We have definitely been a bit remiss on the blogging front. Lots of things going on in the household that have precluded us from updating things, but we hope that is going to change a bit. Today's very LOOOONG entry is going to be about some of the more recent exploits in the kitchen (non-baking edition because that is Marc's department). You can see some pics of these creations here.
But a friend of mine, Marlene - whom I had the pleasure of going to school with from 1st grade through undergrad, told me that she wanted some of the recipes after I posted some pics on Facebook. While this isn't an all-inclusive list, it is a start. Where I couldn't find the actual recipe, I'll post a link to the cookbook I found it in.
Grilled Flank Steak with Cilantro, Lentils, Feta Cheese and Green Grapes - this can be found in Tyler Florence's book, Tyler's Ultimate. This is one of many recipes I have made from that book and have enjoyed. And Marc really enjoyed the Lentil Salad, but I'll add that you want to mix and serve the ingredients in the salad the same day. For some reason, the flavors just don't mesh well when they sit together overnight.
From the same book, there is a recipe for 'The Ultimate Spinach Salad',
which really does rock the house. I can tell you that I have made this countless times without anyone complaining and people asking for another serving. For those of you who don't eat pork (the recipe calls for bacon), you can substitute mushrooms and it still works great.
With the spinach salad, we decided to go for some hard core protein and made Rosemary Balsamic Vinegar Glazed Ribeyes. I think we opted to do this after I ran Beat the Bridge to raise money for JDRF.
Shifting over to poultry, we did one duck dish as well as a few chicken dishes. There was Martha Stewart's Grilled Chicken with Red Pepper and Basil that was served with Carmelized Shallots with Barley. The original recipe from her cookbook, Martha's Healthy Quick Cook, calls for corn instead of barley, but we decided to make it a little healthier with the barley. It takes a bit longer to cook with barley, so you need to either cook it the night before or just allow an extra hour as opposed to corn, which cooks pretty quickly.
Next up from Jacques Pepin's Simple and Healthy Cooking cookbook
- Chicken African-Style. It was pretty easy to make and it's a recipe that you can make on a night where you may have more time (i.e., Sunday night) and doesn't take a lot of time to cook if you wanted to serve it during the week when you have less time (i.e., Monday or Tuesday night). We opted to do the marinating on Sunday and served it on Monday, and it was very flavorful.
Wrapping up the poultry section of this blog entry, we went for
something in Jerry Traunfeld's Herbal Kitchen cookbook - Tarragon Chicken Breasts with Buttered Leeks and Ramps. OK, I added the ramps because they happened to be in season when I made this recipe. Another easy recipe to make during the week due to the fact you do not need a ton of ingredients, which means less chopping and prep work.
So I made one of my favorite dishes - Seared Salmon with Roasted Sweet Corn, Shiitake Mushrooms, and Balsamic Vinegar Butter Sauce from Danny Meyer's Union Square Cafe cookbook. While this recipe is not hard, it is a decent amount of work because of the amount of ingredients and chopping involved - particularly if you go with fresh corn as opposed to frozen corn. But even with the amount of work involved in putting together the dish, I never regret it because it always tastes so darned good.
As a matter of fact, I recommend you make extra of the sweet corn and mushroom mixture, as well as the butter sauce, because you can also serve it with chicken as a leftover, which is what we did for Marc. We also made a separate corn and carrot mixture for Marc, given how much he does not like mushrooms. It worked.
But a friend of mine, Marlene - whom I had the pleasure of going to school with from 1st grade through undergrad, told me that she wanted some of the recipes after I posted some pics on Facebook. While this isn't an all-inclusive list, it is a start. Where I couldn't find the actual recipe, I'll post a link to the cookbook I found it in.
Grilled Flank Steak with Cilantro, Lentils, Feta Cheese and Green Grapes - this can be found in Tyler Florence's book, Tyler's Ultimate. This is one of many recipes I have made from that book and have enjoyed. And Marc really enjoyed the Lentil Salad, but I'll add that you want to mix and serve the ingredients in the salad the same day. For some reason, the flavors just don't mesh well when they sit together overnight.From the same book, there is a recipe for 'The Ultimate Spinach Salad',
which really does rock the house. I can tell you that I have made this countless times without anyone complaining and people asking for another serving. For those of you who don't eat pork (the recipe calls for bacon), you can substitute mushrooms and it still works great.
With the spinach salad, we decided to go for some hard core protein and made Rosemary Balsamic Vinegar Glazed Ribeyes. I think we opted to do this after I ran Beat the Bridge to raise money for JDRF.
Shifting over to poultry, we did one duck dish as well as a few chicken dishes. There was Martha Stewart's Grilled Chicken with Red Pepper and Basil that was served with Carmelized Shallots with Barley. The original recipe from her cookbook, Martha's Healthy Quick Cook, calls for corn instead of barley, but we decided to make it a little healthier with the barley. It takes a bit longer to cook with barley, so you need to either cook it the night before or just allow an extra hour as opposed to corn, which cooks pretty quickly. Next up from Jacques Pepin's Simple and Healthy Cooking cookbook
- Chicken African-Style. It was pretty easy to make and it's a recipe that you can make on a night where you may have more time (i.e., Sunday night) and doesn't take a lot of time to cook if you wanted to serve it during the week when you have less time (i.e., Monday or Tuesday night). We opted to do the marinating on Sunday and served it on Monday, and it was very flavorful.Wrapping up the poultry section of this blog entry, we went for
something in Jerry Traunfeld's Herbal Kitchen cookbook - Tarragon Chicken Breasts with Buttered Leeks and Ramps. OK, I added the ramps because they happened to be in season when I made this recipe. Another easy recipe to make during the week due to the fact you do not need a ton of ingredients, which means less chopping and prep work.Finally, we're going to end this entry with a seafood entry. Yes, I said seafood. Given Marc's dislike of seafood, we don't cook it much around here but we were hosting a dinner party in 
honor of Cousins Claire and Arnie being in town, and salmon is in season. We made special adjustments for Marc because this dish not only had seafood, but something else that Marc has a strong dislike for - mushrooms.
honor of Cousins Claire and Arnie being in town, and salmon is in season. We made special adjustments for Marc because this dish not only had seafood, but something else that Marc has a strong dislike for - mushrooms. So I made one of my favorite dishes - Seared Salmon with Roasted Sweet Corn, Shiitake Mushrooms, and Balsamic Vinegar Butter Sauce from Danny Meyer's Union Square Cafe cookbook. While this recipe is not hard, it is a decent amount of work because of the amount of ingredients and chopping involved - particularly if you go with fresh corn as opposed to frozen corn. But even with the amount of work involved in putting together the dish, I never regret it because it always tastes so darned good.
As a matter of fact, I recommend you make extra of the sweet corn and mushroom mixture, as well as the butter sauce, because you can also serve it with chicken as a leftover, which is what we did for Marc. We also made a separate corn and carrot mixture for Marc, given how much he does not like mushrooms. It worked.