Hits & Misses June 2020 (582 views)

Well I am not in July 1st denial as I gave birth on that day to son #2 23 yrs ago tomorrow!!! Barely made it to the hospital in time. He was actually due July 4th but has never been known to be patient!

I was going to write all my recipes down this month but alas.....just have to see what my memory can dig up again.


-Sardinian Herb Soup "Serb'uzzu"-Milk Street Kitchen (MSK)-this was fresh, light, herby, and so flavorful. I did not have fregola so used Israeli couscous (just ordered some fregola to make again) and I added some chicken to make it heartier
-Almond Danish Kringle-another attempt at trying to get this right. The consensus is that the dough this time was better than the first recipe I tried, but my family prefers a cinnamon walnut filling instead of the almond. So next time, filling from recipe #1 and dough from recipe #2!!
-Tomato Olive Focaccia-MSK. Next time I will use kalamata olives. Recipe calls for green castelvetrano olives which I was not a huge fan of but the bread was delicious
-Parmesan Soft Pretzels-? source
-Pita bread-MSK. Perfect!
-No Knead focaccia-Bon Appetit. Topped with fresh tyme, rosemary, garlic butter, and flaky salt. Easy to make and delicious.
-No Bake Cookie Butter Bars-? source. Easy no bake bar with cookie butter, vanilla wafers and chocolate topping.
-Spaghetti Squash Pizza-Katie Lee. Food Network. Not really pizza but tasty and easy enough to make again.
-Mock "Knorr" spinach dip
-Cheater Cinnamon Buns-C.I. (Cook's Ill.)Cheater because it uses pancake mix and no yeast. I used Kodiak cakes mix. Not as fluffy and light as yeasted buns but easy and quick to throw together at the last minute on a Sunday morning for breakfast for the family.
-Oven BBQ chicken-C.I. a bit spicy for me but flavor was good and DH loved it.
-Salmon with Tomatoes and Tarragon-an old favorite from C.L.
-Frozen Yogurt Bark-nice breakfast treat made with Greek Yogurt very lightly sweetened and topped with a drizzle of peanut butter, Jelly, strawberries, some crushed freeze dried banana, and a few chocolate chips for good measure
-Toffee Bars-recipe from a friend. Base is crushed ritz crackers and toffee chips with chocolate topping. One of DH's favorites.
-Spanakopita burgers-Rachel Ray. Nice turkey burger with spinach and feta but does not really taste like spanakopita. Family liked them anyway. We preferred the falafel turkey burgers (Molly Yeh) that I made last month but both good


I know there were more but I just can't remember....looks like a lot of bread baking this last month. I guess that explains why the freezers are getting full. But now that it is getting too hot to bake, it will be appreciated!

Not a big month for cooking, but I did try 2 new soups that are keepers, and a new side dish.

EXCELLENT
Quick Lemony Greek Chicken Soup – Cooking Light. I used 2 eggs.
www.cookinglight.com/recipes/lemony-greek-chicken-soup

Wonton Soup – The Family Chef Cookbook. Easy, versatile soup. Uses frozen potstickers. Recipe isn’t online (I have the cookbook). See below.

Orzo with Garlicky Spinach – Cooking Light. Very tasty & a good way to use up spinach. I only needed 2 Tbsp. chicken broth.
www.myrecipes.com/recipe/orzo-garlicky-spinach


TRIED AND TRUE
Fresh Strawberry Pie – Betty Crocker. A classic recipe. I use up to 8 cups of strawberries. Best served the day it’s made.
www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/fresh-strawberry-pie/7b830ada-fd76-432f-8978-bf010698f3cd


Wonton Soup
The Family Chef Cookbook
Serves 4

6 to 7 cups chicken broth or stock (*Swanson’s Healthy Goodness Chicken Broth)
1 inch chunk fresh ginger, peeled
16-18 frozen uncooked potstickers, pork or chicken or vegetarian (*Ling Ling brand is good)
2 green onions, sliced into thin diagonals
1 - 2 teaspoons sesame oil (to taste)
1 Tablespoon soy sauce

Place chicken broth and ginger in a large pot on the stove and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes (partially covered).

Bring the soup back up to a boil and add the wontons. Lower the heat to medium and cook, covered, for 8 or 9 minutes, until wontons are cooked through.

Just before serving, stir in green onions, sesame oil and soy sauce. (Add a little Kosher salt to taste, if using low-sodium chicken broth.) Serve in shallow soup bowls.

Options:
*I added fresh snowpeas (halved) during the last few minutes.
*Cut up veggies like carrots, celery or onions can be added as you are first bringing the stock and ginger to a boil.
*Or, throw in a handful of freshly chopped spinach when you add the green onions just before serving.



 

Make Again

Deli-style Macaroni Salad - my husband loves the mac salad sold at deli counters. I do not. It is too sweet and has way too much mayo for me. This recipe satisfies us both. I did cut the sugar in half, and I added more chopped vegetables: celery and carrots. The celery seed is the ingredient that was missing from all of my prior attempts at making a mac salad that we both like. 

Winter Cauliflower Salad - It's not just for winter! Since cauliflower holds up in the fridge for a long time, I've been trying cauli salad recipes. This one is very good. I used sun-dried tomatoes instead of slow roasted tomatoes. 

Buttermilk Roasted Chicken - Samin Nosrat's buttermilk marinated roasted chicken that all of my cooking friends have been making since the recipe was first revealed a few years ago. It is delicious. I spatchcocked my chicken before marinating it. 

Lemongrass Pork Kebabs - easy, fast, delicious grilled pork. I used pork tenderloin.  

Mediterranean Grilled Eggplant - I roasted/broiled this. It reminded me that eggplant needs to be on our menu more often. 

Middle Eastern Lamb Skewers - Perfect! 

Roasted Chicken with Lemon-Glazed Rhubarb - This lemony rhubarb glaze/sauce is delicious. After reading the recipe comments, I doubled it and boy am I glad that I did. My DH is not a big fan of rhubarb, but he liked this sweet and sour rhubarb. 

Herby Lemony Radish Slaw - we love radishes. This slaw went well with the rhubarb chicken

Roasted Carrots and Red Onion with Fennel and Mint - I am so glad that I made a huge batch of these.  

Philly Cheesecake Stuffed Peppers - I didn't have any steak, so I used ground beef. DH asked that they get put on regular rotation. 

Spicy Pork and Green Bean Stir-fry - another easy, fast, and delicious meal. 

Grilled Tuna Steaks with Asian Sesame Crust - The fishing boat that comes to the farmers market is teaming up with other boats to help them sell their catches and fresh caught tuna is now available. Such a treat! 

Tried and True

Scallops with Grilled Corn Salad

Soba, Carrot, and Sesame Salad 

Moomie's Buns 

Rhubarb Quick Bread