe from the website and still had some left over...this is the halved version)
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 2 cups dark chocolate chips
- 2 cups confectioner's sugar
- 2-4 tablespoons bourbon (I ended up using the larger amount)
- 2 tablespoons cream or half & half

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add sour cream; beat until light & fluffy. Melt chocolate chips (I used the microwave, took about 2 minutes) & cool slightly. Slowly pour melted chocolate into the mixer, beating until well combined. Add the powdered sugar & mix on low speed; then beat on high until well combined. Add bourbon & cream, a few tablespoons at a time. Scrape bowl to make sure everything is incorporated. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hr (I left mine in for longer and it solidified, cause...it's butter. Luckily I had time to let it sit out before frosting the cake!)

 

Sweet & Spicy Southwestern Salad with Cilantro Dressing

Oh, hi blog!

Yeah, it's been several busy months with a lot of not-so-good eating. And no "forced" veggie consumption, 'cause we don't have the CSA every week. But I made a tasty salad tonight I wanted to remember for future meals...didn't even think to take a picture beforehand. It was kind of southwestern-ish with spicy black beans, sweet potato, corn, tomatoes, mango, green onions, spinach, peppers, avocado and a homemade cilantro dressing.

This made about 2 giant servings with about a cup of dressing. Went a little something like:

Cilantro Dressing:
- Whisk together a small container plain nonfat greek yogurt, a couple tablespoons olive oil, some vinegar & lime juice, salt, pepper and a small bunch of finely chopped cilantro. Thin with water if needed. A recipe I found said to make this in the blender; I didn't want to dirty mine!

Roasted Sweet Potatoes:
- Heat oven to 400. Cube 1 medium-size sweet potato, toss with a bit of olive oil, salt & chili powder (I like Penzey's Chili 9000). Roast on baking sheet until browned & tender, 15-20 mins if you cut it pretty small. Remove to a bowl.

Sauteed Corn:
- If your corn is tasty & fresh, you could also just cut it off the cob raw. Husk 3 ears of corn & slice off kernels. Heat a skillet over high heat, add a few drops of olive oil & some cumin seeds. Add corn & saute for a minute or two. I think I added some chili powder to this, too. Add to bowl with sweet potatoes.

Spicy Black Beans:
- Saute 1 clove minced garlic in a small bit of olive oil. Add 1 can black beans, rinsed & drained. Season with chili powder and add hot sauce to taste (I like plenty of Cholula Chili Lime). Stir a few times & set aside off heat.

Other stuff (add to bowl with sweet potatoes & corn):
- handful cherry tomatoes, halved (from our garden; yay!)
- diced bell pepper
- 3 green onions, chopped
- diced mango (GENIUS - I had Trader Joe's frozen mango chunks. Dice these up, throw 'em in the bowl, they thaw immediately)

Build the salad over a small bed of baby spinach: half of the black beans, half of the veggie mixture, half a cubed avocado. Crush a small handful of tortilla chips over the top and drizzle with dressing.

Sounds a little bit involved but it was SO GOOD and pretty healthy!

Curried Lentils with Sweet Potatoes & Spinach

Very modifiable. Use different spices, different greens, make it more soupy...

This made a giant pot. If you want a smaller pot, use half the package of lentils and decrease quantities slightly.

2 onions, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
small knob ginger, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
2 tsp each garam masala & curry powder
1 tsp each cumin & coriander
2 Tbl. tomato paste
1 can diced tomatoes
2 large sweet potatoes, cut into small cubes
1 box vegetable or chicken stock
1 bag dried lentils, washed (brown or green)
few handfuls baby spinach leaves
1/2 can coconut milk
small bunch cilantro, chopped
splash lemon/lime juice
hot sauce


- Saute onions until translucent.
- Add garlic, ginger, jalapeno and spices, cook 1 minute. Add tomato paste & cook another minute.
- Add tomatoes, sweet potatoes, stock & lentils. You will likely have to add more water to cover.
- Cover & cook on low about 40 minutes or until lentils are tender. Add water if necessary.
- Stir in spinach until wilted.
- Add coconut milk, cilantro, lime juice & hot sauce. Taste for salt - mine didn't need much.

Serve over brown rice, or as-is, or top with a poached/over-easy egg.

Cheater Soft Pretzel Bites

On the theory that "dough is dough," I thought I would try making soft pretzel bites out of frozen pizza dough that I had hanging around. I've made pretzel bites once before from scratch, and they were delicious. I'm not crafty enough to be good at shaping dough, so the bites are much easier.

I also have amassed a collection of gourmet salts, so I figured this would be a good opportunity to use those. Hence:

Pink sea salt, Hawaiian black lava salt, and smoked applewood salt.

The verdict:

Considering that these cost about $1 to make (I used half a package of frozen pizza dough that cost $1.99), and for minimal effort I can have fresh, hot soft pretzels...I approve. The dough probably wasn't as great-tasting as scratch-made, but...whatever. I also wish I could get that deep dark brown that "real pretzels" have, but I think you have to boil them in lye to get that. Eeek!! Now--could I taste the difference between the salts? Not particularly. But I think the black salt won at least on texture...nicely crunchy.


Cheater Soft Pretzel Bites

Frozen pizza dough, thawed (1/2 of the package I bought made around 50 bites)
3/4 cup baking soda
1 egg
Coarse salt

- Shape the thawed dough into a thin rope. Cut into 1-inch pieces.
- Boil a large pot of water & add baking soda.
- Drop in the dough pieces (in batches); boil for about 30 seconds. With a slotted spoon, remove to parchment-lined sheet pans.
- Preheat oven to 425. Beat egg with 1 Tbl water.
- Brush bites with egg wash & sprinkle with salt.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes, until deep golden brown.

Serve with honey mustard for dipping. Next time I might try a cheese sauce too.

Beef Stew à la Khan

So far this winter, the weather forecasters in the DC metro region have been...over-forecasting. We've had at least two snowstorms predicted that barely amounted to anything. And now we're actually getting winter storms named, which is kind of fun. We've already had "Gandolph" and today, we had the arrival of "Khan!" KHAAAAANNN!

Khan gave us maybe an inch of snow, nothing major. But with the whole day off today I thought I'd make a grocery run before the madness hit, as I had a beef stew craving. So I named this...

Beef Stew à la Khan

- Season 1 package of cubed beef stew meat with salt & pepper, & toss in flour to coat.

- Sear beef in a dutch oven in bacon fat (or oil) until browned; remove to a bowl.

- Add 1 package button mushrooms, halved, to pan (add more oil if necessary). Cook over med-high heat til brown; remove to a separate bowl.

- Chop 1-2 onions roughly & add to pan  (with more oil if necessary). Cook until softened & browned. Add 2 chopped garlic cloves & stir briefly.

- Deglaze pan with 1/2 bottle beer (I used Shock Top IPA); scrape up browned bits with spoon. 

- Add 2 Tbl. tomato paste & cook about a minute.

- Add beef back to pan. Pour in about 1/2 box beef stock/broth. I had a few leftover roasted garlic cloves so I mashed them & added them to pan. Also added 2 bay leaves & some smoked paprika.

- Cover and simmer on low heat about 1 hr.

- Meanwhile, peel 3 carrots, cut in half and then into 1-inch pieces.

- I also remembered I had an acorn squash leftover from one of our last CSA weeks, like...3 months ago!! Still seemed fine, so I peeled & chopped that.

- Add carrots, squash & reserved mushrooms to pot & more beef broth to cover. Simmer for 1 more hour.

- If you want to thicken the stew, stir some beef broth into a tsp or two of flour & add this to the pot.

- Taste & add seasonings. I added splashes of red wine vinegar, Worcestershire sauce & hot sauce.

Serve over mashed potatoes (I made mine with cream cheese & scallions) and enjoy...preferably while watching Star Trek II!