Author: doriwalker

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Cookies Two Ways

Joe shows off his bedtime snack.

This is the best chocolate chip cookie recipe I’ve ever used. It’s a peanut butter chocolate chip cookie recipe, and makes a chewy on the inside, crisp on the outside cookie that rivals any you might consider buying at the bakery in the mall. You can choose to make them bakery-large, by using a 1/4 cup to measure out each cookie. Or, if you prefer moderation in your caloric intake, I recommend purchasing a mini scoop. You wind up with nicely sized cookies that are uniform in size. Joe, of course, goes for the large size.

Pick up one of these small scoops at a kitchen specialty store. Drop cookies can be made quickly, and will be of uniform size.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

  • 1/2 c. butter
  • 1/2 c. all natural peanut butter
  • 1 c. brown sugar
  • 1/2 c. sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 Tbs. corn syrup
  • 2 Tbs. water
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 2-1/2 c. flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 2 c. chips (large, small or chunks)

Bake 375 degrees, 12 minutes, or until browned.

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Pasta Two Ways

I wanted a thick rich mushroom sauce for tonight’s pasta, but knew that 2/3 of the kids wouldn’t eat it. So I made two sauces at the same time. I was able to make both sauces while the water boiled and the pasta cooked.

Portobello Mushroom Sauce

  • 3 large portobello mushroom caps, chopped
  • 2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 3 Tbs. butter
  • 1/2 cup half and half
  • 1/2 cup 1% milk
  • 1 Tbs flour

Saute the mushrooms in the butter with lots of coarsely ground black pepper, and a little salt, until soft and the liquid comes out. Stir in the cheese and flour, and then the half and half and milk, keeping the heat low and continue stirring as the cheese melts.

Alfredo Sauce

  • 4 Tbs. butter
  • 2 or 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped fine
  • 1/2 cup half and half
  • 1/2 cup 1% milk
  • 1 Tbs. flour

Saute the garlic in the butter, stir in the Parmesan cheese,  parsley and flour; then add the half and half, milk, keeping the heat low and continuing to stir as the cheese melts.

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Apple-Topped Meat Loaf

I wanted a lighter sort of meat loaf, so I mixed in some ground pork with the beef, soaked some bread in apple sauce, mixed in plenty of chopped apples and onions, and the result was superb. We ate it with some roasted new potatoes and fresh green beans. A great meal.

Apple-Topped Meat Loaf

  • 1-1/2 pounds lean ground beef
  • 1 pound ground pork
  • 2 medium onions, chopped
  • 2 medium apples, chopped
  • 4 slices whole wheat bread, soaked in 1/2 cup apple sauce and 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 cup ketchup
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
  • 1 Tbs. salt
  • freshly ground pepper

This makes a huge meat loaf. Our family of six will eat it tomorrow as leftovers. Mix everything together, top with sliced apple rings, and bake at 375 degrees for about an hour, or until meat thermometer reads 160 degrees. During the last 10 minutes, if you like, you can spread on a mixture of 1/3 cup ketchup, 1 Tbs. brown sugar and 1/2 tsp. dry mustard.

Roasted new potatoes, lightly coated in olive oil, sprinkled with kosher salt and rosemary. Bake in the oven with the meat loaf, but they only take about 45 minutes.

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Bharathi Shares Her Kitchen

My first attempt at Indian cooking included cholae and fried rice.

Indian food is one of my favorites, but the spices are a mystery to me. On Friday, AJ and I were invited to our friend Bharathi’s kitchen for an Indian cooking lesson. Bharathi is eager to learn some American recipes and suggested that we exchange some native recipes and cooking tips. She taught us fried rice with mint, cloves and cumin; cholae — a dish with garbanzo beans, tomatoes and about a dozen wonderful spices; and toor dal, again made with 6 or 8 lovely spices.

I love how Bharathi’s kitchen is filled with containers of legumes and, of course, spice after spice. She taught me the names of the spices, and let me hold them and smell their fragrance. Although her ingredients are somewhat different then mine, her cooking style is very much like mine. She does not measure, nor does she follow a prescribed recipe. Her cooking is a work of art, dappled with exotic spices with names like hing, amchur and chana masala.

My hand-scrawled notes with the names and procedures are a bit ragged and I was anxious to give some the recipes a try while the instructions were clear in my head, and the memory of the taste was vivid. So today, Doug and I visited the Indian grocery store and bought the ingredients, and then I made up a batch of cholae and fried rice for dinner. The spices and flavors are so complex — I’m quite beside myself that I’m learning to create with a new palette of flavors!

Do you want to learn a new cuisine? Is there someone you know who cooks something that you admire? Invite them to participate in a cooking exchange with you. Next week I plan on teaching Bharathi my brownie recipe, from scratch.

Fried Rice (Indian Style)

  • 3 c. basmati rice
  • 2 Tbs. butter
  • 2 Tbs. oil
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 2 tsp. cumin seeds
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 tsp. ginger, minced
  • 2-3 c. mixed vegetables, frozen or finely chopped fresh
  • 8 whole cloves
  • 1 tsp. salt, or to taste
  • 6 c. water

Heat butter and oil, add onion and saute until soft. Add garlic, ginger, cloves, and cumin seeds. Stir for one minute, then add rice and stir 2-3 minutes. Add salt, vegetable and water, and cook as you normally do for rice, for about 45-50 minutes.

Cholae (a spicy, flavorful, garbanzo bean and tomato stew)

  • 1 Tbs. oil
  • 2 medium onions, chopped
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 tsp. grated fresh ginger
  • 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
  • 5 c. cooked garbanzo beans
  • 1 28-oz can chopped tomatoes (use the juice as well)
  • 1 15-oz can tomato sauce
  • 1 Tbs. amchoor powder (dried mango powder)
  • 2-3 tsp. channa masala (cholae masala) seasoning
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 4 whole bay leaves

Heat oil, add onion and saute until soft. Add garlic, ginger, cholae masala, turmeric, bay leaves, tomatoes and tomato sauce. Heat over medium heat for a few minutes and then stir in garbanzo beans, amchoor, salt and a little water (to adjust consistency). Heat over low heat for 30 minutes or more.

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Dear Dr. Hill, just a note to let you know that the sodas in my cart were not for me.

Please don’t judge me by the contents of my shopping cart. In a town of this size, with my foody reputation at stake, I worry about being seen with some inorganic, white bread, prepackaged, corn syrup -infused product. With my best friends carrying around Michael Pollan’s Food Rules like a bible in their pocketbooks, I don’t dare risk being caught with anything but the slowest of foods. So it was with great dismay that today, after purchasing 6 entire liters of soda, I felt a gentle touch on my arm, and there was my children’s pediatrician saying, “Hi there. Nice to see you.” I smiled and murmured something back (knowing of course, that he doesn’t even know my name — just that I’m MaxMollyJoe’s mom), but all the while wondering, “Did Dr. Hill see the soda in the bags in my cart? Will he blame their asthma on the Diet Sprite? Thank goodness they have healthy BMIs!”

Last year my friend AJ asked me to pick up some brownie mix for her at our neighborhood IGA grocery. No big deal for most people, but I was mortified at the idea of having to purchase such a product. Have you ever read the list of ingredients? Do you know how silly-easy it is to make them from scratch?!  My son Max was with me and I said to him, “Max, what if one of my friends sees me buying brownie mix? I’m known for my brownies!” He said, “Mom, I’ll go down the brownie mix aisle myself and get the box.” I seem to recall that he even offered to stand in a different check-out aisle and pay for it himself. He was willing to take the fall for me. My son is a mensch.

I loath soda, and brownie or pancake mixes, and prepared salad dressings. Anything “light” or diet are even worse. Take a good read at any of these packages and you can’t help but realize that you’re in for a tasty meal of additives. Not to mention that it takes about as much time to whip up something from scratch as it does to make it from a mix. There are a few mixes that I will occasionally purchase, if they have real ingredients, with names that I recognize and would use myself.

I recommend the books Fast Food Nation, and The Omnivore’s Dilemma. My husband bought me Fast Food Nation as a gift about 10 years ago. Since reading it cover-to-cover, all in that day, we no longer take our kids to McDonalds. In fact 2 out of 3 of them will refuse to go.

So, Dr. Hill, just a note to let you know that the sodas in my cart were for an event at our temple tonight. The other ladies like the idea of serving a punch and they had me pick up the ingredients. I didn’t taste a drop, nor did my children. I swear.

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Happy Meal

“You’re kidding, right?” was the response from Max when I yelled upstairs for him to come down for his happy meal. We’re not that kind of McFamily, so this is my version of a happy meal.

Make a roast beef and provolone on toasted whole wheat, easy on the mayo. Then throw in a handful of mixed salad for crunch, and arrange a happy pattern of their favorite vegies and fruits. The bonus today was a leftover citrus bar on each plate. It sure made them happy that it was lunch time.

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Very Veggie Stir Fry

Stir fry with asparagus, green beans, chard, broccoli and cauliflower.

After eating pancakes for dinner last night our bodies were screaming out for some vegetables.

Here’s a very simple method for a quick stir fry:

  1. Marinate the raw, cut up chicken in some soy sauce and garlic and/or minced ginger for as much time as you can before cooking.
  2. Cook the chicken and marinade in a little oil along with a handful of chopped green onions, until cooked through, then take it all out of the pan and put it aside in a bowl while you cook the vegetables.
  3. Add a little more oil to the pan, cook the vegies in order of how much cooking time each requires.
  4. Add a couple of tablespoons of water and let them steam for a minute or two.
  5. When they’re cooked how you like them, put the chicken back in the pan, sprinkle on a bit more soy sauce and another handful of green onions. Add some red pepper flakes if you want it spicy.
  6. Heat through and serve with some sticky rice.
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Citrus Bars

Fresh lemon juice and orange juice concentrate make these especially moist and fruity. The pastry is as short as they come; very flaky. Their only real short-coming is that they aren’t chocolate.

Citrus Bars

Cut together, or pulse in a food processor, then press into a 9 x 13 pan:

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 cup butter

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, beat together:

  • 1-3/4 cups sugar
  • 1/3 cup lemon juice
  • 4 Tbs. orange juice concentrate
  • 1 tsp. lemon peel
  • 1 tsp. orange peel

Then add to that:

  • 1/4 cup plus 1 Tbs. flour
  • 1/2 tsp. baking powder

Blend well, and pour into hot crust. Bake for an additional 25 minutes.

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Strawberry Short(pan)Cakes

With a nod to my Swedish friends, we had pancakes for dinner tonight, topped with vanilla yogurt and heaped with strawberries.

I follow the 1-1-1 recipe for making up pancake batter, as follows:

  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 Tbs. oil
  • 1 Tbs. sugar

From there it’s great to improvise. Tonight I used 1/2 whole wheat flour and also poured in some wheat germ. In place of 1/2 of the milk I substituted some yogurt. So even though it’s pancakes for dinner, it’s pretty healthy!

Another great variation is to add a whole grated apple and some cinnamon.

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20 Minute Pasta Sauce

Thick and chunky pasta sauce over tortellini, served with garlic bread and fresh green beans.

Wednesday is our busiest day of the week, which is why it’s pasta night. Boil some noodles, open a jar and dinner is done. I planned on tortellini, but didn’t realize that I was out of sauce until the water was boiling, so I mixed one up in less than 20 minutes. It was delicious.

20 Minute Pasta Sauce

  • 1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes (I used Trader Joe’s Organic Tomatoes, Diced in Tomato Juice, and they were exceptionally sweet.)
  • 2 cans tomato paste
  • 1/4 cup red wine
  • 2 large cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. basil

Keep in mind that I never measure when I throw these things together. The fun is in imagining the flavor, adding something, tasting and adding until you like it.  When I was done I wrote down approximately what I put in the sauce.