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Chicken Fricassee With Tarragon

Posted on January 18, 2013 by Kaitlin

Cold weather always makes me crave comfort food. I tend to really want pasta (and would be perfectly happy eating it every day that drops below 40 degrees) but am always open to healthier comfort food options. BetterEats.com had a lighter recipe for Chicken Fricassee, which is a French stew with chicken, vegetables, white wine, and cream that when paired with some day old bread makes a fantastic comfort food option. Ingredients: 2 1/2 pounds chicken pieces (breast halves, thighs, and drumsticks) – bone-in, skin removed (I used 1 chicken breast, 1 thigh, 1 leg, and 1 drumstick) 1/4 teaspoon salt pepper, black – to taste 2 tablespoons flour, all-purpose 1 tablespoon oil, olive, extra virgin 1 cup shallots (about 4 large ones) 1 cup wine, dry white 1 1/2 cups broth, chicken, less sodium 1 medium carrot – peeled and thinly sliced (about 1/3 cup) 1 pound mushrooms, I used 1/2 lb baby bellas, 1/2 lb button – wiped clean and halved or quartered 4 sprig(s) tarragon, fresh 4 teaspoons tarragon, fresh – chopped 1 tablespoon cornstarch 1 tablespoon water 1/4 cup sour cream, reduced-fat 2 teaspoons mustard, Dijon

Crab Cakes with Spicy Remoulade

Posted on January 3, 2013 by Kaitlin

I realized I have never posted a recipe for crab cakes. That is ridiculous! So today’s the day. I found this recipe in one of my Cooking Light recipes and altered it a bit for what I happened to have in my pantry. Crab cakes: 1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat, shell pieces removed 2 tablespoons finely chopped green bell pepper 1 1/2 tablespoons canola mayonnaise 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 2 green onions, finely chopped 1 large egg, lightly beaten 1 cup bread crumbs, divided 2 tablespoons canola oil, divided Remoulade: 1/4 cup canola mayonnaise 2 teaspoons minced shallots 1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon 1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley 1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard 3/4 teaspoon capers, chopped 3/4 teaspoon champagne vinegar 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper

Mushroom, Green Bean, and Farro Salad with a Poached Egg and Warm Bacon Vinaigrette

Posted on September 13, 2012 by Kaitlin

One of the highlights of the Kennett Square Mushroom Festival was catching a cooking demonstration by Antonia Lofaso of Top Chef. She made this wonderful mushroom and green bean salad with a poached egg and bacon vinaigrette. How fantastic does that sound? I didn’t have any arugula on hand, which was in Chef Antonia’s recipe, so I decided to sub in farro instead. (Farro is a grain that you cook like rice). I also kinda sorta forgot how she made most of the stuff, but it still turned out great. This is also the first time I’ve ever poached an egg because I’ve been terrified to do so but it was much more simple than expected! Ingredients: 2 cups water 1 cup farro 1 garlic clove, minced 1 shallot, minced 8 ounces mushrooms, chopped (if you can, go for some wild mushrooms) Salt and pepper, to taste 1/2 pound green beans, trimmed, and cut into bite sized pieces 3 strips bacon, finely chopped 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, plus 1 teaspoon, divided 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 4 eggs Begin by cooking your farro. Bring the 2 cups water and 1 cup farro to a boil … Continue reading →

TIP #1 for T-fal’s Healthy Summer Challenge, Eat More Vegetables

Posted on June 18, 2012 by Kaitlin

Today is my first of five different blog posts over the summer with a resolution on how to eat healthier. T-fal is hosting a 2012 Healthy Summer Challenge where I and five other bloggers will work towards a healthier lifestyle through some changes in our diet, exercise, etc. I will, of course, share my food resolutions rather than my exercise ones because, well, I’m a food blogger! My first resolution of the summer is to eat more vegetables. I find one of the easiest ways to do this is to find vegetables you actually like. No one is forcing you to eat broccoli if you don’t like it. Why not try that baby bok choy you’ve seen in the supermarket, or maybe throw a few slivers of radishes in your next salad instead of cheese? The change also doesn’t have to be extreme. Try to incorporate 1-3 more vegetables into your diet per week and go from there.My veggie intake is also being aided by joining a CSA, or Community Supported Agriculture (I use Red Earth Farm). I did a CSA last year as well, but this year, I get to choose what vegetables are in my share! The … Continue reading →

Grilled Striped Bass with Bacon Vinaigrette, Red Smashed Potatoes & Sautéed Butter-Thyme Mushrooms

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Kaitlin

Whew. By the time you say the title of this post you could have cooked most of this meal. Fish is a perfect weekday choice because it is so darn quick to cook up. I managed to make all parts of this meal in 40 minutes which was awesome! If you wanted to cut the time for this meal even more, you could doctor up some of those refrigerator mashed potatoes from the supermarket, but I really like home made mashed potatoes so I went for it. No one is surprised to hear that this menu comes from my trusty Cooking Light. Ingredients: 2 (8-ounce) striped bass fillets salt, divided freshly ground black pepper, divided 4 slices center-cut bacon 2 large shallots, finely chopped and divided 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1/8 teaspoon sugar 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided 1 pound red potatoes 2 garlic cloves, halved 1/4 cup 2% reduced-fat milk 2 tablespoons butter, divided 2 (8-ounce) packages presliced baby bella mushrooms 1/3 cup dry white wine 4 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme Begin with making the mashed potatoes. The original recipe has you peel and cube the potatoes. I really like the skins of potatoes … Continue reading →

Reuben with Homemade Sauerkraut

Posted on March 13, 2012 by Kaitlin

What do you do with left over Corned Beef and Cabbage? Make Reubens of course! Because we still had some of the Creamy Horseradish Dijon sauce from the Corned Beef and Cabbage, I substituted that for thousand island dressing. Past that, this recipe is pretty traditional. I still had half a cabbage left so I decided to make my own sauerkraut. Ingredients: Left over corned beef 1/2 a head of cabbage 1 teaspoon olive oil 1/2 a small onion, chopped 1/3 cup cider vinegar 1/4 cup apple juice 1/4 cup water Salt, to taste 1/4 teaspoon caraway seeds Creamy Horseradish Dijion (recipe here) Swiss cheese Rye bread 2 tablespoons butter I found the sauerkraut recipe on food.com and just scaled it down to feed two. To make the sauerkraut, heat the olive oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 3 minutes, or until it begins to soften. Add the cabbage, apple juice, vinegar, water, salt and caraway seeds and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat. Use tongs or a slotted spoon to drain the sauerkraut and add it to another saute pan with the … Continue reading →

Corned Beef & Cabbage

Posted on March 12, 2012 by Kaitlin

St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner, which means Americans nationwide are gearing up for a corned beef and cabbage feast. Despite being Irish myself, I’ve never eaten this St. Patrick’s Day staple before. My boyfriend, a huge corned beef fan, was really looking forward to having some, so I finally decided it was time to try to make it. I choose this recipe from Food Network so that I could use my slow cooker and not have to watch over it for hours. 4 pounds raw corned beef brisket Pickling Spice (included with brisket) 1 medium rutabaga, halved, peeled and cut into wedges 5 large carrots, cut into 4-inch pieces 1 bag red potatoes 1 leek, white and light-green parts only, cut into 3-inch pieces 1 yellow onion, chopped 1/2 head cabbage, roughly chopped 1/3 cup Dijon mustard with horseradish 1/3 cup creme fraeche Add the corned beef to the slow cooker. Your corned beef should come with a little packet of pickling spices. Add that on top of the beef. Layer the rutabaga carrots potatoes onion and leeks to the slow cooker. Layer them this way so that they all cook evenly. Add 6 cups of water … Continue reading →

Mango Couscous with Salmon

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Kaitlin

I really don’t like winter. I know we are having quite a mild winter in Philly this year but it goes past the cold and snow. I miss sunlight. And sitting outdoors. And most of all, I miss summer foods. So I decided it was time for a little peek into summer: Mango Couscous with Salmon. (I found the recipe on Taste of Home). Ingredients: Salmon: 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 garlic cloves, minced Salt & pepper, to taste 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley, divided 2 salmon fillets (6 ounces each) Couscous: 1 cup chicken broth 1 tablespoon butter 1/2 cup couscous (I used tricolor, because it’s so darn pretty) 1 plum tomato, chopped 1 medium mango, peeled and chopped Mango Sauce: 1 medium mango, peeled and cut into chunks the juice of 1 lemon 1 tablespoon honey 2 fresh basil leaves 1 tablespoon minced fresh parsley 1 tablespoon water 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard In a pot, bring the broth and butter to a boil. Stir in couscous. Cover and remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, mango, and 1 tablespoon parsley. Combine the olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon … Continue reading →

Sriracha Deviled Eggs

Posted on November 20, 2011 by Kaitlin

My little sister loves deviled eggs. She loves them to such an extreme, that we chose a restaurant (Supper in Philadelphia) during Restaurant Week solely because they were known for their amazing deviled eggs of the day. (The rest of their food is awesome too, definitely worth checking out). During Restaurant Week, they were offering their Sriracha Deviled Eggs, which my sister devoured. So when I was offered to try Land O’Lakes eggs through the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I knew I wanted to make them for her. Luckily, Supper took the guesswork out for me and shared their recipe with Meal Ticket a few years back. Land O’Lakes eggs come from hens that are fed an all-vegetable, whole-grain diet with no animal by-products. Courtesy of Land O’Lakes Although I primarily use eggs for baking or as an ingredient in a larger dish, I wanted to highlight the eggs for this recipe. Ingredients: 6 Land O’Lakes eggs, hard boiled and halved 3 tablespoons mayonnaise 1 teaspoon Dijon 2 teaspoons Sriracha The juice from 1/2 a lime The zest from 1/2 a lime 1 teaspoon chopped cilantro Fill a large bowl with ice water. To hard-boil the eggs, add 6 eggs to … Continue reading →

Meatloaf “Muffins”

Posted on October 23, 2011 by Kaitlin

I don’t think I’ve ever had a craving for meatloaf. Honestly, I’m pretty sure I’ve only had meatloaf once. So I never actively seek out making meatloaf, much to my boyfriend’s disappointment. However, we both had long, exhausting work weeks, so I thought he deserved a comfort-food meal. Cooking light had a recipe for Meatloaf Muffins that I thought would work great; he could eat as much as he wanted and then have perfectly portioned “muffins” that I could freeze. Ingredients: 1 teaspoon olive oil 1 cup finely chopped onion 1/2 cup finely chopped carrot 3 bell peppers (I used one orange, yellow & red), chopped 1 teaspoon dried parsley 1 teaspoon dried basil 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 cup ketchup, divided 1/2 teaspoon sriracha 1 pound ground beef, extra lean 1/2 pound sweet Italian sausage, cut out of its casing (I used 2 sausages) 1 cup panko breadcrumbs 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 2 large eggs Cooking spray Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Prepare your onion, carrot, garlic, and peppers. Heat a saute pan over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, basil, parsley, garlic and peppers. (Note: I completely … Continue reading →