Clearly Tasty

Clearly Tasty is moving (sort of)!

2011-05-25T15:26:00.000-07:00

Hi guys. I've decided since I really don't post regularly enough here I'm going to combine this blog with my other blog, cleartrampoline. Please feel free to follow that blog, as I will post any future foodie things there, as well as the regular photography, craftiness and basically life/journal type stuff I already do. :)

Baked Lemon Pasta

2011-03-15T10:31:00.000-07:00

The Pioneer Woman knows how to make a delish dish. I mean, every recipe I have tried from her website has been spectacular, no foolin'!

Baked Lemon Pasta

Her recipe for Baked Lemon Pasta is really great. Lately I've been very much into recipes that have lemon in them. I love that tart citrus lightness that lemon gives to a dish and this dish inparticular, it feels clean and healthy (even with all that butter, lol!). If you actually wanted to make a healthier, lower calorie/fat version you could use your butter replacement of choice and low fat sour cream, I'm sure it would still be delish. I followed the directions pretty much to a T (except I used whole wheat noodles) and I served it with a side salad (mixed greens tossed with home made mustard vinaigrette).

Baked Lemon Pasta with side salad.

The only thing I think I would do differently the next time I make it is maybe up the amount of sour cream, it was a teeny bit on the dry side, maybe it's because I used whole wheat noodles (I always and only use whole wheat noodles, so much better for you), they seem to require more moisture than regular noodles do.

Anyway I totally recommend you try this, it's not your average pasta, you will the uniqueness of this! Clearly tasty!

Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Cookies

2011-02-10T21:26:00.000-08:00

Made some cookies today. A bit of a riff on the standard Peanut Butter Cookie. I used whole wheat flour instead of regular flour, and I added a chocolate chip on top. I halved most of the ingredients from a classic type recipe (Here's one at Simply Recipes), but these ones have a higher ration of egg and peanut butter, which gave these cookies a little more of a fluffiness than your usual pb cookie. They turned out really nice and light. Eli's had like, 4 in the last hour. I think that means they are tasty. :)

Yum!

Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Cookies

1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter, softened to room temp.
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 tbsp milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
16 chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Mix peanut butter, butter, sugar and brown sugar in bowl til well blended. Add egg, milk and vanilla extract, mix until smooth. Add flour, baking powder and salt, mix til combined. Spoon one tbsp size balls onto cookie sheet (I did two batches of 8). Top each one with a chocolate chip, pressing down slightly. Bake for 8 minutes. Cool on rack and enjoy!

Makes 16 cookies.

So tasty!

Beans and Bread and other things

2011-01-11T09:47:00.000-08:00

Last week I managed to get 2 of my dinner plans done. Not such a great record, but I still feel good about it. The Curry Quinoa was a hit with some tofu, read about it here in my previous post.

On Saturday I made the Butternut Squash and Coconut Milk Rice as planned and it was lovely. I followed the recipe except I used chickpeas instead of black beans (it's what I had in the pantry). The only thing I would have done differently is maybe leave the lemon grass whole and take it out before serving, because I guess I didn't get it chopped fine enough and it was a bit like chomping down on tree bark at times. Teeny tiny pieces of tree bark. The flavors were phenomenal though, and I will definitely make it, or a variation, again soon.

On Saturday I also made two loaves of bread and a big ol' pot of black beans. For the black beans I used this Spicy, Citrusy Black Beans Recipe from Simply Recipes. The bread and the beans turned out AH-mazing! I think I'm gonna make it a regular thing to make bread and a pot of beans, or something equally as slow-cooking and savory, on Saturdays. A nice long day of leisurely cooking and baking in between book reading.

Trying out a new thing, here is a link to the bread recipe I used from the Joy of Cooking on google books. It's called White Sandwich Bread. Scroll down, it starts on the bottom of this page and goes on to the next (they explain the whole wheat version on the next page, that's the version I made).

Breaded Curry Tofu and Curried Quinoa Salad

2011-01-03T19:43:00.000-08:00

So, first day of this week's meal plan and already off track!

Monday night dinner.

I decided I needed to switch Monday and Tuesday's dinner plans since I forgot to soak my white beans overnight, which meant Curried Quinoa Salad. While reading a post this morning about tofu on I Will Run For Chocolate I remembered I had some Mori-Nu Silken Tofu on top of the fridge, and decided I would incorporate that with the Curried Quinoa Salad.

Curried Quinoa Salad.

I loosely followed Healthy Green Kitchen's Curried Quinoa Salad recipe, found here.
Here are my changes: I used peas instead of edamame, fresh tomato instead of sun dried, walnuts instead of pecans, and omitted the parsley (would have been delish but I didn't have any) and didn't do the chicken or turkey recommendation. I add some chopped fresh spinach and a splash of Ponzu (which is basically a citrus soy sauce). It was amazing. Fresh and filling.

The tofu recipe follows. Served on the side. In hindsight this would work better with non-silken tofu, and I wish I'd sliced the pieces a bit smaller, because it crumbled a bit. Still it turned out amazing.

Breaded Curry Tofu.

Breaded Curry Tofu

1 pack firm or extra firm tofu
3 tbsp olive oil
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
1 tbsp curry seasoning

Drain and pat dry the tofu. Slice the into 1/2 inch or 1/4 inch chunks. Drizzle with 1 tbsp of the olive oil, lightly tossing. In a bowl combine the breadcrumbs and curry seasoning, toss in the tofu and mix lightly until coated on all sides. Heat a nonstick pan or a wok over high heat, add the remaining olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the tofu to the pan and cook until crispy, flipping a few times to cook on all sides. Remove from pan and drain on plate covered with a paper towel to remove excess oil. Salt and pepper to taste.

Menu Plan Sunday!

2011-01-02T14:00:00.000-08:00

peeling apples

This week I'm going to try and use up some stuff around the kitchen without purchasing anything, or at least very little. It's the new year, and one of my resolutions is trying to be as frugal as possible. Should be easy for a while, since we've got lots of meats in the freezer and beans, rice and quinoa in the pantry as well as various veggies. I'm sure I can come up with plenty of interesting recipes! I've found a few for this week, and I'll just adapt them as close as I can to what I have.

This week's plan:
Sunday- Leftovers!
Monday- New Orleans' Style White Beans (with sausage, only because we have some in the freezer)
Tuesday- Curried Quinoa Salad with steamed broccoli
Wednesday- Polish sausages with garlic potato fries
Thursday- Burritos with chips & salsa
Friday- Leftovers!
Saturday- Butternut Squash and Coconut Milk Rice with baked chicken breasts

I also think I'll make an apple crisp at least one night this week since I still have a few apples left in my fridge.

What are you making this week?

Chunky Lentil Soup and Homemade Broth

2010-12-29T09:54:00.000-08:00

Chunky Lentil Soup.

This Chunky Lentil Soup is from the cookbook Super Natural Cooking (I found a link to the recipe on another blog here). I love this book because the recipes are healthy, delicious, and easy to prepare. I probably cook out of it at least once a month.

When I made this soup a couple of weeks ago I tweeted this:

Hilarity ensued, with people wondering, what is this chucky lentil soup? Did the bride of Chucky make this? Why do you want to marry it? I shake my fist at you sometimes, twitter! It was pretty funny though.

Now back to soups. When I make soups from recipes I tend to follow them loosely, quantities are not really set in stone. You have 5 cups of homemade broth when the recipe calls for 3 cups? Why waste it? Use it all.

When it comes to soups, heck, when it comes to pretty much all cooking, I'm also a heavy spicer. I almost never measure the spices out, I just eyeball them with a few pinches, dashes, shakes, what have you. I also used regular ol' lentils because that is what I had. This is also a good idea, especially from a frugal standpoint. You don't need to go out and buy some special ingredient when you can replace it with something already in your kitchen.

Homemade Broth
Have I mentioned my easy way for making homemade broth? It's not rocket science, it's actually pretty easy. Basically whenever you use veggies, instead of throwing things away, things like the ends of carrots, the outer layers of onions and the ends, the garlic that is left in the press after you smash it, the tops of celery, potato peels, etc.throw them it in a little zip lock bag or reusable container and toss it in the freezer.

This also works for chicken, if you buy a whole chicken, toss the bits from the inside that you usually cringe and just throw in the trash, with the back and what ever other pieces you don't use into the freezer. You get the idea.

When things start falling out of the freezer every time you open the door, its time to make stock.Grab your big pot or dutch oven, toss in a bunch of veggies and/or chicken bits, fill with water till covered, add a few of your favorite spices, peppercorns and a few pinches of salt, bring to a boil and then simmer for a few hours. Strain and use, or put in the fridge or freezer for later. So delicious and frugal!

Bottom line, don't be afraid to veer off the road a bit! Make homemade soup. Use what you have. Eat. Enjoy. Clearly tasty.

Chocolate Chip Muffins

2010-12-28T18:48:00.000-08:00

Chocolate Chip Muffins

Ah, the age old question. What is the difference between a muffin and a cupcake? Not a whole heck of a lot. Especially with these Chocolate Chip Muffins from Joy of Baking I made a few weeks ago. I think the only thing keeping them from cupcake territory was the lack of frosting or icing. At least that is what I told myself as I ate one for breakfast 3 days in a row. For some reason mine look nothing like the ones pictured on the Joy of Baking site, but they were mighty tasty non-the-less.

Rice Crispy Treats!

2010-11-21T16:05:00.000-08:00

Today I made Smitten Kitchen's Salted Brown Butter Crispy Treats for a work party Eli is throwing.

Rice Crispy Treats

This recipe is little different than your traditional one, you brown the butter and use sea salt to give it a more grown-up flair, but basically they are your traditional rice crispy treat. I didn't follow the recipe to a T, it calls for a 10 oz bag of marshmallows and I instead used half of a 16 oz bag (this way I have enough to make another batch for a Thanksgiving treat!).

Rice Crispy Treats

Despite cutting back on the marshmallowy-goodness they are still very delish and sticky and pretty much perfect! I totally recommend this recipe if you want to make this delicious treat that will transport you to your 10 year old self. :)

Cathay Dinnerware

2010-10-20T15:24:00.001-07:00

Cathay Dinnerware
Originally uploaded by SHAG (Philadelphia)

This photo was not taken by me, but this is the dish set that I have. I could only wish I had that creamer and butter dish though!!! Someone quick, find them for me! While your at it find me a few more of the cups, I broke two of them when moving boxes a few months ago. So sad.

Random Order Coffee

2010-10-19T13:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of pics from my recent trip to Random Order Coffee.

Mulled Cider with Ginger Rum

Apple Pie

If I lived in the neighborhood this would probably be my regular stop for coffee, but since it's quite the trek I hadn't been there in probably a year or so, and had forgotten about their tasty baked goods! I had a piece of apple pie as well as a hot apple cider (with a shot of ginger rum, yum!). They were both fabulous. I definitely recommend this place. It is often very busy and there isn't much seating room, so just be ready to drink your coffee and eat your goods standing up, or take out. The last time I was there in the morning there was a long line for coffee, and I patiently waited for my cappuccino, and was so excited, and was walking back to the car when I tripped on this groove in the pavement and splashed my coffee all over the sidewalk. I was horrified! I don't recommend doing that. Who was I with that day? Anyone remember that?

Sliced bread

2010-10-12T15:03:00.001-07:00

Sliced bread
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

I made homemade yeast bread for the first time ever and it was AWESOME! I used the recipe for White Sandwich Bread from Joy of Cooking, although I did the whole wheat version. And I decided to half the recipe because I only have one loaf pan. BUT, I forgot to half the 1 cup of warm water, so when I was mixing in the flour I was like, "WHAT IS GOING ON THIS ISN'T RIGHT!" and then I realized my mistake, and just kept adding flour til the dough was not soo sticky.

Even though I made that huge mistake it turned out amazing. I was worried since I had halved everything else, especially the yeast, that it wasn't going to rise properly, but it did. Now I want to make bread all the time! I recommend trying it. It does take a long time, what with the 3 hours your bread has to rise, but it is totally worth it!

Tuna Casserole

2010-09-29T21:27:00.000-07:00

Tuna Casserole

Sometimes you cook without a recipe and it turns out AMAZING. This casserole I made on Thursday was one of those meals. I browsed a few of my many, many cook books, browsed some of my favorite online sources, and none of the recipes fit the bill for what I had in my fridge and pantry, so I decided to just make it up.

Basically here is what I did.

Camille's Thursday Night Tuna Casserole

Ingredients

1/2 bag of whole wheat noodles

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup to 1 cup of milk, or as much as needed

1 can of peas, drained

1 can of tuna, drained

1 onion, chopped

1 can of sliced Shitaki mushrooms (or the reg. kind would work as well, I bought Shitaki because they were on sale), drained

1 1/2 cups of shredded cheese

Handful of breadcrumbs

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Cook the noodles as directed. While the noodles are cooking, fry up the chopped onion in some olive oil, cook on medium for about 5 minutes, or til the onions become translucent. When the noodles are done, drain, and put into a oven-proof (casserole-type) dish. Add the mushroom soup, milk, peas, tuna, onion, mushrooms, and about half to 3/4ths of the shredded cheese. Mix this all up real good (you could of course do this in a mixing bowl and then pour into the pan, but I like to make as few dirty dishes as possible since I have a tiny kitchen). Top with the remaining cheese and the handful of breadcrumbs (I also topped with some chives I had left over from a previous recipe). Cook in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until bubbly.

Honestly, this is like the definition of comfort food. The great thing is, you could basically use this as a template and switch things out depending on what you have, so say you have some left over chicken instead of tuna, chop that up and throw it in! Say you have a can of corn insted of peas, or green beans, or fresh veggies. All good things. Say you have a can of cream of broccoli, or whatever. You get the idea. Experiment a little.

As a side for this casserole I went with a salad, this photo is bad but you get the idea. Lettuce, carrot, onion, tomato, cucumber (I'd hit the farmers market earlier in the week, yum!) tossed with olive oil and white wine vinegar, salt & pepper to taste, top with chopped almonds (I love nuts in my salad!).

Salad.

Enchiladas

2010-09-10T23:43:00.001-07:00

Enchiladas
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

Yummy!

Dutch Babies

2010-07-22T15:34:00.001-07:00

Dutch Babies
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

My mother has a few signature dishes, and this is one of them. For special occasions or basically any time the family is all together she makes Dutch baby pancakes, which we affectionately just call Dutch Babies. Basically eggs, butter, milk, flour and sugar are whisked up together (or in a blender) and baked. For toppings we usually had thawed frozen fruit (my mom is never in short supply of frozen peaches in her freezer) and confectioner's sugar. Clearly tasty. :)

*This photo is from Christmas circa 2008. Also seen on this plate are skillet potatoes and link sausage.

Long time no post

2010-07-20T14:41:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted here since May, and for that I apologize. You know how it goes, busy with life and whatnot. I'm hoping to get some posts up soon, however. Stay tuned.

Monday, April 26th, 2010

2010-05-04T18:25:00.001-07:00

Chicken & Split Pea
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

Ok, so last Monday I realized I did not have enough lentils to fulfill the Lentil Soup recipe, so being the crafty creative girl that I am I decided to use split peas instead. It turned out pretty good. We roasted a couple chicken thighs too (Thriftway was running this incredible deal on them). All in all successful meal. We even ate the split pea leftovers yesterday (is that too long to have leftovers, a week? eek!) and they were pretty good. :)

Menu plan... Tuesday?

2010-05-04T11:22:00.000-07:00

Ok, so last week's menu planning went pretty well. I need to get a better handle on cooking for two though, because most recipes are for 4 or more, and between Eli and I we just end up wasting food, which, much like my sims in the Sims 3, I really hate to do! I'll post some pictures from last week later. I got some really great shots of food.

This week we are really on a tight budget, so we decided it was 'don't go to the store at all' week, which is proving to be difficult. It's like we have half of the things necessary to make many different things, but not a whole heck of a lot that goes together. It should be interesting to see what we come up with. Last night we had left overs lentils from last week with a salad and toast with cheese. Tonight, who knows? It's kind of exciting. :)

Menu Plan Monday

2010-04-26T17:38:00.000-07:00

I haven't been planning many menus lately, because things have been so hectic with schedules and what not, but I am vowing to get back into it. This week I've planned on simple breakfasts, oatmeal, eggs, cereal; lunches of leftovers; and some fun dinners, as well as some crockpot meals for Wednesday and Thursday which are both long days for me. It's heavy on the chicken this week, but they had a great sale at Lamb's Thriftway that I just couldn't pass up on. I love that store! It reminds me of the grocery stores of my youth, and while they don't have the hugest selection of organics, they do support local products, which I love, and they are super duper friendly, which, lets face it, goes a long way.

Here's the dinner plan (and I'll let you know how well I follow through)

Monday- Alton Brown's Lentil Soup
Tuesday- Meatloaf* with steamed Broccoli and Kale
Wednesday- Crockpot Chicken and Quinoa
Thursday- Crockpot Boneless Chicken Cacciatore

Friday- Roasted Chicken with roasted sweet potatoes

Roasted Chicken is one of Eli & I's favorites. For a while after we got married we would make it like, once a week. We haven't had it in a while so this will be a nice Friday night. :)

*Anyone have a good Meatloaf recipe? A coworker was eating leftovers last week and I just got a hankerin' for it. Not my usual fair, but I thought what the hay, some times comfort food is what you need to get through the work week, right?

cupcake

2010-01-17T19:34:00.001-08:00

cupcake6
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

This is a photo of the mouthwatering cupcakes I made today. Zucchini & almond with a lemon frosting. The recipe is from Cook yourself Thin, which I've linked to before. The cake is the right amount of substance without being too sweet, which is good since the frosting is insanely sweet, with a kick of lemon. Delicious.

Peach Frozen Yogurt

2010-01-14T21:22:00.001-08:00

Peach Frozen Yogurt
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

E. and I got an ice cream maker as a wedding gift. It is awesome. We have made quite a few delicious treats. This one pictured above is a peach frozen yogurt that we made. The recipe was in the manual that came with the ice cream maker. Basically you throw in a can of peaches, 2 cups of lowfat vanilla yogurt and a 1/3 cup of sugar. We made a variation. I didn't have vanilla yogurt so I used 1 cup plain and 1 cup nonfat plain, and then a dash of vanilla, and instead of the sugar I used agave syrup. It turned out delicious! The can of peaches that we used was a spiced kind, I believe it had cinnamon in it. It was good. I would make it again.

1950s Cooking

2010-01-03T19:30:00.000-08:00

I had a totally 50s style dinner the other night. I made turkey pie with some leftovers from thanksgiving, and jello parfaits.

The caption for this amazing photo reads:
Let the children cook . . . it's fun for them and a help to you.
Start off with an easy menu (page 81) and just see them shine!

The recipe for the pie was out of my General Food Kitchens Cookbook, first published in 1959. It's one of my favorite cookbooks to browse through, although most of the recipes are pretty dated. The raddest thing about this cookbook is that it's more than a cookbook, it's like the book they gave to 20 year old soon-to-be bride or something, it tells you how to do everything, from picking out produce to preparing a meal for 100. The pictures are amazing too, and in glorious unappetizing color as you can see above.

Jello Parfait

The Jello Parfait was just something I thought sounded cool, and fit my theme. I just made regular jello, and spooned it into cups, topped that with some fruit (out of the can of course, how 50's right?) and topped it with some home-made whipped cream. Sooo good. I love home-made whipped cream. The canned fruit cocktail, lets face it, sucked. I guess if you were living in a bunker afraid of the cold war it would be great to be able to have some fruit out of a can, but for now I'll stick with the fresh stuff.

Old Fashioned Turkey Pie

I moded the recipe a bit, added extra veggies and used half a cup buckwheat flour with the regular flour for the biscuit top to make it a little more healthy. All it all it was a success. Easy, quick, and tasty, and a great way to use up that leftover turkey.

garlic dip

2009-12-22T10:02:00.001-08:00

garlic dip
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

Garlic dip I made for the Gorman family Christmas Party. It was with roasted garlic, ricotta, and pepper basically, serve with veggie sticks. I used zucchini. I thought the dip was a little blah, so I added some olive oil and more garlic and some salt. Apparently it got a little too garlicky for some. If I did this again I wouldn't use ricotta, I guess I just don't like the texture, I wanted something a little more creamy. But I got a chance to use my cool retro Pyrex split bowl, so that was great.

crock pot pork

2009-12-22T09:45:00.001-08:00

crock pot pork
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

This was so easy, throw in crock pot pork, diced potatoes, diced carrot, diced onion, chopped garlic, salt & pep, fill with water till veggies are covered, and in 8 hours deliciousness will be knocking at your door. Very good.

Eggs Benedict with Garlic Aioli

2009-12-13T22:15:00.001-08:00

eggs benedict
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

Don't you love it when you are really hungry and you try a new recipe and it turns out really, really good? I do too. That is what happened today with this Eggs Benedict recipe I got out of Cook Yourself Thin.

The recipe called for smoked salmon, which was a little out of our price range, so we went with ham instead. I know, defeating the whole purpose of 'cooking oneself thin' but you do what you gotta do in these hard economic times. I used lots of pepper and lemon in the garlic aioli, and it was delicious, especially with a little Tapatio hot sauce on top.

I had never made poached eggs before, so that was a little scary. I figured it was about time though, since it's my current preferred way to eat my eggs. So good! My poached eggs turned out decent, not as pretty as the ones in the restaurants, but the whites were cooked and the yokes were runny, just like I like them.

Thanksgiving

2009-12-02T13:03:00.000-08:00

For thanksgiving this year I made Sweet Potatoes, Yams, whatever you wanna call 'ems, and a simple cranberry sauce. They both turned out really good. This is a picture of my dinner plate, and yes, I ate all of it. Almost. There were a few pieces of turkey I couldn't finish.

On the left* there you will see a Smith family tradition, known simply as noodles. Noodles are everyone's favorite. They are made by hand and cooked in a giant pot that is probably larger than my kitchen. The noodles are mixed with turkey bits, which you gotta watch out for livers and other weird bits that you aren't accustomed to eating, you can see a dark one right in the middle. Some people like these, I myself find them gag inducing, but they do add good flavor. I need to pay attention next year to the whole process so that I too can pass this tradition down to future generations. Good times.

*that is on the right. being a lefty in a righthanded world has made me a moron.

lentils

2009-11-23T11:26:00.001-08:00

lentils
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

Just wanted to post a quick pic of the lentils. They turned out great. In the last hour I added some left over potatoes and brussel sprouts from the night before, and it was a great addition, made it a real hearty one bowl meal.

Dinner tonight

2009-11-21T13:56:00.000-08:00

Lentils! I sort of did a combo of this recipe and this recipe, and also basically just what I had/wanted to throw in the pot. Well see in 4-6 hours how it turns out! I love having a slow cooker! I'll try to post a review/pictures later.

This Weeks Menu

2009-11-01T18:55:00.001-08:00

Menu for the week!

I'm totally trying to be fiscally responsible, i.e. not eat out in restaurants and splurging on things at the grocery store when I'm shopping while hungry. I am also trying to avoid wasting food, which, regretfully, happens often in my fridge. What, this bag of lettuce doesn't last a month in the fridge?? That's crazy. But seriously. It is lame to have to throw away food. That is why I am following the lead of a friend and trying this meal planning thinger out. I also really enjoy to cook, and I like to eat too, ha. So the idea of planning out a whole week of recipes is fun to me. Lets see how it goes shall we?

Monday
Poached Salmon, Roasted asparagus, salad

Tuesday
Pot Roast, steamed broccoli, rolls

Wednesday
Chicken Fajitas* with corn tortillas

Thursday
Leftovers

Friday
Pork Loin, mashed potatoes

Weekend
Leftovers or chicken. I bought a whole chicken for fajita making (it is always so much cheaper than buying just breasts). I figure I'll use probably the breasts for fajitas and maybe come up with something easy for the rest, like roasting it. I LOVE roast chicken.

*(I am not linking to a recipe on this one because I may post one of my own later in the week. Fajitas are not really that difficult, and I have a pretty good idea how I'm going to make them totes delicious.)

Fresh Pear and [Chicken] Stir Fry

2009-09-29T16:09:00.000-07:00

I was searching for some recipes for pears because my mother had brought me a bag of delicious Bartlett pears a few weeks ago. I knew there were some obvious dessert items one could make, but I wanted to find a way to incorporate them into a savory dish. That is when I stumbled upon this recipe on Steamy Kitchen for Fresh Pear and Shrimp Stir Fry. I had to replace chicken for shrimp, however, because my beau is allergic to the little guys. It turned out amazing! So flavorful and delicious. I would totally recommend this recipe. My photo does not do it justice. I was in such a hurry to eat it I didn't take my usual time, and this is what you get, a nearly unappetizing photo of food. Better than no photo perhaps. Next time I make it I'll be sure and set up some better lighting and focus. Ha!

Tofu and [Couscous] Stuffed Peppers

2009-09-16T18:25:00.000-07:00

This recipe, with a slight change of couscous for rice, is in the oven right now. Will share more later. :)

Lazy Easy Lunch

2009-09-10T13:50:00.000-07:00

I just prepped a bunch of stuff for slow cooker chicken and when I was done I was hungry! My breakfast/lunch (brunch, if you will) consisting of two slices of bread and a big salad did not cut it. I needed something fast and delicious. Can of Veggie broth + instant miso + frozen gyoza = yum. Simple, easy, and when you live near a great asian market like I do, pretty much items that are always on hand. Dinner should be fabulous though. Chicken with potatoes, carrots, onion, and lots of garlic. I can't wait. I love my crock pot!

eggplanthead

2009-09-04T00:10:00.001-07:00

eggplanthead
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

Funny veggie shapes! This guy was just too cute not to take a picture of. Saw him at the farmers market in Hillsdale last weekend. I love personifying my vegetables. This one is a total hipster (check out his cool comb to the side long hair). One of the great things about going to farmer's markets. You just don't see this kind of stuff at the average grocery store, they don't make the cut!

Of Tacos & Yogurt

2009-08-04T13:58:00.001-07:00

tacos
Originally uploaded by cleartrampoline

I made these tacos last week. From a book I'm embarassed to have purchased, it's called Cook Yourself Thin. I don't really wanna cook myself thin, that sounds insane, but I would like to cook my self full of food. And the recipes looked healthy and delicious.

As you can see by this delicious photo. I just wanna eat those tacos all over again! The recipe called for pineapple in the salsa, but Eli doesn't like pineapple, so I decided to use mango instead. Which was great, since we had some leftover mango and just had it on top of some greek yogurt for dessert.

Greek yogurt has been one of my obsessions lately. Of course the whole milk version is the best, so thick and creamy, it's like dessert all by it's self, but the 2% kind is fine, and the fat free or 1% is ok, if your watching your waistline. :) I've tried a few different brands, but my favorite is one I found at the Albertson's near my place. It's called FAGE, which is pronounced Fa-yeh according to their packaging. Sooo delicious.

Flickr

2009-08-04T13:51:00.001-07:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Quick, easy, delicious: Cake

2009-07-22T11:10:00.000-07:00

I was really craving cake, and I knew I didn't have a whole lot of options because the fridge and cubbards were pretty bare, so I cracked open the ol' Joy of Cooking*, and what do you know? The first cake recipe in the cake section! I had all the ingredients. It's called Lightning Cake. Basically all you need is flour, baking powder, salt, butter, sugar, eggs, and a lemon. For the topping I used chopped pecans mixed with sugar. Yum! Quick, easy, delicious.

*I have the '97 edition, although I've always thought, how cool would it be to have like, all the editions? I've heard that the '97 one definately has a different focus from some of the other ones.

What's taters hobbit?

2009-07-12T17:20:00.000-07:00

I love potatoes. Yesterday I roasted some in the oven and they were divine! Which reminded me of a recipe I did a couple weeks back from Supernatural Cooking by Heidi Swanson (you can find a link to her blog, 101 Cookbooks, here). This is a fabulous book all about cooking with whole, natural, organic ingredients, or, as it says on her website "Super Natural Cooking is your guide to navigating a less-processed, more natural world of cooking (vitamins, minerals, fiber, and flavor included)." It's got some great recipes, and some beautiful design and photography as well.

I made the recipe for Hedgehog Potatoes, with yogurt mint dipping sauce. It turned out really well, especially the dipping sauce. So yummy and fresh! I felt that perhaps the potatoes would have cooked better having just been simply sliced instead of partially sliced (resembling a hedgehog, hence the name).

At any rate, I highly recommend you bookmark her blog, 101 Cookbooks because she's always posting delicious, seasonal recipes that look so good!

It's not Monday, but here is some Soba.

2009-06-17T12:39:00.000-07:00

OK, so it's been a while since I've posted. I keep forgetting, and then I think, I'll wait til next Monday, and then I forget again. So its not Monday, but I'll post today because I remembered. And hopefully I'll remember next Monday, since that is the day I set for myself to post to this blog.

I thought today I'd share one of my favorite type of dishes, a big ol' bowl of noodle soup. This is something that is so easy to cook, and you can use up random veggies that are hiding out in your fridge or add chicken or fish or beef or tofu or whatever.

So it's real simple, cook your noodles according to package directions, in this bowl I used soba, but you could use udon, or any type of Asian style noodles. Then get some veggies (or meat if you're using that) going in a pot in some oil, saute 'em for a minute, and then add your broth, get it all nice and hot, throw your cooked noodles in a bowl, scoop some veggies/meats on top, pour some broth over, add some cilantro, green onion, sesame seeds and/or lime, and there you go. Delicious bowl of noodles!

Team it up with a little of my favorite hot sauce, Sriracha, and some gyoza (I love that I live so close to one of the raddest Asian markets ever!) and you have a meal that will leave your belly full and happy.

Seared Salmon with (Baby) Spinach

2009-05-25T20:54:00.000-07:00

My dear friend Addy shared this recipe with me for my birthday, and I finally got around to making it tonight. If she gives me the go-head I'll share the recipe later this week. Suffice to say it was delicious parred with a rice pilaf from New Seasons. Also good to know, the butcher at New Seasons was totally willing to cut the skin off for me, which is rad, since A. He's probably way better at that than I, and 2. Because I don't think I even have a knife for removing the skin from a salmon. More pictures below.

Meal Plan Monday

2009-05-18T17:36:00.000-07:00

In attempts to save money and cook more Eli and I are planning meals together. It's fun and hopefully a money saver, so we won't eat out as much. Here is our plan for this week:

Monday: Curry, Rice and Naan (Indian flat bread)
Tuesday: Taco Salad
Wednesday: Asparagus & Tofu Stir fry with rice
Thursday: Asian Style Noodle Bowl
Friday: Sandwiches and chips

I'll probably post more about these later in the week, and if I get really industrious I'll post about a lemon cake I made last week. :)

Egg Scramble

2009-05-04T13:06:00.000-07:00

I've been eating a lot of egg scrambles for breakfast lately. For one, I'm trying to avoid eating too much white flower, breads, etc. And for two I'm trying to eat at home more, eat out less, as I'm sure many people are these days to save a little money. Which is why egg scrambles are so great. You can just raid the fridge for veggies, pretty much anything will work. The best thing is when you have leftovers from dinner that will go well with your scramble, too. This morning I used some pork that I had left over from dinner a few days ago. So tasty!

Monday Morning Scramble
(Serves 1, or 2 if accompanied by some toast or other breakfasty items)

1 tbsp Olive Oil
2 tbsp Red Onion, diced
1/2 a small Zucchini, chopped
1/3 of a Green Bell Pepper, chopped

Put the oil in a small frying pan. Heat on medium, medium-high for a few moments. Add onion, zucchini, and pepper. Fry for a few minutes, stirring frequently.

1/2 serving piece of leftover ham or pork, cubed

Add the cooked leftover ham, stir for a few more minutes.

2 Eggs
Spinach, (about a handful), chopped

Crack the eggs into the pan. Let that sit for a moment before adding the spinach. Let that cook for about 45 seconds. Stir & toss till spinach is wilted and eggs are cooked.

Serve with a dash of your favorite hot sauce (I like to use Tapatio. Very Good on eggs).

Clearly Tasty!

2009-05-04T12:01:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking for months, perhaps even years, about starting a strictly food blog. I have in the past been known to blog about food on my regular blog, cleartrampoline.blogspot.com but I've always felt I needed a little more focus.

That's where clearly tasty comes in. Here I will blog about food I cook, cook books on my overflowing shelf, food I eat while I'm out and about, the cafe at which I'm a barista, and pretty much anything food related. And I will try to supplement with as many photos as is possible. And tasteful.

Clearly Tasty.

I'm excited to see where this goes. I hope you are too.