Recipes & Cooking!

Have any of you fellow foodies ever seen Tastespotting.com?

I swear it's like food p****graphy. (Word censored to protect the terminally young or overly sensitive.)

Layla47 wrote:

I have no idea if that cookbook will ever come out, but she used diced roasted eggplant and it was amazing.

Diced roasted eggplant. I've heard of that, but never done it before. I'll have to try it next time.

Layla47 wrote:

I just made a balsamic vinegar strawberry pie. I haven't tried it yet, but hopefully its good.

Mmm, strawberries and balsamic vinegar are amazing together. The tartness of the vinegar with just about any fruit is so yum. Adding a bit is my secret trick when I'm serving fruit and it's not as sweet as I'd like it to be. I once made a mojito using a strawberry-infused balsamic vinegar. Was delicious. I have a recipe for a lavender mojito around here somewhere, I'll have to look for it.

I can't see anyone getting offended over the term "Food Porn." I use it in front of my grandma, she finds it hilarious. I hope people on here aren't that sensitive..

WARNING, UPCOMING FOOD PORN, PEOPLE!



This here is a Sexy Low fat Vanilla Cupcakes with Berries. I'm guessing that word is okay, because they use it on Fairy Odd Parents..

It's from Vegan Cupcakes Takeover the World, and I would encourage anyone (Vegan or not) to get this book. It is fantastic.

For the cupcakes:
1/2 cup vanilla soy yogurt
2/3 cup vanilla or plain soymilk (Low fat or fat free is an option)
1/4 cup applesauce
3 tablespoons canola oil
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

For the skinny confectioners’ icing:
1 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted
1 to 3 teaspoons soymilk, or 1 tablespoon flavoured syrup (Like the kind used for flavouring lattes and Italian sodas)
1/2 cup seedless, smooth spreadable fruit or other preserves
1 cup fresh fruit or berries, washed, patted dry and thinly sliced if necessary

To make the cupcakes:
1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a muffin pan with cupcake liners.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together yogurt, soy milk, applesauce, oil, sugar, and vanilla
Sift in flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, and mix.
3. Fill cupcake liners three-quarters full. Bake 22 to 24 minutes until a knife or toothpick inserted through the center of one comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

To make the icing:
1. Mix confectioners’ sugar with soy milk or syrup, either with a fork or a small whisk. Mixture will resemble a very thick paste or batter. Carefully dribble in remaining soy milk, one teaspoon at a time, till mixture resembles a thin cake batter, adjusting additional soy milk by either less or more teaspoons till desired consistency is reached. If too watery, add in more confectioners’ sugar by the tablespoon.

To assemble:
1. Spread top of cupcake with a few thin layers of spreadable fruit at room temperature. Neatly and evenly spread the layers for the most attractive appearance. Spoon a small circle of Skinny Confectioners’ Icing on top of jam, decorate with fresh fruit, and carefully drizzle tops of berries with more icing.

Last edited by Layla47 (07-15-2008 07:21)

No I haven't, but I'll definitely look into it. I had an episode a couple months back where I had gotten $100 worth of Amazon credit saved up, and bought almost 200 dollars worth of cookbooks.. So I've banned myself from buying anything for awhile.

I'm currently reading On Food and Cooking - The Science and Lore of the Kitchen by Harold McGee. It's really rather interesting. I just finished Humble Pie - Musings on what lies beneath the crust by Anne Dimock, which was amazing. She's put me in a pie making state.

And about the cookbook - Anything by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero is pretty much guaranteed to be awesome. I'd highly suggest all three of their books if you're interested in vegan/vegetarian cooking.

Last edited by Layla47 (07-15-2008 09:09)

HairyToes wrote:

3/4    cup canned pure pumpkin

I do love dressed-up pancakes. Have you ever tried this in fall with fresh pumpkin, or only the canned version? I think I'm going to save this recipe for a few months. I'm sure I'll have to adjust for moisture content if I use fresh... anyone have experience cooking with pumpkins? I do a fall stew cooked in a pumpkin, but it's not really the same thing.

Mm, Pumpkin pancakes? That sounds fab!!! I made pancakes with frozen blueberries and lemon zest last week with whipped cream and they have me on a pancake binge.

Tastespotting is gorgeous adacatcher, thanks for the link! I think I might be drooling....

i wish that i loved to cook. you'd think with a husband and a child i'd be some kind of homemaker. i'd rather go to mc donald's or eat oreos. i  know i'm sad......

Nemaine wrote:

Annnd now for the Rosemary & Garlic Chicken recipe for Lil Miss Chicki!

Flavor Profile:  Rich
Challenge:  Depends (see notes)
Serve With:  Mashed potatoes and roasted asparagus, steamed broccoli and a baked potato, garlic bread, another starch, and veggies etc.

Adapted from:  A "20 minute meals" cookbook.

Notes:  I don't recommend using pre-chopped garlic from a bottle for this--it tends to burn.  The original recipe also asked that you flatten your chicken, then cook it in a frying pan over medium heat.  This also tended to burn things.  If you want to flatten your chicken and fry it, do so, but I've found the best way to do it in the instructions below.  Easy to double or quadruple.  I'm posting it for one.

Ingredients:
--1 boneless skinless Chicken breast
--2-3 cloves Garlic, more if you have tiny cloves.
--Rosemary:  If you have fresh rosemary, 3 sprigs will do the trick.  One of those nice already pulled together packets of rosemary in the grocery store generally turns out to be perfect for 4 people.  If you do not have fresh rosemary, determine how punget your dried rosemary is.  Depending on its freshness, or lack thereof, you may need a tablespoon full per person!  I recommend fresh for this.
--Salt + Pepper
--Olive Oil

Instructions:

1) Preheat your oven to 400 (higher if your oven will do it; mine refuses) (skip this step if you are just flattening the breasts and cooking them in the skillet the whole way through).
2)  Make sure your chicken is mostly the same thickness.  If not, flatten some breasts.  You will not want uneven cooking, or else some people will be eating sooner than others, or breasts will be drying out (again, if you are cooking them in the skillet on the stovetop the whole way through, just mallet them out to about 1/4 inch thickness).
3)  Salt and pepper your chicken lightly.
4)  Pour olive oil into a skillet and put it on medium high heat.
5)  When the skillet becomes preheated, throw about half of the aromatics (the garlic & rosemary).  DO NOT HEAT THESE UP FOR VERY LONG OR THEY WILL BURN.  After about 30 seconds or so, put in your chicken.
6)  Brown both sides of the chicken if you are putting them in the oven (if you are frying them the whole way through, this is where you finish cooking them.  Put the rest of the aromatics in the pan in the last few minutes of cooking).
7)  Put the chicken on... a) a cookie sheet lined with foil, b) in a proper meat pan of some kind or c) keep it on your skillet if oven safe (usually I have to do a, but if I'm lucky, I can do b)
8)  Layer with the rest of the aromatics.  If the chicken looks like it could use it, add more olive oil.   Put in the oven until it is cooked through.  My oven is a bum, so i can't give you a good time estimate.  it will probably be 15-20 minutes.

Frying it a little beforehand will keep the chicken moist, which is a huge problem with baked chicken.

Good luck!

Thanks!
I can't cook right now cuz I'm in the middle of moving but as soon as I move in I'm going to make this. Yum!!!

Nemaine wrote:

Oh a total side note:

Who here is vegetarian, and who isn't?
(I love vegetarian dishes to be sure, but I'm wondering if anyone has a couple good cheap meat  ideas since I'm low on protein and like my meat, lol).

I used to be a vegetarian, lol.  But "fake meat" like tofu or soy protein is more expensive than real meat.  Now I buy free range organic chicken which is horribly expensive.

Other sources protein-nuts, eggs, soy, dairy, peanut butter, cheese....

Hot dogs are cheap 

Cashew butter is awesome. So much better than peanut!

Yeah, I'm sorry I can't really help you with the meat stuff. No idea remotely how to prepare it.. But beans are always good for protein, and can be very versatile.

Well, actually, I just bought a ton of normal people (I.e., meat heavy) cookbooks. I'm not sure how expensive various meats are, but what sort of stuff do you like? I have a French cookbook, Southern, Soul food.. Lots of really random stuff.

No, it's my favorite. You no cn haz.

Seriously, though. I love this thread. I hope it stays alive forever (or until Chris and Nico have to get our permission for a MissBimbo cookbook).

BTW, I was vegan for four years. I now eat meat. I will eat nearly anything once. Bugs, innards, blood... I am a big time omnivore. However, I am not one of those people who feels a meal is incomplete without meat.

Nemaine wrote:

LilMissChicki--Oops!... lol, I'm definitely not vegetarian (I can't fill up if I don't have some meat).  This thread just had a ton of vegetarian and vegan recipes, so I was just wondering if I'd need to recruit some other people for meat recipes! 

Gotta say though when I was a kid we had a lady deliver vegan meals to our house once a week (I can't for the life of me remember WHY) and some of the stuff was DELISH

If you're looking for a meat recipe, I have a great clone recipe for Colonel Saunders original chicken. It's the closest I've found so far and tastes delicious plus as you make it yourself you can choose to grill instead of fry if you want it less fattening.

Spice Ingredients:

1 tablespoon Rosemary
1 teaspoon Pepper
1 tablespoon Oregano Leaves
1 tablespoon Paprika
1 tablespoon powdered Sage
2 tablespoons Garlic Salt
1 teaspoon powdered Ginger
2 tablespoons Onion Salt
1 teaspoon Marjoram
2 tablespoons Chicken Stock Cubes (mashed)
1.5 teaspoons Thyme
3 tablespoons Brown Sugar
3 tablespoons dry minced Parsley

Blend all ingredients in blender for 2-3 minutes or rub through strainer (makes about ¾ cup).
Add 1 ounce to every 1 cup of flour for coating chicken.

Chicken

Partially boil chicken pieces and pat dry. Mix each piece in a plastic bag together with the prepared spices.
Refrigerate for 2-3hours.

Now just cook as you choose, I prefer to deep fry but grilling and barbeque works well too.

Oh and I figured I should ask here.............

I'm thinking of making an irish soda bread sometime soon.... I have seen a few recipes online but I was wondering if anyone here had vetted a nice soda bread they could recommend.

Thank youuu <3!