... Spinach and Cheese Strata

Happy New Year!  I hope yours is off to a tremendous start!  I kicked mine off with having my family over for brunch.  What better way to begin 2012 than with good food and family?  

I'm excited to report that my first strata was a success!  Hooray!  I must admit I caught myself channeling Sarah Jessica Parker in The Family Stone while I was baking.  Thank goodness mine didn't end up the way hers did!

Spinach and Cheese Strata
serves 8-10

1 (10 ounce) package frozen spinach, thawed, squeezed of all excess liquid, and chopped
1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion (1 large)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
8 cups cubed French or Italian bread in 1-inch cubes (1/2 pound)
6 ounces coarsely grated Gruyere (2 cups)
2 ounces finely grated Parmesan (1 cup)
2 3/4 cups milk
9 large eggs
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Saute onion in butter in a large, heavy skillets over medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes.  Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and nutmeg and continue cooking for one minute.  Stir in spinach, remove from heat and set aside.

Spread one-third of the bread cubes in a well-buttered 3-quart gratin dish or other ceramic baking dish.  Top with one-third of spinach  mixture and one-third of each cheese.  Repeat, layering twice, with remaining bread, spinach, and cheese.

Whisk eggs, milk, mustard, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper together in a large bowl and pour evenly over strata.  Cover with plastic wrap and chill strata for at least 8 hours or up to a day.

The next day, let it stand at room temperature for 30 minutes while preheating the oven to 350 degrees.  Bake strata, uncovered, in middle of oven until puffed, golden brown, and cooked through, 45-55 minutes.  Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Taylor's Notes:
Another easy and delicious recipe from Smitten Kitchen.  I followed the directions to a tee except that my baking dish allowed for only two layers instead of three.  I don't think it made a bit of difference - so work with what you've got.  I baked it for 50 minutes and let it set for about 10 while I was finishing up the rest of breakfast.  It was really great and I'll definitely make it again... love recipes that you can mix up the night before (like this one) and bake the next morning!


Enjoy and Happy New Year!

... Cranberry Bars

Happy Holidays!  My (beautiful) sister made these for our family to snack on during Christmas weekend and they were delicious.  Perfect for a late-night snack, breakfast on Christmas morning, or, well, breakfast the day after Christmas.

I couldn't resist making them for my (amazing) neighbors.  Hence the reason I don't have a picture of these actually cut into bars.  It's all I could do to not dive into one... especially when they were hot out of the oven.

I hope you all had the merriest of holidays and have a happy happy happy new year!

Cranberry Bars
serves 15 (at least!)

1 (12 ounce) package whole cranberries
1 cup white sugar
3/4 cup water
1 package yellow cake mix
3/4 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
1 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the cranberries, white sugar, and water.  Cook, stirring occasionally until all of the cranberries have popped, and the mixture is thick, about 15 minutes.  Remove from heat, and set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix, melted butter, and eggs. Stir in the oats, brown sugar, ginger, and cinnamon.  Set aside about 1 1/2 cups of the mixture and spread the rest into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.  Pack down to form a solid crust, getting it as even as possible.  Spread the cooled mixture over the crust.  Pinch off pieces of the remaining mixture and place evenly over the cranberry layer.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, until the top is lightly browned.  Cool in the pan for about 40 minutes before slicing into bars.

Taylor's Notes:
These are so easy, so good, and make your house smell amazing while they're baking and cooling.  Win. Win. Win.


I cooked the cranberries for 20 minutes and the bars for 35 minutes.  They're delicious cool and amazing when they're warm... say, for breakfast... with coffee.  Mmmm, now I'm wishing I had bought two bags of cranberries.


Enjoy!

... Risotto with Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Cremini Mushrooms

I think we've established how much I love risotto and what a fan I am of Mark Bittman.  Seriously, there's nothing you can't learn from the man and risotto is just, well, perfect for anything you need it to be.  Tonight I needed it to be comfort food on a cold night and a perfect partner to a good glass of red and Florence's Lungs.  

As always, it didn't disappoint.

Simple Risotto
serves 4 to 6

2 tablespoons butter or extra virgin olive oil, to taste
1 medium onion, chopped
large pinch saffron threads (optional)
1 1/2 cups arborio or other short- or medium-grain rice
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup dry white wine or water
4 to 6 cups chicken, beef, or vegetable stock
2 to 4 tablespoons softened butter or extra virgin olive oil
freshly grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Put the 2 tablespoons butter or oil in a large, deep nonstick skillet over medium heat.  (Allow the remaining butter to soften while you cook).  When the butter is melted or the oil is hot, add the oil and saffron and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion softens, 3 to 5 minutes.

Add the rice and cook, stirring occasionally, until it is glossy and coated with butter or oil, 2 to 3 minutes.  Add a little salt and pepper, then the white wine.  Stir and let the liquid bubble away.

Use a ladle to begin adding the stock, 1/2 cup or so at a time, stirring after each addition.  When the stock is just about evaporated, add more.  The mixture should be neither soupy nor dry.  Keep the heat at medium to medium-high and stir frequently.

Begin tasting the rice 20 minutes after you add it; you want it to be tender but still with a tiny bit of crunch; it could take as long as 30 minutes to reach this stage.  When it does, stir in the softened butter or oil (more is better, at least from the perspective of taste!) and at least 1/2 cup of parmesan if you're using it.  Taste, adjust the seasoning, and serve immediately, passing additional parmesan at the table if you like.

Taylor's Notes:
Yes and Yes.  Follow this recipe and you'll be golden.  As I mentioned, I roasted a sweet potato and cremini mushrooms to add to the risotto.  Here's how...


Heat your oven to 400 degrees.  Drizzle extra virgin olive oil over a rimmed baking sheet.  Add cubed sweet potato (washed, skin on or off), drizzle a little more oil over the potato and sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper.  Roast in the oven for 20 minutes (time will depend on the size of your potato cubes.)  After 20 minutes, I tossed the potatoes, added the cremini mushrooms (some halved, some not, depending on size), drizzled a little more olive oil and popped it back in the oven for 10 minutes.  By this time, you should be adding your butter and parmesan to your risotto.  Toss the potatoes and mushrooms one more time and add a tablespoon or so of chopped fresh rosemary.  Roast for 5 more minutes and then pull it out of the oven and stir into the risotto.  


Top your amazing dish with a little more parmesan if you'd like (and who wouldn't?) and a sprig of rosemary if you want to be all fancy and stuff.


Enjoy!

... Easy Popovers

When I saw these guys in my latest Real Simple magazine, I knew I'd be making them soon.  I'd always heard that popovers were difficult to make, but these looked simple.  Hey, they came out of Real Simple and they even have the word 'easy' in the name.  How could I resist giving them a shot?

Sure, they don't look exactly like the picture in the magazine, but they were tasty and easy.  And, hey, I can work on the aesthetic.  If you enjoy bread as much as me, give these a try!

Easy Popovers
makes 12

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for the pan
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
1 1/2 cups whole milk
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Brush the cups of a 12-cup nonstick muffin tin with butter.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, milk, eggs, butter, and salt until only a few lumps remain (do not overmix).

Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups and bake until puffed and a deep golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes.  (Do no open oven door before 30 minutes or the popovers will collapse.  Remove 1 popover to check that the underside is browned.)  Serve immediately.

Taylor's Notes:
As I said, these were really easy to make.  My only problem was that they stuck to the pan a bit when I tried to take them out.  Next time, I will definitely grease the pan more... maybe brushing it with melted butter would be better than trying to smear cold butter on the pan?  :)


Enjoy!

... Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

After all that eating over the last long weekend, I decided that soup would probably be a good idea for dinner. A hearty soup because, you know, after eating as much as you do over Thanksgiving, your stomach seems to think you're hungry every thirty minutes.  This one, though, this one is a light hearty soup.  Win win.

Funny, it doesn't look light...

... but it is, and it's delicious!  Now, I don't know that the same could be said for the popover and wine (light, no; delicious, yes), but hey, it evens out, right?

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
serves 8

1 cup uncooked quick-cooking wild rice
cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cups cubed peeled baking potato
3 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
10 ounces light processed cheese, cubed (such as Velvetta light)
2 cups chopped roasted skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 2 breasts)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (optional)

Cook rice according to package directions, omitting salt and fat.

Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat.  Coat pan with cooking spray.  Add onion and garlic; saute 3 minutes.  Add broth and potato; bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes or until potato is tender.

Combine milk and flour, stirring well with a whisk.  Add the milk mixture to potato mixture; cook 5 minutes or until slightly thick, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat; add cheese, stirring until cheese melts.  Stir in rice, chicken, pepper, and salt.  Garnish with parsley, if desired.

Taylor's Notes:
A few tweaks to this one... to begin with, I used shredded 2% mild cheddar and shredded 2% sharp cheddar instead of the Velvetta.  It didn't melt as well as the Velvetta probably would have, but it's also not overly processed goop.  Another switcheroo I made was to use rotisserie chicken instead of the chicken breasts.  I removed the skin, of course, and only used the white meat from the breast.  


I also added mushrooms and carrots to the mix for a little extra color and flavor.  I put the carrots in with the potatoes and then added the mushrooms after the milk mixture had thickened.  After I added the cheese, I let the soup simmer for a while until the mushrooms were tender and then served it with a little parsley on top, which added a great, bright fresh flavor to the soup.


Enjoy!

... Cranberry-Pear Relish

What's Thanksgiving without cranberry relish?  Ok, to be honest, I'm not sure that we've ever actually had cranberry relish at our Thanksgiving dinner, but the tradition of it always makes it seem nice.  And, no, I'm definitely not talking about that stuff from the can.  (my apologies if that's your thing...)  So this year I set out to find a tastier version and, thankfully, I did just that.

Cranberry-Pear Relish
serves 6-8

1 small navel orange
1 (12-ounce) bag fresh or frozen cranberries
1 Bartlett pear, cored and cut into large chunks
1/2 cup light brown sugar
pinch kosher salt
3 tablespoons pecans, toasted and coarsely chopped

Wash and dry the orange.  Cut the orange into small wedges, including the peel, and put in a food processor.  Add the cranberries, pear, sugar, and salt.  Pulse until coarsely chopped.  Transfer to a bowl, cover, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days.  Just before serving, stir in the pecans.

Taylor's Notes:
First things first... this makes a lot.  I'm not sure how much a serving technically is, but I doubled the recipe for our Thanksgiving gathering of 25 people and I bet we took down one-quarter of the relish.  Not that it wasn't good, it was!, but most people just don't need that much cranberry relish.


Based on the reviews of the original recipe, I was a little concerned about the bitterness of the orange peel.  Since I was doubling the recipe, I included the orange peel from one of the oranges and removed it from the other.  I really liked the end result, so maybe that's the way to go.  I'm sure it would be great without the peel, too, but I think the bitterness balances the tartness of the cranberries.


I've had leftovers a couple of times and am freezing the rest for Christmas dinner.  I'll let you know how it turns out!


Enjoy!

... Peanut Butter & Nutella Swirl Cookies

How could I possibly not make these cookies after reading the name of them?  Peanut Butter... Nutella... Cookies... how could anything be bad about that?  Well, let me tell you... nothing, that's what.  Absolutely nothing.

Are you on Pinterest?  If you aren't, save yourself.  If you are, I'm guessing you're as addicted as I am.  I've made a few things that I stumbled across on that site, but this by far takes the cake cookie.  

Peanut Butter & Nutella Swirl Cookies


1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup Nutella

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine butter, peanut butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla.  Mix until well blended.

Add flour, baking soda, and salt.  Drizzle Nutella on top of the dough, then swirl it through the dough with a butter knife.

Chill dough 15 minutes in the refrigerator.  Roll into balls by hand.  Place on parchment lined cookie sheet.  Using a fork, press down the balls to flatten slightly.  Bake until edges are very lightly browned (about 7 to 10 minutes).

All to rest 2 minutes on cookie sheet before transferring cookies to a cooling rack.

Taylor's Notes:
The only thing, and I mean the only thing, I would change about this recipe would be to add more Nutella.   Not a lot more, maybe 1/3 cup total, but I would definitely add more.  I mean, really, how can you have too much Nutella?


Enjoy!