Well, I'm back from 2 weeks of traveling! I must admit I missed all of the cooking. I didn't do much exercising at all on my trip but I *think* i did pretty well on my meals... meaning not eating too much and not eating all the freakin' time.
I recieved my Vegetarian Times in the mail and most of the recipes are very Fall focused (soupes, chowders, stews etc...) so not much I want to do with it yet while it's still hotter than hades in the apartment. What I will try is the actual roasting of my recipes really early in the morning so it doesn't bake us along with the chicken.
I was also looking for something "comfort-foody" for me. While this ALWAYS means chicken, the stuffed cabbage idea just came to me. My mom used to make it when I was younger and Tater's always loved cabbage, so I needed to hunt for the perfect recipe. I recall making this years ago and it didn't turn out right (i.e. not a lot of flavor, cabbage undercooked, overall not impressive) so it took me a while to find the right recipe that's not too easy (which was probably why my past attempt failed). Here goes!
5-Spice Roast Chicken
Adapted from thehungrymouse.com
Marinade Ingredients:
4 garlic cloves, minced or put through a press
1 Tbls. kosher salt
2 Tbls. toasted sesame oil
1 tsp. five-spice powder
1 Tbls. rice wine vinegar (I always substitute this with cooking sherry)
Chicken:
6 chicken leg quarters, 4 1/2 – 5 lbs. (I used a whole chicken, but cut it up into 2 leg quarters, 2 wings and 2 breasts... giggidy)
Mix up the marinade, toss the chicken in it, let it sit overnight(or not, or use a foodsaver vacu-marinade like we did), then roast for 50 minutes at 425 degrees.
Double Giggidy
Curried Rice and Quinoa Pilaf with Raisins and Pistachios
Adapted from September 2011 Vegetarian Times
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup basmati rice
1/2 cup quinoa
2 tsp. curry powder
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup chopped raisins (you can use any dried fruit, really)
1/4 cup chopped pistachios (yum)
1. Heat oil in medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion and sautee 2-3 minutes or until translucent.
2. Add rice and quinoa and cook until rice begin to turn opque. Add curry powder and cook 30 seconds. Stir in 1 1/2 cups water, add bay leaf, season with salt and cover and bring to a boil.
3. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 15 to 18 minutes or until grains are tender. Remove bay leaf and fold in raisins and pistachios.
I may just bake flounder with salt, pepper and garlic powder and serve this side dish with it.
Polish Stuffed Cabbage
Adapted from Lynnscountrykitchen.net
Ingredients for the sauce:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, smashed
1-1/2 quarts crushed tomatoes
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Ingredients for the cabbage rolls:
1-1/4 cups extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
Splash of dry red wine
2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
1 large egg
1-1/2 cups cooked rice
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 large heads green cabbage, about 3 pounds each
Preheat oven to 350
1. For the sauce, put oil in 3 quart saucepan and place over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes. Add the vinegar and sugar, simmer, until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and remove from the heat. Set aside.
2. Put 2 tbsps of oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic for about 5 minutes until soft. Stir in the tomato paste, a splash of wine, parsley, and 1/2 cup of the prepared sweet and sour tomato sauce; mix to incorporate and then take it off the heat.
3. Combine the ground meat in a large mixing bowl. Add the egg, the cooked rice, and the sautéed onion mixture. Toss the filling together with your hands to combine, season with a generous amount of salt and pepper.
4. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Remove the large, damaged outer leaves from the cabbages and set aside. Cut the cores of the cabbages with a sharp knife and carefully pull off all the rest of the leaves, keeping them whole and as undamaged as possible.
5. Blanch the cabbage leaves in the pot of boiling water for 5 minutes, or until pliable. Run the leaves under cool water then lay them out so you can assess just how many blankets you have to wrap up the filling. Next, carefully cut out the center vein from the leaves so they will be easier to roll up. Take the reserved big outer leaves and lay them on the bottom of a casserole pan, let part of the leaves hang out the sides of the pan. (This insulation will prevent the cabbage rolls from burning on the bottom when baked). Use all the good looking leaves to make the cabbage rolls.
6. Place about 1/2 cup of the meat filling in the center of the cabbage and starting at what was the stem-end, fold the sides in and roll up the cabbage to enclose the filling. Place the cabbage rolls side by side, in rows, seam-side down, in the casserole pan. Pour the remaining sweet and sour sauce over the cabbage rolls. Fold the hanging leaves over the top to enclose and keep the moisture in. Drizzle the top with the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
Bake at 350 for 1 hour or until the meat is cooked.
Blueberry Jam
Adapted from July 2011 Real Simple Magazine
2 1/2 cups blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
1. In a medium saucepan, combine the blueberries, sugar, lemon juice and salt. Mash it with a potato masher until the berries have released their juices.
2. cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture has thickened, about 18-25 minutes. Transfer to containers and refrigerate for up to 1 month or freeze for up to 1 year.
YAY!
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