Easter Menu!

It was dinner for two today, so I didn't want to be overstuffed and left with too many leftovers.  Everything came out well.  I had eggplant in my main course, as a nod to the holiday. ;)

Bevande

Rum Sour

Antipasti

Deviled Eggs

Primi

Lasagna Alla Norma

Secondi

Stuffed Peppers

Dolce

Italian Pastries

My lazy, accidentally vegan, unbutton-your-pants Thanksgiving dinner!

Welcome to another one of my post-holiday bragging sessions! ;)

I didn't get to have my usual homemade Thanksgiving dinner, so I woke up this morning, a day off ahead, and wanting it for breakfast.  I threw together what I had on hand, and then realized, heck, this is vegan--a little bonus!

I had store bought mashed potatoes and pie.

I made some homemade cranberry sauce--so easy and perfect.

I drained a can of yams, added a blend of brown sugar, spices and melted margarine I made in the microwave.  Done.

I had cornbread stuffing mix--done, obviously.

I made some gravy from margarine, flour, bouillon, milk (use whatever type of milk or cream you like) and fresh herbs.  Done.

Sheesh, this meal is looking awfully starchy.  Hmm.  What can I add that has more protein?  I had some frozen beans.

Before I go on--frozen pinto beans!  I've recently discovered these and they are so convenient.  Nothing added, just cooked beans that you can sprinkle in your dishes in whatever sized portions you like.  You can even throw them on a salad you're packing for lunch and they'll be defrosted by the time you eat.

Ok, back to the meal.  This was actually a really lazy way to make beans.  To a baking pan, I added margarine, salt, pepper, cumin, diced onions, a carrot, beans, a dash of siracha sauce, and nonalcoholic beer.  Threw that in the oven to let the liquids cook down.  When it was done, I just mixed it with my hand blender until it had the consistency of loose refried beans. 

The beans tasted awesome with gravy on them.  Sounds weird to me, but sometimes when you have cravings, the belly wants what it wants--and you might think of an awesome idea if you listen to it!  I was pretty shocked to see how easy it was to flavor them to complement the rest of the traditional meal.

After they baked for a while, I added the rest of the stuff to the oven to warm it up.

I cannot believe how awesome everything tasted, and it was all so easy!

My Xmas Eve Menu

Here it is!  This year I knew I had to make most things ahead or at the last minute, because I didn't have the afternoon free to do my usual cooking marathon.

Several days before, I made the marinated mushrooms.

The day before, I made deviled eggs, crudites, tomato sauce and allrecipes.com's Two Ingredient Pumpkin Cake.  I used Betty Crocker's Gingerbread Cake & Cookie Mix and a small can of pumpkin puree.  I have a personal tradition of making gingerbread cookies and I didn't want to go without them just because I couldn't take the afternoon off...so I came up with this instead.  I am so glad I did.  While the cake doesn't have the cute factor the  decorated gingerbread people do, it's hardly a sacrifice taste-wise.  Maybe this will become my new tradition.

Before you make this, I highly recommend you read the comments posted below the recipe.  I followed the recommendation to add 2 eggs and a little sugar.  I also added my usual extra spices, and a splash of bourbon.  I topped it with one of the poster's recipe for a simple glaze made from confectioner's sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon and milk.  I baked it in 4 small, gift-sized loaf pans.  It is the moistest cake ever.  I'm telling you, it is unbelievable!

The hour before, I made everything else.  For me, I made Veggie Patch Meatless Meatballs.  These are fully cooked, so all you have to do is heat them up.   I don't know why, but I don't think I've ever tried these in spaghetti--what a treat!

For the cheese course, I followed Pillsbury's recipe for Baked Brie with Raspberry Preserves, except I added chopped pecans and almonds.  I omitted the cinnamon stick.

I cut the brie recipe in half so I had extra crescent rolls.  I used a rolling pin to flatten them a bit and sealed the perforations.  Then I spread margarine in them and sprinkled some Parmesan cheese and chopped basil.  Sliced into coins, they were little buttery pinwheels that went nicely with the cold appetizers.

Anyway, back to the brie.  Warm, melty, slightly sweet, creamy, with a flaky crust.  What more could you ask for?  Very good, and different. Lots of compliments!  I am sure puff pastry would be tasty too, but I didn't have time to fuss with that.  The crescents were very tasty and quick.

Then it was on to the Nutella Chess Pie.  I created a recipe involving one of my favorite ingredients--Nutella--into a nice pie reminiscent of warm brownies that aren't quite cooked all the way yet...and you eat them anyway because they are so gooey, fudgy and good.

Well...I'm off to have leftovers of brie and spice cake.  Leftovers that are more HO HO HO than HO HUM!  (OK, I know that was really cheesy! Ha, cheesy!  See what I did there?)

Buon Natale!

Bevande

Cocktails

Antipasti

Marinated Mushrooms ∞ Red & Green Deviled Eggs

Crudités ∞ Basil Pinwheels

Primi

Pasta & Meatballs ∞ Italian Bread with Olive Oil Dip

Secondi

Broiled Shrimp ∞ Broiled Garlic Eggplant

Formaggio

Brie En Croute

Dolce

Nutella Chess Pie ∞ Cookies

Recipe: Roasted Vegetable Pie with White Wine Cream Sauce

Ingredients:

Total of 4 ½ cups of autumn vegetables (leeks, sweet potatoes, corn, celery and mushrooms), diced finely so they are approximately a uniform size
Refrigerated pie pastry – enough for double crust
½ cup white wine
1 tablespoon margarine
1 teaspoon thyme
1 tablespoon flour
Salt and pepper, to taste
Parmesan cheese and parsley to garnish

Directions:

Roast vegetables 450 degrees for 15 minutes.

Follow pastry package instructions for setting at room temperature. Line bottom of a 9-inch pie plate with one pastry.

Sauté roasted vegetables with margarine, thyme, salt, pepper and flour, just until the flour is cooked but not brown. Add white wine and stir until the sauce has thickened and is coating the vegetables. Cool on wire rack until slightly warm.

Spoon the filling into the center of the pie plate. Sprinkle with Parmesan and parsley. Cover with pastry in an open design such as lattice or a series of cutouts. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes, covering edges of pastry if needed to prevent over-browning.

Serve warm.

Related post with photos of this pie: 2 Pies for Thanksgiving

Molee, molee, molee!

I was on a mission to have chocolate in every single dish for Valentine's Day, just to see if it could be done. And by that, I mean done well.

Stop wrinkling your nose.
.
.
.

No, really, stop! It's good!

Menu
Chocolate martinis
Spring greens, avocado, fried plantain with balsamic chocolate vinaigrette
Mole tacos (for me--eggplant; for my Valentine--turkey)
Chocolate Kahlua fondue with fresh strawberries and pineapple

By the time we were done with this chocolate extravaganza, we were vowing never to eat chocolate again as long as we lived. lol

I made the mole using a jarred mole paste. The jar's instructions said to blend it with broth--I used vegetable broth. I've never had mole before and hope to make it from scratch one day. I thought I'd try the jarred version first to get an idea of what it's supposed to taste like. Unfortunately, I now have enough mole paste to last me a long time.

I really wanted to try jackfruit in the mole. I've read it lends itself to dishes calling for shredded items in sauces (i.e., a vegetarian version of pulled pork). I couldn't find it in Wegmans, though. I've never even laid eyes on a jackfruit. I suppose that will be my next food quest.

Instead, I tried eggplant for mine. One word: INEDIBLE. Those flavors do not go well together at all. The eggplant tasted sour and the sauce was just odd. My Valentine loved his turkey taco with the same sauce, so my guess is the blend of eggplant and mole was the problem.

As I said, I've never had a mole so I was taking a risk paring it with something unusual without knowing what flavors might go with it. Or maybe it was the fact that I had the "molee molee molee!" scene from Austin Powers stuck in my head. ;)

I composted the mole eggplant and filled my tacos with plantain and the cheese (a nice local soft "farmer's cheese" since our grocery was sold out of queso fresco--equally good too). That was really, really good, especially since there were some remnants of the chocolate salad dressing on the plantain. I know, it sounds so odd, but it was scrumptious.

Other than that, mission accomplished--everything else was really tasty. Is there anything chocolate can't do? (Well yes, apparently there is--go with eggplant.)

I'll post pics as soon as I find the stinking cord to my camera.

P.S. Have a nice day and treat yourself, no matter if you're solo or with a friend. Enjoy. <3

Ahhh...winter!

Or not. It's been unseasonably warm here. I LOVE it!

I went on a hike in the woods a few days ago. There was barely a dusting of snow and it was sunny. As we walked in the silent woods, tiny glistening snowflakes drifted off the evergreens and onto us. The smell of the woods was phenomenal. It was bliss.

This may be the first time I've ever enjoyed winter. There's a first time for everything, I guess!

Hope it lasts.

Oh no! What should we do with the leftovers?!

We see this in the media every year after Thanksgiving. I don't get it! Is it such a trauma to eat leftovers in their original form, especially since the meal was so specially prepared in the first place?

If it was good enough to make for the top holiday of the year and put tons of effort/expense into it, then why is it so terrible the next day that you need to make enchiladas with it?

I don't get it.......

2 Pies for Thanksgiving

Yesterday I was a guest at someone else's home. I offered to bring a pie for dessert--my absolute favorite treat. I also asked if it would be ok if I brought a vegetable dish for myself.

I decided on a vegetable pie. I diced and sauteed some fall vegetables. I made sure to include lots of green onions and differently colored veggies for visual appeal. I included green beans, of course! I added a creamy white wine sauce and baked them inside a pie crust. Here it is, with a pilgrim cutout on top to vent:

It turned out really, really well. I liked it a lot better for Thanksgiving than a heavier shepherd's pie or pot pie (which I've made in previous years). The great thing is, it felt hearty enough to be a main dish, and special enough for a holiday.

Here's my apple pie (with an apple cutout on top to vent):

If I do say so myself, it was the best apple pie ever in human history. Perfect, locally grown New York apples with Mexican cinnamon.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today I started out with steel cut oats, margarine, cinnamon, and cranberry sauce.

More later! Enjoy your day!

A ghoulish veggie dinner

Here's what I made for dinner on Halloween. (I would have said "Hallobean" there but it has no beans, and it sounded really corny.)

Witch fingers (biscuits with pistachio "fingernails" and tomato sauce to attach the nut)

Purple chips and orange salsa (blue corn tortilla chips with salsa made with orange peppers and orange tomatoes)

Jack o'lantern stuffed portobello with ghost potatoes

I also had a jar of eyeballs (cocktail onions) for ambiance, and a layered dessert of peanut butter pudding and chocolate cookie crumbs, topped with whipped cream.

Muahahahahahahaha! Hope you had a good Halloween.

Happy Meatless MOANday

Halloween and Meatless Monday are happening on the same day! I'm off to the store to see what sorts of ghoulish dishes I can whip up for dinner. I'll post them later.

Have a safe and happy Halloween! Booooooooooooo!