 |
Connect with Kurt:    |
|
Asparagus and Salmon Season
Spring has sprung in Baltimore. After months of cold days and freezing nights the forecast for the next five days has us reversing course in a big way. The overnight lows for the next several days are higher than the daytime highs have been for months. With night time lows in the mid 60’s I am getting my vegie garden going. Daytime highs are going to be in the 80‘s tomorrow if the weather guessers are right. Soon my Rocky Top lettuce blend will be feeding us amazing fresh salads. The peas won’t be far behind. Then in June the first fresh salmon from Cordova Alaska’s Copper River will show up. It won’t be until July that the first tomatoes from my garden will make an appearance on the table. About that time Moore’s Orchard across the street from me will be selling the first of the season peaches. Ah, I can just close my eyes and taste the first juicy peach already. But hey, it’s April and that means Asparagus is in season and showing up on my grocery store shelf. This is not the stuff from Peru or other points south. This is North American asparagus and I’m ready to buy some. Last night I made one of my favorite meals. It was Baked Salmon, with a side of Oven Baked Asparagus and Quinoa Pilaf. This is a simple,healthy meal that takes just 20-25 minutes from start to finish. If you subscribe to my Enewsletter on my blog you will receive two of recipes, Quinoa and Asparagus) that are not featured here so please sign up as it costs you nothing but a couple minutes of your time. For now however I will share with you the salmon recipe. I hope you enjoy it.
Baked Salmon Filets
1 pound salmon filets skinned and cut into 4 portions
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 teaspoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
In a individual baking dish or cookie sheet place salmon skin side down. Rub salmon filets with oil, then drizzle lemon juice over them. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the filets and bake for 10-15 minutes or until salmon flakes when pressed on. Don’t overcook.
Note:
I like to add a touch( 1/2 teaspoon) dried or fresh thyme for a nice herbed flavoring, or ground cumin.
A bit of garlic powder is a nice touch too. A little goes a long way.
I highly recommend Alaska salmon over farmed salmon when available.
Baked Salmon Dinner Trio
On Diet and Nutrition
No doubt about it most Americans could use some help with diet and nutrition. Part of the problem is we are bombarded with messages from the TV, internet and radio advertising all sorts of tasty treats and fatty foods. On the other side of the coin is a slew of diet books and gurus telling us how to live and eat. Some of us think our doctors can help with nutrition advice, but according to the book “The China Study, the Most Comprehensive Study on Nutrition Ever” the author points out that most doctors receive 20 hours or less of nutrition training making them not such good resources for diet and nutrition help. Lucky for all of us there are many of great nutrition blogs out in the blogosphere written by registered dietitians,(RD’s) who specialize in helping us eat right. One of my favorite nutrition blogs is written by Laura Rosenberg who is both a Registered Dietitian and a trained chef! On her blog http://greennapkinnutrition.com/ there is a wealth of nutrition tips and facts as well as recipes. If you are feeling adventurous try taking the Nutrition Knowledge Quiz http://www.eatright.org/nnm/games/MythOrFact/index.html and see how much you know about diet and nutrition. I took the test and found out some surprising facts I didn’t know, like the amount of recommended sodium is now 1,500 mg. I really liked her article about Kale and how it is packed with vitamins and minerals as well as being tasty too. Check out this recipe on her website:
http://greennapkinnutrition.com/2013/03/kale-for-breakfast-hel-yeahl/. I have been eating more kale recently by baking it in the oven as kale chips, or sauteing it with a bit of olive oil and garlic.
I recently contacted Laura and asked if she would consider testing one of my recipes and compiling the nutritional statistics for it and she graciously accepted. After cooking up a batch of my Italian Tomato Soup Laura pronounced it tasty and healthy, but recommended lowering the sodium by using low sodium chicken broth. If you haven’t tried it yet go to my blog and in the soup category you will find my Italian Tomato Soup(http://www.fastandfuriouscook.com/italian-tomato-soup/) with the nutrition facts. This is a very easy to make soup that is even better the next day as leftovers. Even though it is a vegan recipe you can add cheese tortellini for a vegetarian option, or Italian Sausage for a meat option. I hope you will give the soup a try and visit Laura’s blog soon to get on track for a healthier you.
Italian Tomato Soup
Cherry Blossom Season
After six visits to Japan over the last 15 years I was ready to try a five star hotel, and when the Chanzanso Hotel Travelzoo deal showed up in September of 2012 we jumped on the offer. Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo is set on a hillside that was called Camelia Hill until 1878 when prince Aritomo Yamagata purchased it and named it Chinzanso. The gardens that he and later owners established are there for all to see and enjoy, not just hotel guests. This is one of the nicest gardens attached to a hotel that I have ever seen! The camellias and cherry trees were in full bloom for our visit. The rest of the garden sights like the three story pagoda that is around 500-600 years old, are worth noting too. The garden lists the “Ten Scenic Spots at Chinzanso” that are all worth seeing. I loved the little statues found along the garden path that I called “Japanese garden gnomes”. The sacred tree of the garden is about 500 years old and stands magnificently towards the bottom end of the garden close to the soba restaurant. They also have a stone lantern from around the 12th century.
Chinzanso Hotel
As if the garden isn’t enough of a reason to stay at Chinzanso we found the room, restaurants, and staff to be excellent. Our room was large by Japanese standards, and in excellent condition. The large bathroom had a tub and separate shower as well as L’Occitane toiletries. We were given room number 1001 which had great views of both the gardens and the city of Tokyo. We found the location of the hotel to be much quieter than any other we had stayed at in Tokyo. I had read in previous reviews online that the hotel is kind of far from restaurants and shopping, but we found that the restaurants in the hotel and nearby were very good and many to choose from. The concierge told us about a nearby 175 year old Unagi restaurant the was Michelin rated and quite good. The train station is a 15 minute walk and the Metro is 10 minutes walk from the hotel. Or you can take a taxi for 710 Yen. The hotel is serviced by the Friendly Airport Limousine bus from Narita Airport, and is a good way to and from the hotel.
All in all I can’t think of any other place I could recommend more than this hotel for comfort, and service. We will never forget the service from the concierge desk just hours before we checked out. We had lost our camera two days before, but when we were packing up to leave the room my wife found a taxi reciept from the ride we had taken the day the camera was lost. On a whim we had the concierge call the taxi company to see if the camera had been turned in. It had, but they had sent it to the police lost and found. The concierge called the police, but they couldn’t find it so the concierge called the taxi company back, found the camera and got it to us an hour before we left for the airport. Now that is great service.
Unagi for lunch
The foodie part of the trip was great as usual. We started out by having lunch at the Unagi (eel) restaurant near Chinzanso. For about $40 each we had a great lunch in a Michelin starred restaurant that seemed to be a small mom and pop type place.
The next morning we went to the Tsukiji Fish Market and had sushi for breakfast at Sushi Zanmai. I had a great Tuna Sampler for just $30 that was as good as it gets. For dinner that night we went to a fancy sukiyaki restaurant called Asakusa Imahan to meet friends. It was a lovely traditional sit around the table and eat a big Japanese meal. It was fun during the part of the meal where we got to do a bit of the cooking in the frying pan at the table conveniently placed in front of us.
The next evening we ate dinner at the soba restaurant on the Chinzanso Hotel grounds. This was one of the best soba meals I have ever had! It was enhanced by the view of the gardens lit up at night just in front of our table. The soba itself was cooked just right and the sauce was excellent.
The best meal of the trip was at the Japanese restaurant in Chinzanso Hotel. They called it a buffet, but what it was is a menu of about 35 items that you ordered from at will. There was sushi, hot pots, appetizers, desserts and more. We couldn’t believe it was all you can eat. The quality of the food was superb, with the exception of the hot pot that was a bit weak on flavor. The appetizers were great, the sushi was great, and the cherry ice cream at the end was great! Apparently they have this deal all year, but the menu varies with the season. For about $100 you get an amazing meal. Next trip to Tokyo I would definitely go back to this restaurant.
yummy appetizers
For a quick and affordable lunch it’s hard to beat the Sekiguchi french style bakery chain that has been around Japan since 1888. The baked goods are quite yummy, and at lunch you can get soups and sandwiches too. For about $10 each we had a very good lunch there. Their croissants are very good as well as the curry bread, and salads.
For a Japanese style salad dressing to commemorate the trip I made up this dressing today in the Fast and Furious Test kitchen.
Sesame Oil and Cider Vinegar Dressing
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup sesame oil
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1-2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger, optional
Mix all ingredients in a bowl then pour into a salad dressing bottle. Best if you can refrigerate it over night, but plenty good just after it’s made too.
Note,
Try this pouring this dressing over bite sized fresh broccoli, cauliflower, red bell pepper and carrots. Put in refrigerator for 2-3 hours for best tasting salad.
Travelling Again
I’m off to Japan early Saturday morning, and am looking forward to staying in luxury at a 5 star Tokyo hotel. It was an advertised special for flight and lodging on TravelZoo.com last September and we jumped on the chance to spend a week in Japan in style. It’s going to be interesting flying on the Airbus A380 the worlds largest passenger airplane to get there. This huge plane holds 525 passengers! It probably takes longer to load and unload this beast than you average airplane. Not only that, but the flight is operated by Singapore Airlines which is supposed to be one of the best to fly with. We fly Singapore from LAX to Tokyo and back.
While in Japan I hope to write about the food scene and other cultural highlights and post these tidbits to my blog. I will be in good hands as my in-laws are once again helping us with interpreting and guiding while in Japan. This will be my first time just staying in Tokyo. I know we will find some of the worlds best sushi, and plan to tour Tskuiji Fish Market and see the tuna auction around 5 am on Tuesday. I hope they allow pictures. If so I’ll post them to my blog for you to see the action without having to get up at 4 am to do so.
I have had five previous trips to Japan that have all been special. I have seen ancient temples, beautiful coastlines, large trees, amazing art and met many very nice Japanese locals. This trip will no doubt be special too. It doesn’t hurt that the exchange rate is way better than the last trip there. I hope to bring back some nice plates and dishes to further my food photography. Speaking of photography here’s a shot that proves the Japanese have had a great sense of humor for a long time. I don’t know how old this painting was that I shot in a castle museum, but it’s old and it cracks me up.
you ate beans again!
Look for my first post around Tuesday or Wednesday of next week. By then I hope to have shaken off the jet lag and starting writing.
Special Occasion Meals
Live from Maine
There are cooking blogs out in the blogosphere that have mostly high fat, high calorie recipes on their blogs, but not me. However, I do realize the value of a special occasion meal, and since last night was our wedding anniversary we did it up! Now over the years we would sometimes go out for our anniversary to a special restaurant. Most of the time we prefer to stay at home and have some sort of lobster dish. Last night I bought 3 live lobsters and brought them home for a feast. I decided I’d do lobster two ways. First was the old standby of Lobster Newburg, a wonderful preparation with lobster sauteed in clarified butter with minced onions and mushrooms. It is thickened with roux, then the milk and sherry are added. A touch of ground white pepper, and nutmeg finish it off perfectly. To this dish I then added butter poached lobster as a garnish. This is a way of cooking lobster I learned from the book “Soul of a Chef” where chef Thomas Keller took up about a third of the book, and was highlighted in his French Laundry restaurant. Wow, it was good! To round out the plate I steamed whole brussel sprouts, and made a nice rice pilaf with a touch of saffron for flavor and color. I also served a small dish of corn relish for a mini salad course. The Roederer Estate sparkling wine was a perfect match, for both the main dish and the store bought fruit tart and cherry tart. All in all I was very pleased and will remember the evening fondly. And that my friends is what special occasion meals are all about! Great food is part of our lives, and one of the things we remember from special occasions. So by all means enjoy the good stuff, just don’t eat like this every night if you want to be healthy and active.
Fast and Furious Newburg Sauce for Two
1/3 cup white mushrooms diced small
1/4 cup yellow onion diced small
1 tablespoon clarified butter
1 cup whole milk
dash of ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
In a 1 quart pot saute the onions in the clarified butter on medium low for 3 minutes then add the mushrooms stirring often,(about every 30 seconds). Continue cooking for 8-10 minutes on medium low to cook out most of the moisture in the mushrooms stirring often. Add the flour to make a roux and cook 4 more minutes on low. Whisk in milk and turn heat up to medium stirring slowly but constantly until the sauce just starts to bubble and simmer. Add pepper, nutmeg and salt to taste. Remove from heat and cover until needed. Enough sauce for two servings, maybe even three.
Lobster Two ways,
butter poached and Newburg
For the lobsters.
I use an 8 quart pot to precook my lobsters in, but as long as you can get a lid on you can use a smaller pot for this step. Fill the pot about one third full of water, cover, and bring to a boil. When the water comes to a boil drop the lobster in head first, belly up. Cook for 3-4 minutes on high heat and remove to cold water to stop the cooking process. Repeat for each lobster. After lobsters cool , the meat should come out easily when the shells are cracked open. Cut lobster tail into bite sized pieces, and leave claws whole. Dry the lobster pieces with paper towels and saute in clarified butter in a medium sized saute pan on medium heat for 5-8 minutes. Drain lobster butter off into a bowl to save for bread dipping(yum!). Add Newburg Sauce to the pan and heat just until it starts to simmer. Pour into preheated baking dishes if you have them and serve with sliced French bagguette slices.
Serves two but is easily doubled.
Note:
* I used three 1 1/2 pound lobsters for this dish, and had a bit of lobster meat leftover for lobster hash the following morning.
Lobster Hash
A Little Help Please
My Cooking Blog Project
When I started this blog I had no idea how much work it would be. Cooking itself comes naturally to me and I flow through most cooking projects easily. The biggest challenges have been learning the operating systems of the blog. To name a few there is WordPress for blog hosting, Aweber for Email management, Facebook for promoting, Twitter for promoting, Ejunkie for processing payments, and a few others. This has been a bit more costly than I expected too. I have enjoyed this whole project even when some of the above mentioned caused me to need a long walk. Now that my Fast and Furious Cookbook volume #1 is available I hope most of you have received some benefit that would entice you to buy my cookbook as a way to help me defer some of my cost of putting out recipes and tips to make your food world a better place. For only $9.97 you would be helping me stay on track to produce new recipes and food news for many months and possibly years to come. When you buy the Ebook you will also get over 40 recipes that will have you making great healthy meals from scratch quicker than you thought possible. There is also a one week sample menu to help you plan your household meals. I will continue writing new original recipes for a print cookbook that I expect to have done by the end of the year. That cookbook I plan on publishing as a traditional print cookbook. I am enrolled in photography classes to improve the food pictures I take for the blog and cookbook. I will also attend Eat, Write, Retreat in Philadelphia to up my skills in all areas of food blogging so I can bring you my best. All I ask is for a little help, please.
Did You Ever Wake Up With Them Bullfrogs on Your Mind?
Can’t say that I have ever woke up with them bullfrogs on my mind, but I did wake up with butternut squash and Rory Gallagher the Irish blues legend on my mind today. And why did I wake up with these two completely different things on my mind? Bullfrog Blues was on my mind after a chat with my friend Bobby in Alaska who called me to hook me up with some Rory G songs on the internet. If you need a taste here is a link, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33Jaodra7AY&noredirect=1. This is a good morning maniac music type song to get you going.The butternut squash was on my mind due to a visit to the Home and Garden show in Timonium, Maryland yesterday where I sat through a 30 minute demo of Kitchen Craft cookware. I usually wouldn’t do such a thing however it was at a point where my wife and I had seen just about everything, and had some time to spare to see what this whole “cooking without water” thing was about. It was very interesting especially the presenter’s claim that you lose 70% of the vitamins and other good stuff when you cook vegies in water. The presenter made some good points on why to get rid of your aluminum cookware, and especially your teflon cookware. Not that I believed everything he said, but it’s probably a good thing to dump the aluminum, which I have been doing in stages for about 15 years anyway. But I digress. The reason I had butternut squash on my mind was because the presenter made a good point on why to include it in your diet often, and I had a lovely butternut hanging out on my kitchen counter just waiting for inspiration on what to do with it. So today is the day it gets prepared, but before I get into that here’s some good info on the nutritional benefits of butternut squash from www.wholeliving.com:
Nutrition Breakdown
Per 1 cup cooked, approximately 205 grams
Calories:
82 kcal
Fat: 0.2 g
Vitamin A: 1,144 mcg = 163 percent* of DRI**
Vitamin B6: 0.3 mg = 20 percent of DRI
Vitamin C: 31 mg = 41 percent of DRI
Folate: 39 mcg = 10 percent of DRI
Potassium: 582 mg = 12 percent of DRI
Percentages are for women 31 to 50 years old who are not pregnant ** DRI, Dietary Reference Intake, is based on National Academy of Sciences’ Dietary Reference Intakes, 1997 to 2004
You can probably see that it is full of good stuff for a body, but the best part is all the ways you can prepare it. I love butternut squash soup, or oven roasted butternut squash. It cooks up well with so many different types of herbs and spices from onion and garlic to cinnamon and ginger. You can cook it seasoned with Indian Curry, or your favorite steak seasoning. I will admit it is a challenge to peel a butternut squash, but most grocery stores sell it already cut into cubes for fast and easy preparation. For todays post I decided to do Butternut squash 3 ways using a 1 pound 2 ounce organic specimen. To make it a bit more interesting I’m going to make it in 3 ways that I have never seen or had before today so hang on, here we go.
#1 Curried Coconut Butternut Squash Soup
#2 Butternut Squash with Walnut Oil and Sage Tossed in Penne Pasta
#3 Butternut Squash and Celery Salad
I’m back at the laptop and done with the whirlwind Butternut project and quite pleased with the results. For the pasta and salad dish I oven roasted the squash all at once sparing me some time. While cutting up the squash I decided to try a new idea on roasting the seeds so I put the seeds from the squash in a small baking dish prepped with a quarter teaspoon of walnut oil and seasoned them with ground dried chipolte pepper powder and Lawrey”s Seasoning Salt. They came out great! The pasta dish was good, but would be better with the addition of mushrooms, or Italian sausage. I liked the way the salad turned out and will try it with dried tarragon next time to see if that’s a better herb.
The soup however was the best of the bunch. It came out thick and rich tasting with just the right amount of curry. For you my dear readers since I usually only post one recipe per post I’ll give you the soup recipe here today, and the rest will be re-tested for addition to my cookbook project. For you brave souls that try the Butternut Squash Soup please leave your comments. Bon Appetit until we meet/eat again.
Butternut Squash four ways.
Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut and Curry
1 tablespoon walnut oil, or canola oil
1/4 cup minced yellow onion
1/4 cup minced celery
1 cup sliced carrots
2 cups water
2 cups cubed butternut squash
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 can of coconut milk,(14 oz)
1 teaspoon Better Than Bullion Chicken Base, or 1 vegetable stock cube
salt and white pepper to taste, about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon each
Saute minced onions, and celery with oil in a 1 1/2 to 2 quart pot on medium low for 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Add carrots, squash, curry powder, turmeric, chicken base and water. Increase heat to medium high and cook covered until it starts simmering. Turn it down, stir, and continue to cook simmering until squash is cooked, about 12 to 15 minutes. Add coconut milk, salt and pepper then cook for about 3 more minutes. Turn off heat and blend with an immersion blender or table top blender until smooth. Serve with roasted squash seeds on top, or a small sprinkle of nutmeg.
Serves 4-6.
Note:
* Low fat coconut milk can be used.
Man’s Best Friend
Today I said goodbye to my dog Vixen after a four month battle with Lymphoma. We had a great five years together since picking her up as a pup on January 26, 2008. She had most of one year in Colorado, and the rest in Maryland. She was as good as a dog can be, and most people that knew her said she was one of the best trained dogs they had seen. She was beautiful, and many times at dog parks or on walks people would remark about her looks. Her true beauty was in a big heart and sweetness. She brought more than one boy out of their shell at St Vincent’s Villa where I volunteer with boys that live there facing challenges few of us imagine. When I couldn’t crack the shell of three of these boys she stood up to the challenge and always won them over. Her pet sitters considered her one of the family. When I took her there for one of my several trips each year she would almost bust down the door to get in. When I would come back to get her she would almost bust down the door to come to me. A perfect dog in that regard.
Playing “where’s the turtle” in New Hampshire
In five years in this world she never bit another dog or human. Just sticks, tennis balls and frisbees. However if you came to our door she would be the guard dog she was bred to be, and people would see a snapping snarling, barking maniac of a dog until I got there to call her off. She lived a life few dogs get to live, that is because she was with me 24/7 except for the 4-5 weeks per year I’d be gone on trips, or when we went out for dinner or a show. And so it is I think of the saying, “It’s not the years in the life but the life in the years that count”. Vixen had a lot of life in those five years.
Goodbye my dear friend.
Every cat should have their own dog.
A Healthy Recipe for Brownies?
Where Did We Go Wrong?
Healthy recipes for baking go back centuries before the advent of white flour yet most of us have been fed little in the way of whole grains most of our lives. It was after 1870 that wheat grinding changed significantly with the advent of iron, steel or porcelain rollers instead of stone. This produced a more refined flour and the rest is history. I could go on and on, but would instead send you to http://www.grainmillandwheatgrinder.com/history-of-white-flour.html where in just a few minutes you can get the rest of the story. My story is that I use way less white flour in my baking, choosing instead whole wheat, and sometimes using oat flour, or even barley flour. I experiment using these whole grains in bread, muffins and cookies. Consider that all whole grain flours are not created equal. I like getting my whole wheat flour, and white flour from King Arthur Flour Company after I read an article about them in Smithsonian Magazine several years ago. It stated that King Arthur was the only flour the French imported from America it was that good! I get my other flours and cornmeal from the small producers like Arrowhead Mills, Red’s Mill, or Hodgson Mill. I encourage you to add more whole grains in your diet which may be a challenge at first, but if you get the book, Whole Grain Baking by King Arthur Flour you will be exposed to over 500 pages of whole grain baking recipes, and information about whole grains in general. There is a baker’s hotline included in the book that has been quite useful to me on several occasions.One of the things I learned from the hotline was to keep my whole grain flours in the freezer as whole grains can go rancid. The phone number for the hotline is 802-6493717. Not all these are healthy recipes, like the lovely Lemon-Raspberry Cake that graces the cover, but there are hundreds of recipes that are healthier than most baking recipes us Americans use. Try increasing your whole grain consumption by getting a copy of this amazing baking book, and see if you agree with me that it is the best whole grain recipe resource out there.
Almost all of my posts include my original recipes, but when I find a recipe worth sharing I change my routine for you dear readers. Today’s venture into whole grain baking took place here at the Fast and Furious test kitchen,(my home), and featured brownies from page 341 in the above mentioned baking book. I tried the applesauce version that cuts the amount of butter or oil in half. I have baked with applesauce to cut down on fat in baking recipes for years with excellent results, and recommend you give it a try too if you haven’t already. Today’s experiment is going to be a gift to the staff and volunteers of St Vincent’s Villa in Timonium, Maryland where I volunteer each Wednesday mentoring a 12 year old boy that lives there. I bet they won’t even know that these are a healthier recipe for brownies unless I decide to tell them. If you want to try this recipe, it is here by permission of the good bakers at King Arthur Flour.
ingredients
Double Fudge Browines
1 cup unsalted butter
2 cups packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup Dutch processed cocoa
1 t baking powder
1 t salt
1 t espresso powder (optional)
1 T vanilla extract
4 large eggs
1 1/2 cups traditional whole wheat flour
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and lightly grease a 9×13 inch pan.
Melt the butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl or in a saucepan set over low heat. Add the sugar and stir to combine. Return the mixture to the microwave (or heat) briefly, until it’s hot and starting to bubble. Heating this mixture a second time will dissolve more of the sugar, which will yield a shiny top crust.
mixing time
Stir in the cocoa, baking powder, salt espresso powder(if using) and vanilla. Cool the mixture until you can test it with your finger: it should feel like comfortably hot bath water. Whisk in the eggs, stirring until smooth, them add the flour and chips, again stirring until smooth. Spoon the batter into the prepare pan.
Bake the brownies until a cake tester or sharp knife poked into the center reveals wet crumbs but not raw batter, 30 minutes. The brownies should feel set on the edges and in the center. Remove them from the oven and cool on a rack: cover when cool. Let sit over night before serving: this gives the bran a chance to soften, giving the brownie a more pleasing texture.
Lower-fat version.
Cut the fat by substituting 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce for 1/2 cup butter: add after the vanilla. The brownies will have a slightly milder chocolate flavor and slightly less fudgy texture.
time to eat!
Food Options
You can’t please all of the people all of the time. I have heard this many times throughout my life, and believe it’s true. Take any favorite restaurant that you have been to and liked for years as an example. You might out of the goodness in your heart recommend that restaurant to a friend only to find out later that they didn’t think it was any good. It doesn’t matter that you have been there several times and always had a good meal there. We just don’t all enjoy the same food, movies, books, etc. Good thing there are options in the food world. While some restaurants may say on their menus,”No Substitutions Please”, I encourage substitutions. Take this standby of American, and Italian cuisine, Spaghetti with Meat Sauce. In this following recipe I encourage tweaking it. You could take the one pound of ground beef and replace it with:
1/2 pound ground beef, and 1/2 pound Italian Sausage
1 pound ground turkey
1 pound of sliced mushrooms
1 pound ground lamb
You could also take the 1 tablespoon of mixed Italian herbs and replace it with:
1 teaspoon dried basil, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, and 1 teaspoon dried basil
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon basil
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, and 3 tablespoons fresh chopped basil in the last 5 minutes of cooking
3 tablespoons of fresh minced oregano, and 3 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
The options are almost endless, and fun to play around with. That is the reason I put ingredient options with many of my recipes. I want you to have fun playing around with a recipe, and tweak to your taste. Many of my main dishes can be vegetarian, vegan or meaty. So please enjoy this classic comfort food by inserting or deleting ingredients until you find what works best for you and let me know how it turned out.
30 Minute Spaghetti With Meat Sauce
1 cup diced onion
2-4 cloves minced garlic
1 teaspoon oil
1 pound 85% or leaner ground beef
2 15 ounce cans diced tomatoes
1 15 ounce can tomato sauce
1 tablespoon dried Italian herb blend
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon red pepper, optional
1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt
In a 2 quart pot saute onions and garlic for 5 minutes stirring or until soft on medium heat.
Add ground beef and turn up heat to medium high stirring every 30 seconds or so.
Turn off heat and drain the fat. Return to stove on medium high heat and add the rest of the ingredients. When it starts to simmer turn down heat to medium low and simmer for 20 minutes stirring every 5 minutes.
Note:
*Ground beef can be omitted, and substituted with ground turkey, ground bison, mushrooms quartered or sliced, or even ground pork.
*Fresh herbs can be used, but be sure to add them towards the last 5 minutes so the delicate flavor doesn’t cook out of them. I like fresh oregano, thyme and basil for this type of recipe using about 2 teaspoons of each basil and oregano, but only 1 teaspoon of thyme.
*Diced green or red bell peppers are a nice addition. Just saute with the onions and garlic.
*This is a quick recipe. Be sure to have your water starting to heat up at the same time you start the sauce. You can cook this longer and more flavor will develop, but it’s plenty good in just 30 minutes.
*2-4 tablespoons of tomato paste can be added for a thicker sauce.
30 Minute Spaghetti Sauce