Recipe
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Recipe / Valentine's Day Simple but impressive Valentine's Day Meals: Part II
Posted by Kelly Davis on Thu, Feb 9, 2012 at 4:28 PM
Last week I shared with you a plan for a simple, but impressive, Valentine's Day meal with salmon. Well, this week, I'm sharing a romantic meal for all you meat lovers out there.
When it comes to steak, typically, I can take it or leave it. The only exception is a good filet mignon. Call me picky, but It's my absolute favorite way to eat beef. And since I'm married to a beef-loving man, it is often the center piece of my cooked-at-home Valentine's Day meal.
- Kelly Davis
- Valentine's Day Meal
In my humble opinion, the ultimate fancy DIY meal involves filet mignon, risotto, and a hearty green vegetable. I've made this meal so many different ways over the years ...
... with creamy sauces.
... with earthy mushrooms.
... with about as many ingredients you can think to add to risotto.
But I know that all of you reading this are not just like me. The typical cook doesn't like over-complicated recipes. You probably don't find it therapeutic to stand over a pan of risotto, babysitting it, nurturing it, pour by pour of broth, for an entire hour.
I'm betting that you want something simple, so you can spend Valentine's Day with the person you love ... or at least like enough to spend a holiday.
I get you.
And just for you, I have simplified my go-to fancy meal. There's no multiple cooking methods for preparing the steak. Instead of the classic laborious approach to making risotto, you simply bake it and forget about it.
- Kelly Davis
- Tiramisu
Did I mention that this meal includes an ultra classy, utterly simple dessert?
Tiramisu is one of those misnomer desserts: It sounds incredibly classy (and it is), but terribly difficult to make (but it isn't). In reality, it's a delicately sweet and elegant way to end a meal that will leave you thinking, "Is that really all there is to it?"
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Recipe / Valentine's Day Simple but impressive Valentine's Day meals: Part I
Posted by Kelly Davis on Thu, Feb 2, 2012 at 1:01 PM
Want to know the best way to impress your significant other this Valentine’s Day? Cook. Yes, it really is that simple.
Take it from someone who fell in love over my own dining room table. Cooking for the one you love (or really like) is magical. Early in my relationship with my (now) husband, I cooked for him. Almost every night. With hardly any prior experience in cooking entire meals.
- Kelly Davis
- Cooking in Italy on Our Honeymoon
He was so impressed that I was willing to go to such great lengths to feed him and spent a few minutes of every one of those meals telling me how wonderful the food was ... telling me how wonderful I was.
I ate it up.
And if I can do it, you can do it, too. You don’t have to be a gourmet chef or a domestic goddess to impress your date. You just need something that looks amazing, but in reality, is very simple to make.
Don't worry, I’ve got you covered.
I’m going to teach you how to make a complete meal that is just as beautiful as anything you would order in a fancy restaurant, but also a meal that anyone can cook. The ingredients and preparation methods are simple — dare I say, easy? — and you can totally do this.
Just follow my directions and you’re well on your way to making your Valentine’s Day date think that you’re an amazing cook.
Your Valentine’s Day Menu
Maple Dijon Salmon with Roasted Sweet and Yellow Potatoes and Green Beans Almondine.
For Dessert:Death by Chocolate Mousse with Whip Cream and Strawberries
- Kelly Davis
- Valentine's Day Meal
- Kelly Davis
- Chocolate Mousse
Friday, January 27, 2012
Recipe Get back on track with 3 seriously delicious salads
Posted by Kelly Davis on Fri, Jan 27, 2012 at 5:05 PM
As January comes to a close and February is on the horizon, some of you might be feeling a little defeated in your New Year's resolution to eat healthy. Let’s face it. A lot of people fail at their resolutions to eat healthier, not because they don’t want to succeed, but because they set rules that are too restrictive.
I’m all about easy, delicious, and healthy guidelines. Not rules.
And here’s a guideline you can easily keep: eat a salad a day. But not just any ol’ salad. Eat a delicious, healthy, beautiful salad, full of creative and fresh ingredients — salads that use whole and filling foods.
These three salads will leave you feeling good about your food choices, without neglecting your tastebuds.
ORANGE AND POMEGRANATE SALAD (serves 1)
3 cups loosely packed baby spinach
1/2 navel orange, peeled and separated into segments
1/4 cup pomegranate arils
1 oz. goat cheese 2 Tbsp. walnut pieces
Place spinach on a plate. Layer oranges, pomegranate arils, cheese, and walnut pieces. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the orange balsamic vinaigrette dressing (recipe follows).
Orange Balsamic Vinaigrette
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 Tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette
1 Tablespoon dijon mustard
juice of 1/2 navel orange (about 1/3 cup)
1/4 teaspoon salt
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk well to combine.
Monday, August 8, 2011
Recipe Roasted Shrimp Orzo Salad
Posted by Priscilla Tsai on Mon, Aug 8, 2011 at 2:01 PM
Full of bright summer flavors, this is Roasted Shrimp Orzo Salad is one of my favorite dishes.
Pick and choose to include your favorite summer veggies, but here I've done a shrimp orzo (a type of pasta that looks like rice) salad of cucumbers, red onions, a mix of olives, grape tomatoes, spinach, parsley, and feta.
It's all tossed with an easy dressing made of fresh lemon juice, olive oil, and a little salt and pepper. Serve it room temperature, or chilled for a refreshing warm-weather dish.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Recipe / cake Snickerdoodle Birthday Cake
Posted by Priscilla Tsai on Tue, Aug 2, 2011 at 3:36 PM
Remember how I said all boys love cinnamon sugar Snickerdoodle cookies? Well, one of the biggest Snickerdoodle fans I know is my boyfriend Mike. So to celebrate his birthday, I turned that cookie into a cake.
Here it is: A cinnamon-flecked cake slathered in brown sugar buttercream, and garnished with Snickerdoodle cookies.
(The cake banner was made with kabob skewers, twine, magazine pages, and a little rubber cement.)
Make it for the Snickerdoodle-lover in your life.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Recipe / Cookie Recipe: Chunky white chocolate and macadamia cookies
Posted by Priscilla Tsai on Thu, Jul 28, 2011 at 11:50 AM
If you're looking for chunky and chewy white chocolate and macadamia cookie, I've got a recipe for you.
These cookies turn out super thick, and are just so-slightly toasty brown in color. Full of chopped macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips, they are slightly salty and plenty sweet.
I replaced the butter in the original recipe with butter-flavored Crisco. I know what you are thinking. "Gross!!!" right? Sure, shortening isn't as pure as butter, but it definitely helps cookies keep their shape and helps achieve a chewy texture.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Recipe Happy Crème brûlée Day
Posted by Tommy Werner on Wed, Jul 27, 2011 at 9:40 AM
While Flag Day and Labor Day celebrate American culture and have a permanent place on our calendars, there's a handful of random but delicious little holidays.
July 27th is National Crème Brûlée Day — a recognition of the very rich and very French dessert. Sometimes it's best just to go with it. Here's a recipe to blissfully enjoy what should be one of America's most widely anticipated holidays.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Recipe / Cookie Snickerdoodles
Posted by Priscilla Tsai on Wed, Jul 20, 2011 at 4:19 PM
Snickerdoodles are basically sugar cookies rolled a mixture of cinnamon and sugar. So simple, yet a definite crowd-pleaser.
These cookies are soft and chewy – not crunchy, which wins them quite the fan base. To ensure you get the right texture, remove the cookies from the oven when the edges are just slightly browned.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Dessert Summery strawberry shortcake
Posted by Priscilla Tsai on Tue, Jul 12, 2011 at 10:35 AM
Strawberries are popping up at grocery stores at great prices right now, so pick up a few quarts and make some fabulous strawberry shortcake.
Here's an oldie but goody strawberry shortcake recipe from Betty Crocker. It's totally a cheater's recipe using Bisquick mix, but it's easy and good, so who cares. Just don't tell anyone.
You can make individual shortcakes or make one giant biscuit and then just cut it into wedges like I did (this way is easier).
I was a super cheater and even used whipped cream from the can instead of whipping my own from scratch. Shhh.... It's our secret.
Classic Strawberry Shortcakes
Courtesy of Betty Crocker
Makes 6 servings
Ingredients:
1 quart (4 cups) strawberries, sliced
1/4 cup sugar
2 1/3 cups Original Bisquick® mix
1/2 cup milk
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1/2 cup whipping cream
Directions:
Heat oven to 425°F. In large bowl, mix strawberries and 1/4 cup sugar; set aside. (* It's best if you let the strawberries and sugar sit for a day in the fridge)
In medium bowl, stir Bisquick mix, milk, 3 tablespoons sugar and the butter until soft dough forms. On ungreased cookie sheet, drop dough by 6 spoonfuls. (*or to makes one large shortcake, lightly spread batter in a 8" cake pan)
Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, in small bowl, beat whipping cream with electric mixer on high speed until soft peaks form.
Split warm shortcakes; fill and top with strawberries and whipped cream.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Recipe / Priscilla Tsai / Breakfast Breakfast strata with spinach and Gruyère
Posted by Priscilla Tsai on Wed, Jul 6, 2011 at 10:53 AM
This delicious breakfast strata with spinach and Gruyere was served at a bridal shower I recently attended. Baked in a square casserole dish, it comes out of the oven brimming with bubbly cheese. Not only did we bridesmaids enjoy it during the bridal shower brunch, we also pulled it out again at 1 am for a post-partying snack.
It's a good thing the bride's mother was so nice to share the recipe with me because I just can't get enough of it. It's fantastic.
Stratas, not to be confused with frittatas (egg-based dishes like big baked omelettes) or quiches (egg-based dishes in pastry shells), are characterized by their baked layers of bread and cheese, and an egg custard sauce. It's sort of like a savory bread pudding I guess.
This recipe calls for dried or toasted slices of French bread. To save some time and also to avoid turning on the oven, I just sliced the bread a day before use and left the slices on a baking sheet in the cold oven overnight to dry out. You want to make sure to use dried-out bread so that it gives your strata some structure.
After resting a night in the fridge, the strata can be pulled out of the fridge, baked and be ready to serve within 1 hour and 20 minutes, which makes it a great dish to serve guests for a weekend brunch. All the mess and clean-up can be done the day before.
One more note, though the recipe calls for 8 tablespoons of butter – I was able to get away with just 4 tablespoons.
