In the past month, you and I have explored the possibilities with our crockpot. We've tackled everything from soup to pulled pork.
This week, we're going to do a complete 180 this week and focus on how to make something completely different.
Something sweet and creamy. Something more dessert-like, but maybe even appropriate for breakfast.
Rice pudding.
Have you tried it?
I have to admit, I've only recently went over to the rice pudding camp. It's one of those things like bread pudding (also AMAZING!!!) that just sounded kind of "edible but not incredible" to me.
Boy, was I wrong.
If you can't tell by now, you should know that I love ethnic foods. It seems that most crock-pot recipes out there are as American as apple pie, so once again, I'm planning to shake things up again this week with something a little different.
While my belly loves ethnic foods, my heart belongs to Southern cuisine. I've been eating fried chicken and fluffy white biscuits since I got my first few teeth. But no food reminds me more of my Southern upbringing than pulled pork. I grew up eating my grandfather's, which he basted in his own homemade sauce for 24 hours. Now that's some slow-cooking.
Pulled pork is extremely easy to make in the crock-pot, which is my preferred method. While anyone can dump half a bottle of barbecue sauce over a pork tenderloin and end up with a fantastic and easy meal, let's get a bit more creative, shall we?
There are so many wonderful flavor combinations you can pair with pork. I'm particularly fond of the sweet and tangy flavors of teriyaki. If you like sweet and smoky barbecue sauce, this will be right up your alley, but also a nice change of pace.
This week I dove far down into my crockpot arsenal to find something exotic, spicy, and savory.
Chana Masala ...
... in a crock-pot!
You know, I used to think that I hated Indian food. After trial and error, I learned that I actually don't. I just hated all the fried stuff I ate at Indian food buffets. So I stopped eating what my husband ordered at Indian food restaurants and decided to branch out into a healthier version of Indian food.
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.
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.
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?"
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.
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
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.
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.
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.
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.