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guacamole in 10 seconds
I recently received an email asking if I wanted to try a jar of Hot Cilantro Chutney from Bollywood Chutneys. When it came, I put it on the shelf, promising myself to get it out when I made something Indian. But then, on a Sunday afternoon, we had some avocados to use up, some corn chips, and a lime. I knew I’d be dreaming about guacamole into the night if I didn’t make some right then, but we were out of fresh cilantro. I then remembered the cilantro chutney, and within a couple of minutes, we had a perfect guacamole. Even my daughter liked it.
Jarred cilantro is now my new favorite invention. Whenever I buy cilantro fresh, I only use a sprig or two for one recipe, and then have to throw the rest away after it turns into liquid in my fridge. Then surely, a day later, I need to buy another bunch of it for another recipe. The brilliance of this chutney is that it even has hot chilies added in, so I don’t even need to try to find a wilted jalapeño at the bottom of the vegetable drawer.
leafy greens, avocado, and blackened chicken salad
Every cookbook library should have a nice, sharp pencil handy. So often, the best recipes are the direct result of improvising on another recipe.
The seasoning I used for this blackened chicken is made up of the ingredients I had in my cupboard: paprika from my local Indian store, ground dill and thyme.
You could, by all means, make a rub with a more cajun flavor, using white pepper and onion powder. It’s up to you. But I didn’t have those things, so I made it my own way.
how to steam artichokes
I tried making roasted artichokes in the past. That was a pain in the you-know-what. It’s like battling a rose bush. Even though I remember loving steamed artichokes when I was a kid, my first experience cooking them turned me off to a second attempt for years.
Then I went to Costco. That place can convince you that you need just about anything. New windshield wipers. A bullet blender. Six pounds of granola.
Well, a few weeks ago, four spiny orbs smiled up at me and begged me to buy them. Since they were in the refrigerator room, I had to decide fast. That’s on purpose, you know. Not many stores put a whole section of products in a room that registers below 40 degrees. You go in thinking, Okay, I will only buy a flat of strawberries. And if blueberries are a good price, I’ll buy them, too. Oh good there they are. Wait, quick, I better get some snap peas while I’m here. I’m freezing. Oh, and I wanted to buy some mini cucumbers! Only five dollars!
By the time you exit, you have rounded up twenty-five dollars in impulse buys in less than forty seven seconds. Forget buyer’s remorse—you’re mostly just happy to be warm again. Buyer’s remorse would mean going back in there.
Then your three-year-old tells you she has to go to the bathroom. The one strategically placed on the exact opposite end of the store. Once you’ve woven through the families waiting in line to get the dinosaur chicken samples (hasn’t everyone already tasted them? I mean, come on, people!) with a cart that has the maneuverability of a dumpster, you’ve walked practically a quarter of a mile to that potty. By then there’s no chance in _____ you’re going to put that produce back.
Pure marketing genius.
springtime risotto with peas and asparagus
I’m so happy today. I’m sitting at my new iMac.
I’m not new to Macs—I’ve been using them since college when I was a design student. After that, when I lived (very briefly) in Montana, I bought my own. I remember taking it out of the box—giddy and overcome with art.
My laptop, which I bought four years ago to start my career as a novelist, has been unfailingly loyal. When I put my writing on hold and dove into blogging like a crazy person, my little white box held on while I ran Adobe programs almost constantly. Sadly, it is now too slow to do what I need it to do, and today was claimed as the “kids’ computer” by my five-year-old.
To add to my happiness today, it rained. For the first time this year, it really felt like spring. Oh, we’ve had warm days here and there, but today, when the rain didn’t turn to snow, or chill me to my bones, I knew that spring has finally arrived.
I made this risotto, full of fat asparagus spears and peas, to celebrate the season which could not be anymore welcome.
perfectly easy french fries
A while back, I was on StumbleUpon (I think), when I saw my friend Julie’s recipe for easier french fries, which she learned from America’s Test kitchen. Basically, you place the sliced potatoes in a pot, cover them with oil, and bring them to a boil in the oil. Apparently, they’re supposed to absorb less fat. Whether they do or not—which certainly would be a nice bonus—they’re impossibly easy to make.
Actually, I had never even planned on making them anytime soon—it isn’t like I need french fries—but then, when I was heating up the oil for my fried goat cheese, I was thinking how much I hate waiting for oil to heat up. Then I remembered the fries that Julie talked about, so I chopped a potato up and tossed in the oil.
Within a few minutes, I had hot oil ready for making my fried goat cheese, and a whole serving of perfectly cooked, perfectly tasty french fries.
slow cooker black bean dip
The big game. I am writing this post specifically for Weight Watchers, so I don’t know all the laws about saying words like super and bowl in the same sentence. But you know what I mean.
My mother-in-law always made a big slow cooker full of this fantastic bean dip. I thought there would be no better thing to make with Weight Watchers Natural Four Cheese Mexican blend, especially for the big game. As healthy as the beans are, the recipe’s major downfall is the large amount of cheese you are supposed to add. So I have lightened it up, and used the Weight Watcher’s cheese for the perfect compromise.
nachos in 60 seconds
When I was contacted to make up some recipes for Weight Watchers cheese a few weeks ago, I switched gears from what I normally post, and started with an obvious recipe—macaroni and cheese—and used whole grain pasta to make it healthier. Then last week, I posted hasselback potatoes covered in cheese. But after that, I really got stuck. Then I remembered nachos.
Now, I’m sure many of you will think that nachos are so easy, they aren’t worth posting, but sometimes it’s easy to forget the most basic dishes.
And I always forget about nachos. My kids love them, but most nights I forget all about them and complain about how my kids won’t eat what I make.
Granted, nachos aren’t necessarily that healthy, but if you use the right ingredients, they can actually be quite nutritious. And if it means the kids will eat something that isn’t loaded with sugar, then I’m happy.
hasselback potatoes
Hasseback potatoes are all over the internet, and really, why shouldn’t they be? They’re made out of something almost everyone has in the cupboard, and then made absolutely gorgeous using a tool everyone owns.
When Weight Watcher’s sent me a sample of their Four Cheese Mexican Blend shredded cheese and asked me to make up some recipes, I thought about all the ways someone might want to eat cheese. Last week I posted a recipe for whole-grain macaroni and cheese, which was great, but then I wondered how I could use the cheese in a recipe for someone who doesn’t want a ton of cheese—just a little for flavor, and then I remembered how much I love Hasselback potatoes.
For the last few minutes of baking, I sprinkled them with some of the Weight Watchers’ 4 Cheese Mexican Blend. When they were ready to serve, I topped them with sour cream, but you can add anything you’d like.
mushroom bruschetta
The other night, as my kids and I were driving home, we saw a huge golden moon peaking out between two mountains just north of where we live. It was a hint of the promise of fall.
I love when the weather finally lets go of the shackling heat and and lets in wind and rain and changing leaves. I made this savory bruschetta as a little celebration of my favorite season.
Oh, and just a quick announcement, random.org chose one of my favorite people from high school to win the food mill and baby cookbook. So a toast to Molly, too, and to her two little boys! (Did you see that? I used to, two, and too, all in the same sentence! My second grader would be impressed.)
naan . . . are you excited yet?
I’m excited!! I love naan, but if I were to order it at my favorite Indian restaurant as much as I wanted it, half my bill would be dedicated to just the bread. Well, today was my lucky day, because I taught myself how to make it! My head is spinning from the savings! It will economize at least $23.27 throughout my lifetime! Staggering.
To be honest, I didn’t do much research on how to make naan. I had a pan full of Vegetable Coconut Korma (my latest post on babble) on the stove, just waiting to be eaten this afternoon, and I didn’t want to get too fussy about how to make it perfectly authentic. I really just wanted something for dipping in the sauce. Since the first two recipes I googled mentioned yogurt and ghee, I used those ingredients as a starting point, and made up my recipe from there.
