FoodGawking!

Here is what has caught my eye lately.

Roasted Beet Hummus

http://www.integral-living.com/home/2010/3/8/roasted-beet-hummus.html

Spicy Pineapple Chicken

http://culinarygeek.net/geeky_food_blog/spicy-pineapple-chicken.html

Tiramisu Pancakes

http://ivoryhut.com/2010/03/tiramisu-pancakes/

Spicy Chicken Satay Quesadilla

http://closetcooking.blogspot.com/2010/03/chicken-satay-quesadillas-with-spicy.html

Breakfast Quinoa

http://kelseysappleaday.blogspot.com/2010/03/breakfast-quinoa.html

Tomato, Goat Cheese, and Onion Tart

This recipe is out of my latest cookbook Gourmet Today! Our latest theme was "brunch" and I thought this tart would be perfect. I want to apologize about not getting pictures of the end result :( I always seem to forget once we are all together and all that delicious food is staring me down!



I used a basic tart/pie dough recipe from another source. I will post the link:
http://localfoods.about.com/od/basics/r/pie_tart_crust.htm

Before I baked the crust I pierced it in several places with the tines of a fork, covered it with foil and filled with beans to keep it from puffing up! Bake in preheated 375 oven for 20 minutes. Carefully remove the foil and bake shell until golden, 8-10 minutes more.












The tart shell is the labor intense part of this recipe, the rest is a breeze!



3 Tbs. Olive Oil

1 large onion, very thinly sliced

salt and freshly ground pepper

6 ounces soft mild goat cheese, crumbled

3 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced

sliced fresh basil leaves for garnish



Directions



Heat 2 Tbs. oil in a 12 inch heavy skillet over moderate heat until hot but not smoking. Add onion salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring frequently, until golden brown, 15-20 minutes.

Spread onion over bottom of tart shell. Top with all but 1/3 cup goat cheese. Arrange tomatoes, slightly overlapping, in concentric circles over cheese. Sprinkle with remaining 1/3 cup cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle with remaining 1 Tbs. olive oil.

Bake until cheese begins to brown slightly, 10 to 15 minutes. Cool tart on a rack for 5 minutes, them remove from pan and garnish with basil!

Chicken Pasanda

Chicken Pasanda is a traditional Pakistani dish. Yogurt replaces heavy cream in this version of the dish and includes fresh pineapple and warm pita bread to dip into the creamy cashew sauce.

Ingredients

1/2 cup roasted cashews
2 cups plain low-fat yogurt
1 cup coarsely chopped onion
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped peeled fresh ginger
2 jalapeño peppers, seeded
2 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander seeds
3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper ( more if you like spicy )
1 teaspoon salt, divided
6 (4-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into thirds
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup cubed fresh pineapple
2 tablespoons chopped cashews, roasted
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
4 (6-inch) pitas, each cut into 6 wedges"

Directions

Cube fresh pineapple.

Place 1/2 cup cashews in a food processor, process until smooth, scraping sides of bowl once. Add yogurt, process until well blended. Remove from processor; set aside.

Combine onion lemon juice, ginger and jalapenos in food processor; process until finely chopped.
Combine coriander seeds and next 5 ingredients in large zip-lock bag; add 1/2 teaspoon salt and chicken pieces, and shake to coat.
Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium high heat; add chicken pieces. Cook 4 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.

Add onion mixture to pan. Reduce heat to medium, cook 3 minutes or until liquid evaporates, stirring frequently. Add remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and yogurt mixture to pan, cook 3 minutes, stirring frequently.
Spoon 1/2 cup yogurt mixture onto plate. Top with some chicken pieces. Sprinkle each plate with about 2 1/2 Tbs. pineapple, 1 tsp. chopped cashews and 1 tsp. cilantro. Serve with pita wedges.

Blueberry Muffins

I love watching America's Test Kitchen on PBS. It intrigues the hell out of me. Dozens of chefs in the kitchen obsessively testing the same recipe to come up with the "best" of something. This is ATK's version of blueberry muffins. I didn't use a recipe for this I just jotted down notes as I watched it for a 2nd and 3rd time. The only adjustment that I made was that I used a 12 muffin pan instead of a 6 muffin pan. Overall these are pretty darn good muffins, I don't know if I have had a better "home made" one!

Ingredients

Jam:

5-8oz. fresh blueberries

1 tsp. sugar

Sugar topping:

1/3 c. sugar

1 1/2 grated lemon zest

Muffins:

2 1/2 c. flour

1 1/8 c. sugar

2 1/2 tsp. baking powder

2 eggs

4 Tbs. butter

4Tbs. vegetable oil

1 c. buttermilk

1 c. fresh blueberries

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 425.

To make the jam, combine blueberries and sugar in saucepan over medium heat and cook for 6 minutes, smashing the berries a little. It should equal about 1/4 cup reduced.

To make the sugar topping, combine 1/3 cup sugar and the grated lemon zest.

Making the muffins. Sift flour, baking powder and salt in large bowl and set aside.

Mix together the eggs, sugar, butter, oil, buttermilk and vanilla until thoroughly combined. Then add the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until blended.

Fold in the blueberries.

Using ice cream scoop fill muffin tin 3/4 full.

.

Dip jam into center of each muffin tin and swirl with chopstick or skewer.

Sprinkle sugar topping on each one.

Bake for 18 minutes or when toothpick comes out with little or no crumbs.

food & wine: Korean Sizzling Beef

The recipe in the magazine is served with grilled scallions and white rice. I had asparagus I wanted to eat up so I drizzled some sesame oil and put a little garlic salt on them and roasted at 400 for 15 minutes. I served this with quinoa. Enjoy!

Ingredients

1/4 cup soy sauce

2 Tbs sugar

2 Tbs dry white wine

2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 Tbs toasted sesame oil

2 tsp crushed red pepper

One 2 1/2 lb. beef flank steak, cut across the grain into 1/4 inch slices.

Directions

In large shallow dish, combine soy sauce, sugar, wine, garlic, sesame oil and red pepper, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add flank steak and coat thoroughly in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Working in batches, grill the steak over high heat until the slices are richly browned and medium rare about 30 sec to a minute per side. Transfer to a plate and serve.

Spicy Soba Noodles with Chicken in Peanut Sauce

This is a Cooking Light recipe that has been around awhile. It's easy and very good. To make clean up easier on yourself combine the noodles, chicken and sauce in the same pot you cooked the noodles in. No need to use a separate bowl. Whole wheat spaghetti can take the place of the soba noodles if that's what you have in your pantry like me!

Ingredients

1 carrot, peeled
2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth, divided
1/3 cup reduced-fat peanut butter
1 tablespoon chopped peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
1 to 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast
5 cups cooked soba (about 10 ounces uncooked buckwheat noodles)
6 tablespoons sliced green onions
6 tablespoons chopped unsalted, dry-roasted peanuts

Preparation

Shave carrot lengthwise into thin strips using a vegetable peeler.

Combine 1/3 cup broth, peanut butter, ginger, soy sauce, honey, pepper, and garlic; stir with a whisk until smooth.

Place chicken in a large saucepan; add 1 2/3 cups broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 4 minutes or until chicken is done. Remove from heat; let stand 20 minutes.

Drain; cut chicken into 2-inch pieces. Combine carrot, peanut sauce, chicken, and noodles in a large bowl; toss to coat.

Sprinkle with onions and peanuts.

Nutritional Information

Calories:398 (26% from fat)
Fat:11.4g (sat 2.1g,mono 5.2g,poly 3.6g)
Protein:29.5g
Carbohydrate:43.4g
Fiber:4.3g
Cholesterol:44mg
Iron:1.9mg
Sodium:477mg
Calcium:40mg

*Cooking Light, JULY 2002"