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Delicious, crumbly, soft and gooey - all that a pecan pie should be
Source: Adapted from allrecipes
Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 2 (out of 5)
Ingredients:
For the crust:
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup margarine
For the filling:
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup corn syrup
- 1/2 unpacked brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp margarine melted
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups chopped pecans
Total: 16 squares or 1 9 inch pie
Directions:
1. Grease a 9 inch pie pan or a 10x10 baking dish, if making the bars. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Mix the flour, the sugar and the salt. Add cold margarine or butter and work it into the flour using Pastry Blender
3. Press the dough (with your hands or a small rolling pin) into the baking dish and bake for 20 minutes.
4. In the meantime prepare the filling. Melt the margarine and let cool slightly (it should be tepid, but still liquid).
5. Lightly mix the eggs with corn syrup and brown sugar until the sugar dissolves.
6. Add vanilla extract and margarine and mix well again.
7. Mix in the pecans.
8. When the crust is ready, pour the filling over it and continue cooking for another 35 minutes, until the filling solidifies.
9. Leave the bars in the pan on a wire rack to cool completely. It's better to refrigerate the pie overnight before removing from the pan and slicing.
Afterthoughts:
- The bars taste great, but I would still like to improve this recipe.
- The original recipe calls for more sugar and corn syrup for the filling. I find it to be too much as it is. I might reduce corn syrup to 1/4 or 1/3 cup next time.
- The eggs create a little foam in the filling. I tried to beat them as little as possible, but could not skip the beating completely because I had to dissolve the brown sugar. Maybe next time I should try mixing the sugar with the melted margarine, and once the lumps are dissolved, adding the eggs.
- There were some dryer and wetter patches on the crust. The crust dough was very flaky. Maybe next time I should use a bit more margarine for binding, and bake the crust for 25 minutes,
To Recipe...
Summary only...
Simple 3 ingredient juice that can be made in any blender if you are using seedless grapes
Source: improvised
Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 1 (out of 5)
Ingredients:
- 3/4 lb / 300 g honey dew melon peeled and cubed
- 3/4 lb / 300 g watermelon peeled and cubed
- 3/4 lb / 300 g red grapes
- 6 ice cubes
Total: 4 servings
Directions:
Place all ingredients in your Vitamix, process for 30 seconds on speed 5, using the tamper to push the fruit down. When there are no large fruit chunks left, set the blender to high and process for about 1 minute for grapes with seeds, or for 30 seconds for seedless grapes.
Afterthoughts:
- Very sweet and refreshing juice, only raw fruits and vitamins, what can be better?
- If you are using seedless grapes, any blender can do. But using Vitamix
will completely crash the seeds and get you all those vitamins hidden in them (or so their sales people say).
Love my Vitamix :-)
To Recipe...
Summary only...
Amazingly delicious, perfect fall comfort food, vegetarian and can be vegan too, but will satisfy any carnivore
Source: my mom
Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 2 (out of 5)
Ingredients:
- 1 lb chanterelle mushrooms
- 1 large yellow onion
- 4 cloves garlic
- 6 medium russet potatoes
- 2 tbsp canola oil (or use another vegetable oil)
- 2 tbsp butter (use vegetable oil for vegan version)
- 1 tbsp cognac or rum
- 1 cup vegetable or beef stock (or 1 tsp Better than Bullion paste dissolved in 1 cup of hot water)
- 3-4 bay leaves
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
Total: 4 servings
Directions:
1. Clean the chanterelles. You are supposed to clean the mushrooms with a paper towel or a brush, and not wash them, so that they don't absorb moisture, but I do wash them, especially wild mushrooms like chantelles.
2. Roughly chop the onion.
3. Preheat a Dutch oven or a large pot over medium heat, warm up the oil and add the butter, if using. When the oil warms up and the butter melts, add the onions and sautee for about 10 minutes until translucent, stirring occasionally.
4. Peel and chop the garlic and add to the onions. Sautee for another 2 minutes.
5. Add the mushrooms, the cognac, the bay leaves, the pepper and the salt. Let cook for about 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so.
6. Peel the potatoes, chop them into 1 inch cubes and add to the mushrooms. Add the stock, stir the ingredients, increase the heat to medium high and bring to simmer.
7. Reduce the heat to slightly below medium, cover and let cook for another 20 minutes. Gently stir once or twice during this time, try not to mash the potatoes (the stew will still be delicious, but it will look even more rustic).
8. Total cooking time would be about 1 hour. When the potatoes are cooked, your stew is ready. Serve with crusty bread and salad.
Afterthoughts:
- This is simply the best imaginable dinner on a cold autumn night.
- This stew would work with other mushrooms as well. Champignons and portabellas will do for sure, with exactly the same directions. For other wild mushrooms one might need to adjust the cooking times.
To Recipe...
Summary only...
Yummy, simple and great for any occasion
Source: Japanese Potato Salad from Nami's Just One Cookbook
Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 2 (out of 5)
Ingredients:
- 2 Russet potatoes
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 2 1/2 inch carrot
- 1/4 cup corn kernels
- 2 inch English cucumbers
- 2 slices of ham or bologna
- 1/3 cup mayonnaise
- 2 sprigs of parsley
- salt
- black pepper
Total: 8 servings
Directions:
1. Peel potatoes and cut into 1 inch cubes. Boil them on high heat, and after the water boils, let cook for another 10-15 minutes until done. Drain the water and mash the potatoes but leave some small chunks for texture. Sprinkle with salt and transfer into a big bowl.
2. In the meantime prepare a boiled egg. Peel and mash the egg with a fork in a small bowl.
3. Cut carrots into 1/8 inch cubes, put them in a microwave-safe container and cover with water. Microwave for 30 seconds on high and drain.
4. Cut the cucumbers and the bologna or the ham into 1/8 inch cubes.
5. If using canned corn kernels, drain them. If using frozen, place into a small microwave bowl, add 2 tablespoons of water and microwave on high for 1 minute. Drain the water.
6. Roughly chop the parsley.
7. Add all the ingredients into the mashed potatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and mix well. Add mayonnaise and mix until incorporated.
8. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Will keep in refrigerator for 2 days.
Afterthoughts:
- This is a pretty simple potato salad, mashing the potatoes, as opposed to slicing them, saves some time.
- You can also add pickled cucumber, green onions or green peas, depending on your preferences.
- Check out Nami's blog for step by step photos, and add Japanese mayo to make this salad Japanese :-).
To Recipe...
Summary only...
A slice of delicious moist cake for only 135 calories!
Source: Mom on Timeout
Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 1 (out of 5), if the carrots are already shredded
Ingredients:
- 1 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce (130 cal)
- 1 1/2 cup white sugar (1160 cal)
- 3 eggs (210 cal)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (870 cal)
- 1 tsp baking soda mixed with 1 tbsp lemon juice or apple vinegar to activate
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3 cups grated carrots (135 cal)
- 1 tsp vanilla (10 cal)
- 1 cup Dole pineapple in juice, crushed, not drained (160 cal)
Total: 9x13 inch cake, 20 servings, 2675 cal, 135 cal / serving
Directions:
1. Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking sheet.
2. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix (you don't really need a mixer for this batter, a whisk is enough)
3. Pour the ingredients into a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking sheet and cook in oven preheated to 350F for about 40 minutes, until the cake is golden and a toothpick tester comes out clean. (In my oven it always takes much longer, I baked on 375F for 70 minutes.)
4. Let cool on a rack, slice and serve.
Afterthoughts:
- Only when I started mixing all the ingredients I noticed that there is no butter or oil in the recipe. I was skeptical if it would turn out ok, but it was too late to look for another recipe, so I continued, and the cake turned out really delicious. I would not be able to guess that it's completely fat free (well, of course there is fat in eggs, etc.)
- I completely skipped the frosting from the original recipe. I also skipped the nuts, added more carrots instead, skipped the cinnamon (it's not the cinnamon's fault, it's me), and reduced the sugar. The cake still turned out sweet and delicious.
To Recipe...
Summary only...
Lighter and faster version without deep frying and using a ready made sauce.
Source: A combination of Martha Stewart's and Heather's recipes
Taste: 4 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 2 (out of 5)
Ingredients:
- 1 lb skinless boneless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 1 inch pieces
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 egg whites
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 lb green beans
- 1/2 cup Trader Joe's Genereal Tso's Sauce
- 2 tbsp canola oil for cooking
Directions:
1. In a medium sized bowl whisk together egg whites, cornstarch, salt and pepper. Add chicken, and toss to coat. Refrigerate from 15 minutes to several hours to marinate the chicken.
2. Heat a 2 tbsp of oil in a large non stick skillet over medium-high heat. Transfer chicken pieces into the skillet, shaking off the egg white batter. Cook for about 10 minutes until golden, stirring occasionally. If there is too much chicken to fit in 1 layer on the pan, you can do the frying in 2 batches.
3. When the chicken is cooked, remove it to a plate.
4. Pour the green beans and the sauce onto the skillet and cook stirring for 4-5 mintues, until the beans are soft and the sauce thick. Add the chicken to the pan and stir to coat it with the sauce.
5. Serve over white rice (or cauliflower rice).
Afterthoughts:
The taste is good, but the lighter version does not give you the deep frying crunch that I did not really expect, but was secretly hoping for. Oh, well... And maybe I would add 2 more tablespoons of sauce next time.
To Recipe...
Summary only...
Quick, easy, healthy, vegan, gluten free, low cal, filling and even pretty tasty :-)
Source: Many blogs for example Everyday Maven has nice step-by-step pictures
Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 2 (out of 5), and not 1 because I am too lazy to chop cauliflower in batches
Ingredients:
- 1 medium sized cauliflower (140 cal)
- 1/2 tbsp olive or canola oil (60 cal)
- pepper and salt (optional)
Total: 200 cal, 4 servings, 50 cal/serving
Directions:
1. Wash cauliflower, cut it, discard the core and break of the florettes until you have pieces of approximately the same size.
2. Place the florettes in a food porcessor in 1 layer, do not overcrowd the food processor. In my food processor I have to shred a medium sized cauliflower in 3-4 batches.
3. Process until you get "rice" consistency. In my case I let the food processor run on high for 10 seconds and then pulse for 2 seconds 5 times.
4. At this stage you freeze a batch of your cauliflower rice in a zip lock bag for future use. You could then defrost the batch for 15-30 minutes and cook as usual. It turns a little mushier than freshly cooked, but pretty similar.
5. In a large non-stick frying pan heat 1/2 tbsp of oil over medium-high heat, add the cauliflower and cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
6. You can also add salt and pepper or other spices (turmeric, cumin, etc) while cooking. Or don't add anything if you want plained steamed rice.
Afterthoughts:
This is a really nice trick to make your meal healthier and eat waaaay less calories. In one cup of white rice there are 200 calories, in one cup of cauliflower rice there are 50: you save 75% of calories! And taste / texture - wise it works pretty well as a substitute for the "real" thing. Especially if you make fried rice, you might never notice the difference.
To Recipe...
Summary only...
Delicious South East Asian - inspired curry with substitutions for those of us who don't have exotic ingredients
Source: Adjusted from Granny's Malasian Meatball Curry on Food.com
Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 3 (out of 5)
Ingredients:
For the meatballs:
- 1 1/2 lbs ground beef
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 2 tbsp finely chopped spring onions
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 tsp salt (or to taste)
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper (or to taste)
For the curry:
- 2 medium onions, peeled
- 5 cloves garlic, peeled
- 3/4 inch fresh ginger, peeled
- 1 1/2 tbsp curry powder
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander seeds
- 1/2 tsp mango powder (optional)
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp cayenne
- 2 tbsp coconut or vegetable oil
- 4-5 bay leaves
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1 cup water
- 1 large potato, peeled and cut into medium-sized cubes
- 2-3 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tbsp brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 tsp salt
Total: 4-5 servings
Directions:
1. Grind onion, garlic and ginger to a paste in a food processor.
2. Heat the oil over medium high heat in a wok or a large frying pan, and stir fry the onion paste for about 5 minutes.
3. Combine curry powder, turmeric, cumin, coriander, mango powder, cinnamon and cayenne and add a little water to make paste.
4. Add the curry paste and the bay leaves to the wok and stir fry for another 5-10 minutes until quite toasted and the oil starts to ooze out.
5. Add coconut milk and water and bring slowly to the boil.
6. While the curry sauce is heating up, combine all the ingredients for the meatballs in a large bowl and start rolling meatballs the size of ping-pong balls. There will be about 30 meatballs, and the small size will make sure that they cook fast. While making the meatballs, stop occasionally and stir the sauce gently.
7. Once the sauce boils, add the tomato paste, the sugar and the salt and mix well. Then add the meatballs, cover and simmer on medium heat for 10 minutes. You can add more water if necessary.
8. Add the potato and simmer uncovered for another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
9. Server over steamed rice.
Afterthoughts:
- These meatballs are really delicious, very rich - the perfect comfort food, hence calorie count omitted ;-). I will be making many more of them. The only change I might make is skipping the cinnamon, but if you are not sensitive to cinnamon, you might prefer keeping it.
- I followed the original recipe pretty closely, my main adjustments were making substitutions for ingredients that I did not have, such as Malaysian curry powder and curry leaves. I would love to try those if I ever find them. I also added brown sugar.
- I might try reserving some of the curry paste after frying before adding the coconut milk and add it to the meatball mixture - to have the flavors inside and out.
To Recipe...
Summary only...
A really nice crepe recipe, great for both sweet and savory versions.
Source: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/basic-crepes/ with small variations
Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 1 (out of 5)
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour (230 cal)
- 1 egg (70 cal)
- 1/4 milk (70 cal cal)
- 1/4 water
- 1 tbsp butter (100 cal)
- 1/8 tsp salt
Total: 4 crepes, 470 cal, 120 cal/crepe
Directions:
1. Heat the milk, the water and the butter in a microwave for 20 seconds to bring to lukewarm temperature and mix until the butter melts.
2. Whisk all the ingredients together and refrigerate overnight.
3. Preheat a frying pan on medium heat for at least 1 minute. Lightly grease with butter (only for the first crepe).
4. Whisk the batter once again before using and pour 1/4 cup per crepe into the frying pan and immediately rotate the pan to spread the batter.
5. Cook for about 1 minute and flip using a thin spatula. Cook for another minute on the other side. Remove from the pan and keep in an oven preheated to 200F until all the crepes are ready.
6. Serve with savory or sweet filling.
Afterthoughts:
This is the only crepe recipe that used water, and not just milk. But on the other hand it had the most reviews on Allrecipes, so I tried it. I also saw the tip on warming up the milk and refrigerating the batter in other recipes, so I made those changes. These crepes are really light and a little crispy, and were super easy to flip. I made one savory with egg and cheese and one faux crepe suzette: microwaved orange marmalade for 10 seconds just to melt it a bit, instead of making the real orange sauce. Both were very nice.
To Recipe...
Summary only...
Super simple recipe, all you need is 2 ingredients and patience
Source: bcmom's kitchen
Taste: 5 (out of 5)
Difficulty: 1 (out of 5)
Ingredients:
- 1 small cabbage, about 1 lb (120 cal)
- 1/2 tbsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp caraway seeds (optional)
Total: 120 cal, 4 servings, 30 cal / serving
Directions:
1. Wash the cabbage, remove and reserve outer leaves and shred the rest.
2. In a large bowl, toss cabbage & salt together and knead the mixture for a minute or 2. If using, mix in the caraway seeds too.
3. Let sit for 5-10 minutes. The cabbage should soften, become limp and start releasing juice.
4. Pack the cabbage in a glass jar as tightly as possible. Try to eliminate air bubbles and keep the cabbage submerged in the juice.
5. Cover the cabbage with the outer leaves and press down once again to keep the outer leaves also submerged.
6. Cap the jar loosely and leave in a dark place at room temperature.
7. Check on your cabbage every 2-3 days, release the air if it's too bubbly, remove the bloom, if needed, and press the cabbage down to keep it submerged in the liquid. The cabbage should be ready in 1 week, but it tastes better after 2.
8. Keep the ready sauerkraut in refrigerator.
Afterthoughts:
- This was the first time for me making sauerkraut. I was skeptical and thought it would turn out coleslaw-like. But it turned out AMAZING! Crunchy and salty and perfect! It completely exceeded all my expectations.
- I will skip the caraway seeds next time and maybe add garlic.
- This post was my SRC assignment. Just in case you don't know yet, SRC, or the Secret Recipe Club is a group of over a hundred food bloggers, who are assigned a "secret" blog each months. Then they choose a recipe from that blog, make it and post it on their own blog on a given reveal day. Then there is a big party, where you hop from one blog to another and check what everyone's been cooking. Lots of fun! And terrible for your diet ;-) I want to thank Amanda, Jane and April for making it all possible!
- bcmom's kitchen, my SRC assignment for July, is a great blog with lots of delicious recipes. Desserts and breads immediately caught my attention, but these days I am trying to watch calories, so I opted for a practically calorie-free cabbage recipe. You should visit that blog and check out the other goodies therein :-).
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