On a Roll

I figured out why I haven't been such a fan of fruit-stuffed meat. I love all the components, but the flavor just falls short. This recipe for Mediterranean Turkey Rollups really hit the nail on the head. It packs such a punch in the filling that it doesn't get lost amidst the wrapping. Served amidst a sea of butternut squash fries, I kept it a little light since I had the last wedge of Banana Cream Pie to finish up :) YUM!


I actually prepared the filling ahead of time, and also used turkey scallopini that I had picked up instead of pounding out cutlets. Not a meat eater? The filling would be a great match tossed with some pasta! Hope everyone is enjoying the weekend :)

Shrimp and Pears

Hmm, well it seems to be an Ellie Krieger kind of week with the addition of this post! First up was Baked shrimp w/tomatoes & feta. While it didn't blow me away, it was a good and will definitely stay in my arsenal for a quick, tasty meal. Oh, the pears didn't go in with the shrimp, don't worry! I had an ezequiel english muffin to help sop up the juices (it's hiding up in the top of the picture).



With the open bottle of red wine from my Stuffed Pork and a few pears in my fruit bowl ripening too fast, I decided to make some red wine-poached pears! Once poached, I sliced them up and added the liquid back as I refrigerated them until I was ready to get drunk, err, I mean consume. I served up some slices with greek yogurt sweetened with a little bit of agave and topped with a little wheat germ for a delicious dessert! I tried to get all artsy, but apparently from the lack of good photos I failed :)


Last but not least, I feel honored to mention a giveaway from one of my favorite bloggers, Ricki! (think chocolate pate, of late) Go visit her at Diet, Dessert and Dogs... ESPECIALLY if you live in the toronto area :)

Some Pork, Kale and a new read!

Wow, what a day yesterday, eh? I'm happy that he's planning on restoring science to its proper position (among other things)!


On tonight's menu, Apple-Stuffed Pork Roast and some Kale Skins. The pork was alright (might've benefited from some cheddar or goat cheese in the middle), the kale skins were quite good, but I think the book chilling in the corner of the picture was the highlight of my night! I received Healthy Indian Cooking in the mail today from a good friend of mine (thank you Anand!!!) and couldn't be more excited to try out these recipes! I'm beat, so I'm off to relax, have a great night everyone :)

Heather Made Me Do It

I posted a comment about Ellie Krieger's cookbook on Heather's post, and she totally called me out, asking about the chocolate and banana cream pies. It just so happens that at the time she was typing that comment, I was wondering what to do with the ripe bananas that were in my fridge, and the open container of quick oats that need to be finished. Well, friends, I wish I could tell you I had the strength not to do it, but I caved. And made pie. ~sigh~

bananas layered over an oatmeal cookie crust

I have posted a few recipes on here that call for gelatin. If you really want to know what it is (and don't already), I'll leave you to that. I've avoided thinking about it when I make these desserts, not knowing an alternative. I did some research and it seemed that equal amounts of powdered agar (also labeled agar agar) can be substituted for gelatin (1x). Well, I couldn't find powdered agar, only agar flakes, which can be substituted in a 3x amount for gelatin (if a recipe calls for 1t, you'd use 1T, or 3t, of agar flakes). The catch being agar flakes are harder to dissolve. Why do I bring this up? Because the Banana Cream Pie recipe calls for gelatin, so I figured I'd give these agar flakes a try. Here's what I did...


Banana Cream Pie



Oatmeal cookie crust, made with whole wheat flour and 1/4c total turbinado sugar (instead of the brown sugar and natural sugar)
3T + 1.5t agar flakes
3T water
1/4c turbinado sugar
3T WW pastry flour
2 egg yolks
1.5c skim milk
1/2t vanilla extract (for some reason I halved this, don't know why, but I'd use at least 1t)
2 large bananas, sliced


Put the agar flakes and water in a small bowl or glass measuring cup and microwave 30sec to get the agar to start to dissolve. In a medium saucepan, whisk together sugar and the flour. In a medium bowl lightly beat the milk and eggs together, then add to saucepan and whisk so flour and sugar dissolve. Cook over a medium heat, stirring occasionallyuntil mixture comes to a boil and has thickened. Stir in the vanilla extract and agar mixture and continue to boil until agar completely dissolves. I let this boil for awhile and it didn't completely dissolve, not sure how to fix this, but I kep going...

Arrange the sliced bananas on the graham cracker crust and pour the pudding on top. Place in the refrigerator until the pudding has set, about 3 hours or overnight. Serve with fresh whipped cream, if desired. I did not, so I just enjoyed it in all its glory :) And how was Ellie's banana cream pie? I guess I didn't really make it... hehe

I couldn't tell that the agar wasn't completely dissolved by taste or texture, but you could kind of see it (click to enlarge the photo of the finished pie). It did set well enough, so it does seem like a good substitute, I'm just not sure if this was the way it's supposed to be or not. Feel free to chime in if you've used it for puddings!

I gave some to a friend of mine who reads the blog (Hi Rebecca!), so maybe she'll chime in with how she liked it :)

A couple more notes about agar:

--Acidic foods may require more agar (citrus, strawberries)

--Some foods may not work: kiwi, pineapple, fresh figs, papaya, mango, peaches, chocolate and spinach

Here are my sources:

http://www.vegsoc.org/info/gelling.html

http://www.foodsubs.com/ThickenGelatins.html

http://whatscookingamerica.net/Q-A/Agar.htm

Spicing up the Aubergine

After seeing Gina rave about this eggplant curry quite a few times, I decided I had to give it a shot in my own kitchen. Not having tried it before, I found a few recipes online and adapted them to create my own version... can't say how authentic it was, but I enjoyed it!


Baingan Bharta
Recipe by Shannon, adapted from several sources (see links above)
~2 servings if you include some naan



1 large eggplant, roasted at 450deg and flesh scooped out
1T EVOO
1c chopped onion (i had a red one on hand)
2 cloves garlic
1" piece of fresh ginger, grated
1/3 jalapeno, diced
3/4 can diced roasted tomatoes with chilis
1t cumin
1/4t tumeric
1/2t garam masala
dash of cayenne
1/4t coriander
1/4t paprika
1t chili powder
1/2c greek yogurt, optional

Heat EVOO in pan over medium heat. Add onions and saute until softened. Add ginger, garlic, jalapeno and saute 2-3 min. Add remaining ingredients (except yogurt) and cook maybe 15min. I prepared this ahead of time so I gave it a few days to hang out in the fridge, allowing the flavors to come together.

To serve, I prepared some WW Naan, and then warmed up some of the Baingan Bhartha. The spice level was a bit too much for me, so I topped it with some greek yogurt to cool it off a bit!! And then washed it all down with a glass of milk :)



Apparently, this was the week to make this dish, as it popped up at Serious Eats and then See Jess Run! I really like Jess' addition of chickpeas, I thought of it myself, but finished my last can on the pumpkin hummus.

Have you guys seen the Honest Foods giveaway over at Oh She Glows?? Hurry, it's only open until Saturday!

Pear Gorgonzola Risotto

The other day I saw a recipe for flatbread with carmelized leeks, pears and blue cheese. The flavor combination was definately one I wanted to try, I just didn't want even half a flatbread for myself since I didn't think it would reheat very well. The ingredients ran around in my head, then one night before I fell asleep I settled on risotto! Turns out the idea is not that unique, but it was delightful nonetheless! Mine differed slightly, so here's what I did...

with some chicken sausage

Pear Gorgonzola Risotto
Recipe by Shannon



1T EVOO
1 medium leek, cut (half-moon shaped) and cleaned
1/2c arborio rice
2T white wine (the last of a bottle, I keep the small ones on hand for cooking, optional)
~2c stock, warmed
~1/3c gorgonzola
1 bosc pear, chopped (I left the skin on)

In a medium skillet, heat oil over medium-low heat. Add leeks and cook until nice and softened, but not browned. Add wine if using, stir and let rice absorb the liquid. Add stock, ~1/2c at a time, stir, then wait until liquid absorb. Once the rice is tender and no longer taking up liquid, stir in the gorgonzola and pear, and serve! I turned off the heat and left it on the burner for a little bit to allow the flavors to incorporate a bit more.

Winners!

Sorry for the delay on posting the winner... it's been busy at work and my tv also died at the end of last week so i've been on the search for the best way to spend money i wasn't expecting to :( Anyone having a tv giveaway? lol.

Thank you guys SO much for all of your comments!! Since I was behind the 8-ball, I "entered" everyone into the random number generator :) And I wish I had bought more so everyone could be the winner... but instead, I split up the goods to share the wealth! Erica, MacDuff and Heather McD, please email me at tri2cook [at] gmail [dot] com with your mailing addresses and I should get these out to you soon!

While I'm here, I need to give a shout out for Megan's Black Beans & Rice w/Pumpkin Vinaigrette, which was fantastic! I used one of kashi's new packet grains, and also added a bag of spinach that I'd sauteed with garlic (thanks for the idea Heather!). Fantastic dish that will definitely be repeated. In the background is just a turkey scallopini that i seared in a pan and topped with salsa, seemed to fit the theme. And yes, that is a huge serving and a tiny piece of turkey!!



For a couple lunches this week I made up a small Apple Ham Bake with sweet potatoes (hence the container instead of a plate. It was quite yummy, but I used more curry powder than called for, and next time would use even more as I didn't taste it very much. It has potential, I might just play with the seasonings a bit. (Rosiecat, did you know I had this up my sleeve??)


Have you guys seen these? They are the snap -n-lock type, but with glass bottoms, which I prefer when reheating food in the microwave. Love 'em! I try to bring my lunch all the time, although there is too much free food around. One of the reasons I cook so many different things is that I try to scale each recipe to 2-3 servings, so as not to get bored and eat the same thing for lunch and dinner 3 days straight (done that, not much fun). What I bring, varies on what I am trying to use up or whether a particular recipe strikes my fancy. Often it's something that could pass as dinner, i'm not that discerning :)