Take-Out Fake-Out And A Mis-hap

There is an awesome antique/country store called Buy The Season in Salem where we head for gifts, home decor and general cool stuff.  They've got everything from primitive signs to barn stars and organic dog treats.  Suz works close by, so she goes over there on her lunch break sometimes. On one of those trips, she came across a stack of Martha Stewart Everyday Food magazines.  For under $5, someone was selling 16 issues of the little mag from 2009 and 2010.  We're always looking for new inspiration, so she grabbed them up and has slowly been going through them (it's a lot of recipes!). When we came across the chinese food recipes, we knew we'd hit the jackpot!

Cashew chicken is April's fav, so we knew we had to try it; and the dumplings look simple and yummy, so we figured we'd try a takeout fake-out!  And because wonton wrappers come in large packages, we've added this not-so-chinese dessert to the menu (and it just sounds awesome!), creating an entire meal based on Martha Stewart - it's "a good thing"! :)

Tonight we had our first kitchen disaster - not bad considering we've been blogging since August!  But boy, did we make up for lost time!  April's oven runs about 25 degrees hot, so we set the temperature at 375 to bake off the wontons for dessert. 

Suz popped the wontons with the butter and sugar on them into the oven and when she opened the oven to check on them less than 5 minutes later, smoke started billowing out of the oven.  She quickly closed the oven door and turned on the exhaust fan.  Alden started screaming about the smoke - thank God both kids were strapped into high chairs!  April ran around the house, opening doors and windows.  Once we had everything wide open, Suz re-opened the oven and ran outside with the charred remains of the wontons to cool off. We waited to try again until after dinner, with much more positive results! 

Pork-and-Chive Potstickers

from Martha Stewart's Everyday Food October 2009

1/4 pound ground pork

1 tablespoon minced chives

1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce

1 1/2 teaspoons dry sherry

1 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger

1/2 teaspoon sesame oil

1/2 teaspoon cornstarch

20 wonton wrappers (from a 12-ounce package)

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Soy-Ginger Dipping Sauce (recipe follows)

In a bowl, combine pork, chives, soy sauce, sherry, ginger, sesame oil, cornstarch, and 1 tablespoon water.

Place a heaping teaspoon of pork mixture in center of a wonton wrapper. Lightly wet edge of wrapper, fold over, and press to seal. Repeat to form remaining dumplings (makes 20).

In two batches, cook dumplings in a large pot of boiling water until cooked through, 4 minutes; transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon. In a large nonstick pan, heat vegetable oil over medium-high. In two batches, cook until browned, about 1 1/2 minutes per side. Serve with dipping sauce.

To make Soy-Ginger Dipping Sauce,stir together 1/4 cup soy sauce, 3 tablespoons rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger, 2 teaspoons sugar, and 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil in a bowl.

Serves 4 with a PointsPlus value of 6.

Suz: This is one of the most simple potsticker/dumpling recipes I've ever seen - most have a ton more ingredients with pretty much the same outcome.  I doubled the meat mixture - I find it hard to believe that 1/4 pound of pork would make 20 dumplings; 1/2 pound made about 25 total, and I only used about 1 tablespoon of meat for each of them. I also changed up the method of cooking the potstickers, to help keep them from falling apart, which was the major complaint on the website where I originally saw the recipe.  Rather than boil them and then fry, I did the opposite.  Heat the oil in the pan, then add 5-6 dumplings.  Once they have browned on both sides, add about 2 tablespoons of water to the pan and cover with a tight-fitting lid.  Steam them for about 2 minutes and they're ready - still crispy, not slimy, and perfectly cooked through!  For the dipping sauce, I also added some crushed garlic, about 1 teaspoon or so... it was great!  The dumplings and the sauce were very tasty - I'll definitely make again! 

April: I'm not a big fan of the wonton dumpling stuffed with funky  meat. However... this was absolutely fabulous. Actually I had trouble pushing them to the side and somehow managed to save John a couple for a late night snack. YUMMY. The sauce was the perfect combination of flavors... my mouth is watering just at the thought of them :O)



Cashew Chicken

from Martha Stewart's Everyday Food October 2009

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 tablespoons dry sherry (or cooking wine, or leave out)

2 tsp. minced, peeled, fresh ginger
3 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
coarse salt
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2/3 cup unsalted cashews, toasted*
2 green onions, white and green parts separated and thinly sliced

In a medium bowl, toss chicken with sherry, ginger, and 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch; season with salt. Refrigerate 30 minutes. In another bowl, combine broth, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and 2 teaspoons cornstarch. Set sauce aside.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Add half the chicken and cook until golden and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Transfer chicken to a covered plate. Add 1 teaspoon oil to skillet and cook remaining chicken (reduce heat if chicken is over-browning). Transfer to plate.


To same skillet, add 1 teaspoon oil, garlic, cashews, and green onion whites. Cook, stirring constantly, until garlic begins to soften, about 30 seconds. Whisk sauce and add to skillet along with chicken. Cook until sauce thickens, about 30 seconds. Top with green onion greens and serve with rice or noodles.

*To toast cashews, place in a single layer of a dry pan over medium heat.  Toss periodically until you can just start to smell the nuts and they have a light brown color (3-4 minutes) - if you leave them still too long, they'll burn.

Serves 4 with a PointsPlus value of 12.

Suz: We made some Jasmine Minute Rice to go along with the chicken (neither April nor I are very good at making rice) as well as some steamed broccoli florets.  I loved this chicken!  The only thing I might add next time is a pinch of red pepper flakes for a little heat, and I'd toss the broccoli, or maybe some green beans, in with the chicken and sauce at the end.

April: This being my favorite dish... this recipe didn't quite add up to what I had hoped. It lacked veggies... flavor... umph. Needs more to it I do believe. Doesn't have to be pork but definitely has to be some more veggies!

Crisp Wontons with Strawberries and Yogurt

from Martha Stewart Everyday Food May 2010

12 wonton wrappers
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup whole natural almonds, finely chopped
1 cup plain 2 percent Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/4 cups fresh strawberries (8 ounces), hulled and sliced

Maggie liked the yogurt...

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place wonton wrappers on a rimmed baking sheet and brush with butter. Sprinkle with sugar and almonds. Bake until golden brown and crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer wontons to a wire rack and let cool.



...a lot!

 Dividing evenly, top 6 wontons with yogurt, a drizzle of honey, and strawberries, then sandwich with remaining wontons. Serve immediately.

 Serves 6, with a PointsPlus value of 4 each.

Suz: Apparently I couldn't stop myself from making changes to the recipes this week!  I used honey-flavored greek yogurt, then added about an additional tablespoon of honey (from Taylor's dad's hives) to the yogurt.  After tasting it, I decided to add some orange zest to the mix and that took it totally over the top.  I dry roasted the almond slices (didn't finely chop them) and sprinkled them on top of the yogurt before adding the strawberries.  These came out beautiful, but we had a hard time deciding how to eat them.  I ended up using my hands and dipping the wontons into the strawberries and yogurt.  Soo good - nice enough to serve to company!

April: My entire family like these... well Alden ate the strawberries, but the rest of us enjoyed this very much so. Maggie cried when I took her bowl away screaming MORE MORE! She had licked it plum clean. To the moms who read this... if nothing else make the yogurt!

Vegetarian Victims

Monday was Valentine's day so we moved this week's dinner to Wednesday night and invited our friends Sarah, Michelle and Alice over to Suzanne's house.  Alice had to work in Lynchburg (boo!), so she only got to make a pit-stop and get some dinner before her next meeting...


Tonight's Victims...



Sarah is vegetarian, so this was the perfect time for April and me to delve outside our comfort zone and maybe eat some veggies we wouldn't normally (i.e. eggplant for Suz).  Amazingly, Suzanne was still able to utilize her go-to vegetable - zucchini, and we are using our favorite cooking method - roasting!  It's become almost a joke, considering we add it into just about everything!

We had a RV planning meeting this weekend and came up with some new ideas for the Spring:

• in the next few weeks, we'll be making a trip to the grocery store together to search out vegetables that we've never tried before... then we'll find recipes and build a meal around them (Suz: This one kind of scares me!)
• later this Spring, we're going to head to the Grandin Farmer's Market and come up with a menu based totally on locally grown/produced foods.

We are really enjoying having different Victims each week and would love to have you over - we'll even come to your house if you want!  Just let us know and we'll figure out a week that works for all of us.  Speaking of "letting us know", we have a huge favor to ask of our loyal lurkers :) - we know you're reading the blog, we can see it in the stats/followers and you often tell us that you're reading.  But we need your comments/suggestions!  Drop us a line in the comments section to let us know what you think - have you tried something similar?  Did our pictures last week stink?  Do you have a recipe that you think we've got to try?  Please, let us know - we could use a little encouragement! ;)

Roasted Ratatouille Pasta
adapted from The Rachael Ray Show

1 Tbsp olive oil, divided
1 bulb garlic
1 medium eggplant, ends removed, peeled and cut into small chunks
2 medium zucchini cut into small chunks
2 medium sweet red pepper cut into small chunks
4 sprigs, fresh thyme, leaves removed
1 large red onion, quartered and cut into chunks
1 pint grape tomatoes,
1 box Smart Taste Penne
1/2 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup parsley, chopped
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 450F. Place a large pot of salted water over high heat and bring to a boil.

Cut a sliver off the top of the garlic head just large enough to expose the cloves. Tear off a large square of aluminum foil and place the garlic in the center. Drizzle a teaspoon of olive oil over the head and wrap the foil up around it. Place in the oven and roast until golden brown and tender, about 45 minutes.




While the garlic is roasting, cut up the veggies and place everything except the tomatoes on one or two large baking sheets, along with the thyme leaves. Once the garlic has been roasting for about 15 minutes, drizzle the veggies with 1 teaspoon olive oil and season them with some salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast them in the oven until tender and caramelized, about 30 minutes.


Once the veggies have been in the oven about 10 minutes, place the tomatoes onto another baking sheet, drizzle them with 1 teaspoon olive oil and hit them with some salt and freshly ground black pepper. Toss them into the oven with the other veggies and roast until they've burst and shriveled up slightly, 15-20 minutes.



Once the veggies have about 10 minutes left to go, drop the pasta into the boiling water and cook to al dente according to package directions. Before draining the pasta, ladle about 3/4 cup or so of the pasta cooking liquid into a large serving bowl. Drain the pasta and reserve.

Once the garlic is done roasting, allow it to cool enough to handle, then hold the head in your hand over the bowl with the pasta water and squeeze out all of the roasted cloves into the bowl. Add the tomatoes and mash everything together.

Add the roasted veggies, drained pasta, parsley and grated Parmigiano to the bowl and toss it all to combine.

Serves 6, with a PointsPlus Value of 9 each.

Suz: This recipe looks daunting because it seems like it has a lot of steps, but it was pretty easy to put together. The one thing I was worried about was roasting the garlic, so I did it this morning before I went to work.  I also prepped all of the other veggies and stuck them in the fridge so they'd be ready when I got home.  Dinner was Delicious!  Definitely a recipe to make again.  Michelle suggested that it would be even better with some italian sausage, Alice thought grilled chicken would be nice.  Sarah thought it was good as-is (go figure!). Even the eggplant was good.

April: I loved the flavors and textures in this dish. I thought it was fine without any meat. I really enjoyed it and Maggie enjoyed the leftovers with me today. She doesn't eat much so it's wonderful when I can find foods she will gobble up so quickly!

 

Frozen Peanut Butter Pie

From Weight Watchers: Comfort Classics

1 1/2 cups fat-free milk

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon of reduced-fat creamy peanut butter

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup frozen thawed fat-free whipped topping

1 6oz prepared reduced-fat graham cracker crust

1 tablespoon chopped dry roasted peanuts

1/2 ounce semisweet chocolate coarsely grated

1. Combine the milk and sugar in a medium saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Cooke, stirring constantly until the sugar is completely dissolved, about 2 minutes; remove from the heat. Whisk in peanut butter and vanilla until smooth. Pour into a medium bowl and refrigerate until completely cooled, about 1 hour.

2. Gently stir the whipped topping into the chilled milk mixture; spoon into the crust. Sprinkle with the peanuts and grated chocolate. Loosely cover the pie with wax paper, then with heavy-duty foil. Freeze until completely frozen, at least 4 hours or up to 2 days. Let the pie soften at room temperature 15 minutes before serving.

Suz: This pie was much lighter than I thought it would be, and not super peanut-buttery.  I would have liked a layer of chocolate, or maybe a chocolate crust? 

April: This pie was a pain to make. It never had the texture I thought it would in any part of making it... I spilled it everywhere at one point. Then my son pulled it out of the freezer and dropped it cracking the pie shell... dramatic I tell you DRAMA! Surprisingly though it was quite tasty. I thought it should set out longer before serving, but on a side note... it melts fast in your car... just saying...



After dinner, we headed down to pub quiz for our regular Wednesday night trivia. As I was rooting around in my purse looking for a pen, I (Suzanne) found this:



Onions like pub quiz too!

Apparently while I was stirring the roasted vegetables, a piece of red onion went overboard and jumped into my purse.  Why was my purse next to the oven, you ask? My apartment is very small and does not have a lot of storage space.  I have a bench that sits next to the oven and my purse found its way over there when I got home.  Don't worry, I'm moving in April to a much larger apartment so embarrassing episodes like this should happen far less often! :)

Comfort Food, Lightened Up

The last week has been a doozy: filled with birthday parties, work disasters, sick kids, schedule changes and lots of other things too yucky to mention on the blog :)   Beth and her friend Terry came to eat with us this week.  After dinner, the ladies entertained the children so we actually got to wash all the dishes from our cooking too, which isn't always possible.  They were both amazingly gracious and complimentary of our meal, and we hope that they'll come back for another dinner soon!  Next week is the vegetarian dinner... we're thinking eggplant, but if you have any ideas, please send them our way!

Broccoli Potato Soup with Sharp Cheddar

from WeightWatchers Points Plus Cookbook

1 tsp olive oil

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 small uncooked potato, baking, peeled and chopped

14 1/2 oz fat-free, reduced-sodium chicken broth, one can

1 cup water

1 pound broccoli, bunch, cut into 2-inch florets and stems sliced

1/4 cup Fat-free Half & Half

1/4 tsp table salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

1/2 cup Kraft Shredded 2% milk reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 minutes. Add garic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add potato, broth and water, bring to boil. Add broccoli, return to boil.

Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, 5 minutes. Remove 1/2 cup broccoli florets with slotted spoon, set aside. Simmer until potato is tender, about 5 minutes longer.

Pour soup, in batches, into blender and puree. Return soup to saucepan, add reserved broccoli florets, half and half, salt and pepper. Cook over low heat until hot, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat; add cheese, stirring until melted.

Makes 4 servings, with a PointsPlus value of 3 each.

Suz: When I first made the soup, I got really nervous that it didn't taste good.  Maybe I didn't puree it enough.  Maybe the recipe is a little off.  I added some extra chicken broth (I used all chicken broth instead of broth and water) and a few extra tablespoons of half and half.  I also added a bit more cheese  I brought it over to April's anyway and guess what?  After it had time to meld, it wasn't too bad.  Still think it needs to be a little smoother, I might add the cream before pureeing next time. 
April: I enjoyed the soup. It had a chunky texture too it so it didn't feel over cooked like some soups can and it wasn't overwhelmingly cheesey either which... I appreciated. Both of my kids ate the soup... if that tells ya anything!


Chicken and Bacon Roll Ups From Cooking Light: The Essential Dinner Tonight Cookbook

1/2 cup Hellmann's Light Mayonnaise

1 Tbsp chives, minced

2 tsp fresh lemon juice

4 Flatout Carbdown Original Bread
2 cups romaine lettuce, shredded
2 cups grape tomatoes, chopped
4 slices crisp cooked bacon, center cut
2 cups roasted chicken breast, shredded rotisserie

Combine mayo, chives and lemon juice in a small bowl. Spread 2 tablespoons mayo mixture over each flatbread. Top each with 1/2 cup lettuce, 1/2 cup tomato, 1 bacon slice (crumbled), and 1/2 cup chicken. Cut in half cross-wise to serve.

 Makes 4 roll ups, with a PointsPlus value of 9 each.

Suz: The original recipe called for tarragon instead of chives, but I don't care for tarragon so we went with one of the suggested alternatives.  Way too much mayo - could probably use 1/4 cup instead and it would be much better.  I ended up tossing the chicken with the mayo mixture rather than spreading it on the flatbread...Also may have added about 1/2 cup extra chicken, but it did make 5 good sized wraps!

April: I like the wrap and thought it felt quite sinful.... it was the mayo and bacon that made you feel like you were doing something terribly wrong!!! But apparently it wasn't as bad as it tasted. I felt like it had a tad bit too much mayo.

Easy Chocolate Skillet SouffleFrom Weight Watchers: Hit the Spot

1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar

7 oz of good quality semisweet chocolate, chopped (fyi chips will do just fine)

1/4 cup fat-free milk

2 large eggs, separated

2 large egg whites

Pinch salt

10 tablespoons thawed frozen fat-free whipped topping (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 400. Spray a 10 inch ovenproof skillet with nonstick spray and sprinkle evenly with 2 tablespoons of sugar. I used a large glass baking dish and it worked just fine.

2. Combine the chocolate and milk in a large microwavable bowl. Microwave on high 1 minute. Whisk until chocolate is melted and smooth. Whisk in the egg yolks.

3. With an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the 4 egg whites and salt into a medium bowl until soft peaks form. Increase the speed to medium-high. Add the remaining 1/3 sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form. (if you don't know the difference between soft peaks and stiff... youtube it baby). Fold one-fourth of the whites intot he chocolate mixture. Gently fold in the remaining whites just until no whtie streaks remain.

4. Gently pour the chocolate mixture ino the prepared skillet. Bake until the souffle springs back when lightly pressed in the center, 12-15 minutes.

5. Serve at once accompanied by whipped topping if using. Leftovers can be gently warmed in the microwave on medium-low power.

Suz: Delicious. Chocolatey. Totally hit the spot.  I saw someone making a souffle this weekend on the Food Network, so I was really excited to try this - it did not disappoint!

April: Yum... no really YUM. Here I have proof!

Simply Delicious

We're back at April's house this week with some simple, satisfying dishes fit for grownups and kids.  This meal came together, start to finish, in just over 30 minutes.  We made a few changes to the chicken sandwiches to cut down on fat and calories, and we never did find any arugula, so there was no salad on them either... The sandwiches were a hit with the kids, and the potatoes were a hit with April! :) 

Chicken Cordon Bleu Sandwiches

from Food Network Magazine, December 2010

4 chicken cutlets, 4 ounces each

1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

4 slices Black Forest ham

8 slices smoked mozzarella

1 baguette

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 bunch watercress or arugula, tough stems removed

Preheat the broiler. Line a baking sheet with foil and evenly space the chicken cutlets in the center. Brush the chicken with 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Broil, rotating the baking sheet as needed so the chicken cooks evenly, until lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the chicken and continue to broil until cooked through, 2 to 3 more minutes.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven and top each piece of chicken with 1 slice ham and 2 slices mozzarella. Broil until the cheese melts, 1 to 2 minutes. Season with salt and drizzle with olive oil.

Meanwhile, cut the baguette crosswise into 4 equal pieces, then split open. Spread the bottom halves with butter and the top halves with mustard. Toss the watercress with the remaining 1/2 tablespoon olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Sandwich the chicken and watercress between the baguette halves.

Serves 4 with a PointsPlus Value of 10 each.

Suz: The arugula was missed, and would have been nice with a splash of lemon juice on it.  I don't really like mustard, but I thought it was yum on this sandwich!
April: The kids loved the sandwiches! They gobbled them up. Me.. I was missing the arugula. It needed some salad on that sandwich! The rest of the taste was just right and I loved the Dijon on there!



Skillet Roasted Potatoes with Garlic and Rosemary
from WeightWatchers PointsPlus Cookbook

1 Tbsp regular butter
1 pound baby potatoes, scrubbed and halved
2 Tbsp water
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp rosemary, thyme or sage, chopped
1/2 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Melt butter in large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add potatoes and 1 tablespoon of the water and stir to coat. Reduce heat to low and cook covered, stirring occasionally, 15 minutes. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of water and cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender and well browned, about 15 minutes longer.

Sprinkle potatoes with garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes longer.

Makes 4 servings, with a PointsPlus value of 3 each.

Suz: I used the potatoes Mom brought me from Trader Joe's this weekend - they were perfect!  This dish would be great anytime, but I think it will be wonderful in the summer when you don't want to heat up the oven, but want some tasty roasted potatoes!  I forgot the rosemary at home, so we substituted dried rosemary.  I added the salt/pepper/rosemary after the first 15 minutes to make sure that the flavor got into the potatoes.  Loved them, will definitely make them again!!

April: They were quite tasty... I know Suz is totally cracking up that she has the ability to post such a flattering picture of me on the blog [Suz: I am!]. The flavoring was wonderful.. the texture perfect. The little potatoes... yummo. If you have a Trader Joe's... you should try them.


Oven Roasted Green Beans
Suzanne's recipe

1 bag frozen whole green beans
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Toss everthing together.  Bake at 400 for 10-12 minutes or until cooked through.  Makes 4 servings, with a PointsPlus value of 1 each.

Suz: Green beans are my favorite vegetable.  Loved these, next time may shoot the temp up 25-50 degrees for better roasting - they weren't over done, but I'd like a little more brown-ness.  I also must admit that I originally doused them with minced ginger instead of garlic...had to rinse them off a little before I added the garlic, so that could have been the added "interesting" flavor! :)

April: Both of my kids really enjoyed the green beans. I really thought they were the perfect crispy texture and the spices were interesting and you just had to try one more to try to figure it all out!