a match made in heaven

one tablespoon

+

one to two cups

=

{love}

toppings? toasted pecans, diced peaches, cinnamon granola...

fall stuffed squash

how cute is that round "8 ball zucchini"??? kinda reminds me of cinderella's carriage. 

goal: reproduce stuffed bell pepper and make more fallish.

why i hesitate to share this recipe:

there are not many measurements or times. i just threw a bunch of stuff together that i thought sounded and looked good at Central Market today. it’s very adaptable to your preferences, cravings and current kitchen stock.

but. what is essential here:

1. a zucchini squash vessel. a lighter crispier squash was a good light flavor and crisp to go with the creamier, heartier filling. i don’t think a more dense, hearty, almost nearer potatoey butternut squash or pumpkin vessel would have worked as well. plus i found perfect little ball shaped zucchinis! they were more “seedy” (heh. pun) than long zucchini, which you could certainly use, so not as much of their pulp was as usable. in my opinion. but the cooked outside and layer of flesh left was perfect with the filling.
2. butternut squash, though next time i want to try pumpkin!
3. toasted pecan pieces: crunch and flavor. i just toasted them on pan in same 400 degree oven til crispy and fragrant, about 4 minutes
4. a good cheese that can hold its own. parmigiano reggiano has done wonders to my stuffed bell peppers and i liked the manchego cheese i tried today.
5. pumpkin pie spice and brown sugar (partially cuz it’s fun. partially cuz it’s good)

{fall stuffed squash}

place 3 “8 ball zucchini squash,” with tops cut off * and 1/2 butternut squash face down in baking dish with a bit of water in the bottom.

bake in a 400 degree oven, covered with foil for 30 min, or until tender. i finished the squash in the microwave. 

while the squash are baking:

saute diced onions until tender in olive oil on medium heat

season with kosher salt and cracked pepper

add chopped cremini mushrooms and a bit of butter

saute til tender, but not all the way wilty

reduce heat to low and add

roughly chopped roma tomatoes

more kosher salt and cracked pepper

cover and simmer for about 10 minutes

uncover, increase heat a bit and stir, breaking up tomatoes and allowing liquids to reduce significantly

mix in about a fourth a cup good bread crumbs or cooked brown rice**

stir in pulp {flesh?} from zucchini and butternut squash

and a few dashes of pumpkin pie spice, pepper and brown sugar to taste

stir to combine for a few minutes and season to taste

remove from heat and stir in:

grated Manchego cheese

generous amounts of toasted pecan pieces***

a bit of parsley

fill hollowed zucchini squash with mixture, top with more cheese, 

cover in foil and bake for 10-15 minutes in 375 degree oven, removing foil about half way through.

top with more cheese and parsley if desired

*or large zucchini, halved, lengthwise (will need less cooking time)

**did brown rice, will try bread next time, not even sure if it’s necessary but the rice was nice for texture

  excuse my phone pics!

chai tea latte concentrate

'tis the season for spicy warm drinks like pumpkin spice and chai tea lattes. i got a chai tea latte today from central market and it was glorious. however, since i can't be shelling out the big bucks each afternoon, morning, evening... that i get a craving, i pulled out this recipe i'd been saving for at home, on-demand, chai tea lattes.

Chai Latte Concentrate
from foodie with family

Ingredients:

• 12 Chai tea bags
• 4 cups cold, fresh water
• 1 1/2 cups milk

Place the tea bags, cold water and milk in a medium saucepan over high heat.  Bring to a boil.  When you reach the boil, drop the heat to medium and simmer for 15 minutes.  After 15 minutes, remove the pan from the heat and squeeze the tea bags to extract as much flavor and liquid as possible.  Discard tea bags and transfer the Chai Latte Concentrate to a heat-safe container, like a glass Ball jar. Allow to cool to room temperature, put a tight fitting lid on the container and store in the refrigerator for up to 12 days.

To prepare a Chai Latte: (it's really flexible, adjust to your taste)

Ingredients:

• 1/3- 1/2 cup of milk (use whole milk or even half and half to make a creamy, rich one)
• 1/2- 2/3 cup of Chai Latte Concentrate
• 1-3 teaspoons, to taste, of sweetener.  Foodie recommends agave nectar. I used Splenda and skim milk but may try adding real sugar with the milk and warming it together stovetop then topping with whipped cream and some cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice. I also found decaffeinated chai tea bags, which was a plus!

yum!

quesadillas. a tutorial.

this is for hallie and macey.

{quesadillas}
serves 1
INGREDIENTS
2 good tortillas 
a big handful of grated cheese {monterey jack is usually what you find in mexican food quesadillas but any cheese is good. feta, cheddar, parmesan... use whatever you have}
shredded chicken from a rotisserie chicken
or rinsed and drained black beans from a can of black beans
or some chopped baby spinach
1 tablespoon of butter
tools needed:
a skillet {non-stick is easier to deal with, but i think regular skillets make better quesadillas}
a spatula {any kind will work. i use a wide, rubber spatula}
a pizza cutter is recommended
DIRECTIONS
heat the skillet on medium high on the stove top, about a 7. on a plate or cutting board assemble your quesadilla, layering half the cheese on one tortilla, adding beans, meat or whatever else, then sprinkle the rest of the cheese. it's ok if it seems full, when the cheese melts, it won't be. leave a little border around the edge of the tortilla so the cheese doesn't ooze out while it's cooking. and top with the other tortilla. 
place the butter in the skillet and swirl the pan or stir it around until it melts. when the butter starts bubbling a bit, place your quesadilla in the pan. as that one side cooks, press down on the top tortilla with your fingers, especially around the edges, this will make it easier to flip. cook about 2-3 min, or until the bottom starts looking crisp and brown in spots.
  
then flip. slide a spatula under it, hold it with the top with your hand and flip in one quick motion. if it splatters or the tortilla folds it's ok, fix it. it may be messy but it will still taste good. press down a bit with your fingers and cook 2-3 min on this side, till tortilla is brown in spots. remove, allow to cool and cut. i think it's easiest to cut quesadillas with a pizza cutter.

{to make it extra good, and to be sure the second side doesn't stick, you could take the quesadilla out, place another tablespoon of butter to melt in the pan, then flip it.}

good luck!

cilantro pesto & the grown up gringo's green chicken tenders

pat on the back for creativity.

a tomatillo?

the grown up gringo's green chicken tenders with cilantro ranch dip

serves 2

INGREDIENTS

for this recipe you’ll need a skillet with a lid and i used a non-stick one.

2 T. butter

2 T. olive oil

2 chicken breasts cut in half lengthwise into strips and pounded into even thickness

3 tomatillos, roughly chopped

1/3 - 1/2 c. corona beer

1 c. flour + seasoning salt + onion powder + cumin + paprika

1/4 c. cilantro pesto, see recipe below

1/4 c. ranch dressing

DIRECTIONS

marinate chicken breasts in 3 T. cilantro pesto, coated evenly, for at least 1 hour. 

combine remaining pesto with ranch dressing to make cilantro ranch dip. to taste.

heat butter and oil in skillet to medium high until bubbly. dredge pesto covered chicken cutlets in seasoned flour and brown in skillet about 4 minutes each side. remove from pan. add tomatillos to pan and cook, stirring occasionally till browned and softened, about 3 minutes. add beer to skillet, reduce heat a bit, and stir till reduced to about half the original amount. return chicken to pan and cover, cooking about 3 minutes on each side or until internal temperature reaches 170.

serve with cooked tomatillos, saucy bits from the pan and chopped avocado. spoon cilantro ranch dip over tenders or serve on the side. would also be good with this.

{cilantro pesto}

yields approx. 1/4 c.

4 c. cilantro leaves (the leaves from 2 bundles of cilantro)

1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped

1-2 T. olive oil

1 T. cumin

3/4 T. garlic powder

1 T. white sugar

combine all ingredients in food processor. freezes well.

this pan cooked chicken, albeit confusing with its mexican flavors, turned out really good and helped me use up some cilantro pesto i'd made last week, with no clear intention regarding its usage. this was also my first time cooking with tomatillos, and i thought the way the beer cooked and caramelized them was SO yummy. they were sweet and a little spicy at the same time. awesome. 

cooking smaller pieces of chicken in the skillet helps everything stay crispy and flavorful. i think a non stick skillet with a lid is the best way to cook chicken here in our grill-less apartment life.

spinach pesto provolone pizza

I promise I make more than pizza. Taylor really liked this variation, so even though I've posted lots of pizza recipes, I figured this would be worth sharing. I bought pesto in bulk the other day from Costco and divided it up into about 1/2 c. portions to freeze. Now I take one out whenever I want to make anything with pesto! So glorious.

spinach pesto provolone pizza 

dough adapted from Smitten Kitchen

{dough}

1 1/4 cup all purpose flour + 1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon instant yeast

1/2 cup warm water (may need up to 1 or 2 tablespoons more)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon honey

{toppings}

1/3 c. grated colby jack cheese

3 T grated provolone cheese {I ripped up a large, thick slice intended for sandwich making}

1/4 c. pesto

1/4 c. finely chopped spinach

garlic powder

cracked black pepper

DIRECTIONS

Measure flour in a large bowl, make an indentation and measure the yeast and salt. Pour warm water water over the mix and stir lightly until yeast and salt are dissolved. Add honey and olive oil, stirring entire mixture. Mix in mixer with dough hook for about 5 minutes, adding more flour if too sticky, until dough forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Or knead by hand, 8 minutes or so until a piece of it stretches in your hand without breaking. 

Dough should be stretchy and not easily break when pulled but should not be sticky or get stuck easily on your hands. If it doesn't stretch and is too firm, thick feeling after kneading for a while, add a tiny bit of water. If it's too sticky after kneading for a while, add more flour. Kneading introduces air to the dough and builds up gluten, it's really hard to over knead so once it's the right feeling, knead two min or so more.

Lightly oil a bowl with cooking spray (you can use the same rinsed one you made the dough in) Dump in the dough, turn it over so all sides are coated, cover it in a cotton dishtowel leave it undisturbed for about two hours (ideally in a warm, undrafty place) until it has doubled in size. To speed up this process you can also place in an oven on 150 and it should double in size in an hour. It's ready when two fingers pressed firmly leave an indentation and the dough does not bounce back into shape.*

Oven to 500. Stretch dough out thinly into desired shape on pizza pan or cookie sheet. Should make a circle at least 14 inches in diameter (depending on how long it's had to rise) Spread pesto, sprinkle spinach, top with cheeses. Sprinkle garlic powder over all, generously on the crust. Bake 8-10 minutes until crust is lightly browned. Sprinkle freshly ground cracked black pepper over warm cheese.

*I usually double this dough and after the rise, divide it in half and freeze half in a well sealed freezer ziploc. Once I'm ready to use I let it thaw either in the fridge or on the counter until I'm ready to use it. Once it's thawed in the fridge or even at room temperature, it's still sort of rising so keep that in mind. Roll it out a bit more thinly if it's had lots of time to thaw then rise and it may make a thicker crust. ...but it can't ever really be messed up!

overnight cinnamon rolls.

well, i finally tried these! i adapted my friend megan's recipe using one that i also had from alton brown (my idol) to come up with something that i could make the night before and have minimal work in the morning. i used AB's dough but meg's filling and icing. these were definitely a task but were SO good. taylor said they tasted exactly like the ones he likes from The Kitchen Door...that i used to get him (too) often the first summer we were married until they cruelly closed their lake austin blvd location. but alas! i can make them at home and they're SO good! these will definitely become a staple of special mornings @ our house.

{overnight cinnamon rolls}

adapted from here and here

yields 12-15 rolls

time the night before: 2 hours

time the morning: 1 hour

INGREDIENTS

{dough}

4 large egg yolks, room temperature

1 large whole egg, room temperature

2 ounces sugar, approximately 1/4 (I did 1/3 cup)

3 ounces unsalted butter, melted, approximately 6 tablespoons

6 ounces buttermilk, room temperature

20 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 cups, plus additional for dusting

1 package instant dry yeast, approximately 2 1/4 teaspoons

 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt

Vegetable oil or cooking spray

{filling}

6 tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature

1 cup brown sugar packed

2 tbsp cinnamon

pinch of salt

{icing}

6-8 ounces cream cheese at room temperature

1 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

For the dough: in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, sugar, butter, and buttermilk. Add approximately 2 cups of the flour along with the yeast and salt; whisk until moistened and combined. Remove the whisk attachment and replace with a dough hook. Add all but 3/4 cup of the remaining flour and knead on low speed for 5 minutes. Check the consistency of the dough, add more flour if necessary; the dough should feel soft and moist but not sticky. (I ended up using a little more than 3 and 2/3 total) Knead on low speed 5 minutes more or until the dough clears the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface; knead by hand about 30 seconds. Lightly oil a large bowl. Transfer the dough to the bowl and toss to coat in oil, cover and let double in volume, 2 to 2 1/2 hours. For faster rise, Cover bowl with a kitchen towel. Let dough rise in a 150 degree oven for an hour until doubled in size.

Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients with two knives or a pastry cutter until it resembles crumbs. Set aside until ready to use.

Butter a 9 by 13-inch glass baking dish. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently shape the dough into a rectangle with the long side nearest you. Roll into an 18 by 12-inch rectangle. Spread the filling mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 3/4-inch border along the top edge; gently press the filling into the dough. Beginning with the long edge nearest you, roll the dough into a tight cylinder. Firmly pinch the seam to seal and roll the cylinder seam side down. Very gently squeeze the cylinder to create even thickness. Using a serrated knife, slice the cylinder into 1 1/2-inch rolls; yielding 12 - 15 rolls. Arrange rolls cut side down in the baking dish; cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight or up to 16 hours. {I put the odd end pieces of the roll in baking dish too to fill up the pan and it worked perfectly. I had 14 rolls and 3 little odd end twists.}

Remove the rolls from the refrigerator, uncover, and place in an oven that is turned off. Fill a shallow pan 2/3-full of boiling water and set on the rack below the rolls. Close the oven door and let the rolls rise until they look slightly puffy; approximately 30 minutes. Remove the rolls and the shallow pan of water from the oven.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

When the oven is ready, place the rolls on the middle rack and bake until golden brown, or until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, approximately 25 - 30 minutes.

While the rolls are baking, make the icing. In a mixer with the whisk attachment, mix the cream cheese, sugar, butter, and vanilla on low until incorporated, occasionally scraping down sides when necessary. Then beat at medium-low until fluffy. Spread over the rolls and serve immediately.

yay!