Summer Meals

The other day I got into a discussion with another woman at the pool about summer cooking. We were enjoying the perfect summer day and though it was nearing dinner time, neither of us (or our kids) wanted to rush home quite yet. But we both knew our kids, upon hitting their car seats would be famished and falling over with hunger by the time we got home. We starting talking about summer meals and I told her I had started making a list of our favorites. I promised I would publish it, and it seemed like a good enough reason to resurrect the food blog again. :)

These meals are either:
1) quick to throw together in 20 min or less OR
2) easily prepared ahead of time and then cooked in 20 min or so

They all take advantage of the abundance of beautiful produce during summer months!
And they are all simple straight forward meal ideas....because staying at the pool an extra hour is what summer is all about!

Hummus wraps with fresh veggies and feta or goat cheese
Chicken/veggie kebabs with Satay (recipe: 1 C coconut milk, 2 Tbs. sucanat, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp red curry paste, 1/2 C peanut butter, basil to taste)
Grilled salmon
Steaks and grilled potatoes
Caesar salad
Gazpacho and corn bread
Black bean/mango quesedillas and guacamole
Corn and tomato pie (http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/08/tomato-and-corn-pie/)
BLT's
Zucchini fritters (http://www.marthastewart.com/261922/zucchini-fritters)
Shrimp Spring rolls w/ peanut thai sauce
Curried Egg Salad Wraps
Pesto Pasta
Burgers and corn on the cob
Fish tacos
Brats and grilled veggies
Stuffed peppers
Egg "Mc Muffins" (egg, cheese on english muffin...can add veggies) and fresh fruit

What are your favorite summer meals? Im sure I missed a few of ours and will keep adding to the list. Would love to add yours!

Peanut Butter Cup in Cake Form

Yesterday was my birthday, and since birthdays are perfect occasions to indulge, I made myself this cake. Believe me, it did not disappoint. I'm one of those people who can't understand when someone declares something to be too rich or too sweet. What? Too rich?! Never.
This recipe might, might make me say that though. But not out loud.

Last year, or maybe even the year before, I printed this recipe from my go-to foodie blog, Smitten Kitchen. Chocolate and Peanut butter charm me like no other combo. But for some reason, I couldnt bring myself to make it, scared that I would fall over in a diabetic coma after one piece.

Its good. Divine. But you only need a sliver, and as Smitten Kitchen warned, a BIG glass of milk. Enough said. Enjoy.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

*Note: recipe makes enough for an army, considering the sliver servings. DO NOT MAKE UNLESS YOU ARE HAVING A PARTY.

*Second note. This post is dedicated to my friend Meri, with whom I have shared more peanut butter and chocolate desserts with than anyone else in the world.

Move over Prego: Hearty Pasta Sauce

The 15 minutes it takes to make pasta sauce is time well spent...if you ask me:)
My other mother, Becky, gave me an early appreciation for home made sauce, and the secret ingredient-a wee bit of sugar. Now I admit, not everyone will take to the hint of sweetness in their tomato sauce, but to me its a nice contrast to the savory flavor of the beef or sausage. Of course the remaining secrets to good sauce are obvious, good ingredients. While my recipe uses canned tomatoes, fresh or home canned are always preferred...
If you buy tomatoes canned, go for organic....

My wee one enjoying the sauce. What is not pictured is the large tarp underneath his high chair or the very necessary bath after he thoroughly enjoys his meal.

Hearty Pasta Sauce

1 lb. ground beef (or pork sausage)
1 med onion, diced
1/2 green pepper, diced
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp dried orgegano (if using fresh herbs, used 1 Tbs.)
1 tsp dried basil (same as above)
2 14.5 oz cans of diced tomatoes
1 14.5 oz. can tomato sauce
1 6oz. can tomato paste
1 Tbs. sucanat (or brown sugar)
1 Tbs. fresh parsley, chopped

Brown meat over medium heat until 3/4 cooked, then add onion, pepper, and garlic and cooked until meat is browned and vegetables are soft. Add remainder of ingredients and let simmer for as little as 15-30 min.
Leftovers can easily be frozen for later use!

Peter Reinhart's Napoletana Pizza Dough

Fridays in the Rader house are celebrated with pizza. This tradition dates back to the early years of our marriage, and my quest for the perfect crust has been, at times, obsession. Everyone is partial to a different type of crust, but my own favorite is a thin chewy variety...leaning on the pastry style. I can't count the number of recipes I've tried, promising a "thin pastry style crust," only to leave me disappointed. Most of them turn out too bready, yeasty, or thick.

But friends, my search is over. I found my recipe. Well, Peter's recipe.

Once I read up on Pete, I couldn't believe I hadnt bumped into this recipe sooner. He's a fairly well know baker and even put out an entire book devoted to his "search for the perfect pizza".
I knew he could point me to great sandwich bread, but I didn't know he did pizza.

The secret, I think, to this recipe is the overnight fermentation process. And, unlike other recipes, ice water is added to the yeast, which gives it a late activation. A pizza stone is a must, and if you, like me, dont have a pizza peel, just use the back side of a cookie sheet and slide the pizza onto the hot stone. I cook mine at 500 degrees on the top shelf on the oven and it works great!

I had good intentions of taking a picture of the beautiful pies on Friday, but we gobbled them down before I thought of getting my camera out. Perhaps next week I'll remember:)
Without further adieu....the recipe link....(there are many, but I like this blog)

Peter Reinhart's Napoletana Pizza Dough

Black Bean Chili

Yesterday, as you might have noted, chili was on the menu. The snow that started to fall mid-day made this warm comfort food all the more welcome!
This recipe is a modified version of a recipe given to me by a friend. I like the black bean replacing the traditional kidney beans, and the addition of carrot gives it a perfect sweetness (and some added nutrition)!
Plop some sour cream and cheese on top and a side of corn bread and you won't mind being snowed in at all......

Black Bean Chili

1 lb. ground beef
3/4 C sliced green onion (all the white and part of the green)
2 green peppers, diced
1 C shredded carrot
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes
2 14.5 oz cans black beans (or soaked beans to equal 3 C)
2 14.5 oz. cans tomato sauce
4 tsp. chili powder
1 Tbs. basil
ground pepper and salt to taste

Cook beef over med heat until 3/4 cooked, then add onion, peppers, carrot, and garlic and continue to cook until vegetables are soft and meat is fully cooked. Add tomatoes, beans, and spices and simmer for 2 or more hours. Can also be slow cooked in a crock pot.

Serves 8...unless they are really hungry, then only 6.

If I only do one post this year

If you're reading this post, you certainly are a patient friend. I mean, I havent posted since April. Sigh. Its not for lack of ideas or new recipes or fun topics...in fact, Ive written about 500 posts in my head. Its just sitting down to document that I struggle to find the time to do. But, its a new year, so why not try again. I know Im risking losing my few readers forever if I slack off again. All I can promise is that I'll try. If all I do is put up a link for a recipe we liked, I figure at least its something. And at least I'll remember what I've cooked!

So, to provide a little inspiration for you, Im starting my year of posts with menu planning.Its one of the few things Im consistent at, and one of the things folks ask me about the most. If you come over, you'll see that little pad of paper above on my fridge. On Sundays I plan meals for the week, and jot down the things we have going on. I take a quick assessment of the fridge: produce we need to eat, things we need, etc....and then I make our meal list. Here's the general criteria for our meals:

1. Variety. In general, we eat each of the following proteins once a week: beef, poultry, fish, legumes (beans mostly), eggs (several times a week) I also try to vary our side dishes and veggies, making them in different ways to keep the fam interested (who would want steamed veggies every day?) I also have to balance cost. So if we have an expensive meal one night (wild salmon), then you can bet another night will be rice and beans (so healthy, so cheap!)

2. Ease. While I have been known to make something extravagant on a random Tuesday night, in general, I need to make things that can be made and cooked within an hour. Most things I prep during nap time and then I do the final assembly right before dinner.

3. Healthy. We dont eat perfectly, but it is important to me that our family eats well. I do keep some prepared sauces on hand and my kids are very familiar with boxed mac n cheese, but most of what we eat is home prepared. I try to introduce new foods to my kids whenever I can, and Im always amazed at what they will try!


How do I decide what to cook?

It goes something like this:
1. Make my assessment of what we have or need to use up. Instead of deciding what I want to make and then shopping for it, I keep a well stocked pantry and then cook based on what fresh things are available to me that week. If the cauliflower looks great at the farmers market, I buy it, and then plan meals with it. If we have extra eggs, that week in addition to eggs in the morning a couple of days, I might make a quiche. I only buy chicken once a month, so once its gone, its gone. I only shop for staples about once per month, and the fresh stuff we pick up once a week.

2. Keeping in mind a different main protein for each day, I think about how to use the ingredients we have creatively. While I have a ginormous stack of cookbooks and cycle favorite recipes fairly often, I also try new things every week. Lets say I have lots of cous cous and mushrooms I need to use up. A google search ensues and within a minute, I have a tasty recipe for that day. If we like it, I print it and we use it again sometime. If not, its forgotten!

3. Food is important, people are more important. This means that I plan around our family and engagements we have the best I can. The evenings I work, I plan something I can prepare ahead of time for AJ or give him a very basic recipe that can be made quick. We have friends for dinner at least once a week, so I consider what meals are easier for larger crowds. If we have somewhere to be in the evening, we might just have soup and tuna melts for dinner to decrease stress.

I dont generally plan breakfasts or lunches. Breakfasts are always a cycle of oatmeal, eggs, smoothies, and cold cereal. Weekends we make big breakfasts like pancakes or waffles.
Lunch is the place I get stuck....maybe thats a resolution for this year: simple yet interesting lunches.

I might from time to time post our weekly meals...just to give you new ideas. I mean, if you want.

Here's what on the menu this week:

Sunday (usually left overs or something I can cook in 5 minutes): Tortellini and salad
Monday: Salmon cakes and roasted cauliflower
Tuesday: Broccoli and cheese quiche
Wednesday: Stir fry with tofu and coconut sauce
Thursday: Beef chili and corn bread
Friday: (as every other) homemade pizza
Saturday: left chili


Any meal planning tips you want to share?

One year of bread making!

One year ago I decided to try my hand at bread-making. Im happy to say that we've bought very few loaves since then and Im really enjoying learning this new art. But an art it is, and Im still very novice at it. Some of my experiments have ended in the ugliest loaves you've ever seen. Not to mention all the help from the kids. Last week, just as my beautiful bread was finally ready for baking, I found it punched down and covered in sand. One of my little people just couldnt resist.....they have seen me punch it down...Im sure they thought they were helping! If only they hadnt been in the sandbox just before "helping". Sigh.

I've tried quite a few recipes, mostly whole wheat varieties. Im still learning about what affects the crumb, and how protein percentages change the gluten. How not to over or under knead, and how to get the perfect moisture content. One day I'll know 110 degree water by touch instead of a thermometer, but Im a long way from that!

To celebrate one year of making bread, I ordered this book:
http://www.amazon.com/Bread-Bible-Henspergers-Favorite-Recipes/dp/0811816869

I've checked it out from the library several times and today borrowed it from my friend Stefanii. Its time I have my own copy....now that Im a bread-baker!

Today I made Beth's Honey Buttermilk bread for the first time.....it wont last long around here!
It went from this:

To this.....

To this!