Instead of writing a movie review, I made Almost Saag Chicken.

The onslaught of work for the end of the year has sadly begun. With papers and tests and job prep stuff, there's more than enough things to be worrying about and doing. Of course, it's hard to perform mental acrobatics without some fuel, though! Still, as time gets tight, things get a little dicey culinarily. What can you whip up with the stuff on hand?

Last night was a desperation meal that turned out much better than expected. I needed to come up with something to make for dinner last night, but only had odds and ends and no time to head to the grocery store. Between hanging out with Grace (beer and popsicles on the deck!) and having to do a bunch of homework, there wasn't a ton of time left over. I stood in the middle of the kitchen, surveying the contents of our freezer, and amongst the frozen drink mixes, Morning Stars and Kashi meals (both of which I'm sad to say I'm sick of) I spotted a bag of frozen chopped spinach I'd forgotten about (as I do most of the stuff that isn't in eye sight. I look for stuff in the fridge like a dad, it's pretty bad. Just ask poor Cecily.) My friend Katie made a pretty good quick version of Saag Chicken. My repertoire mostly consists of Mexican or Asian (lime, ginger and soy sauce make everything better.) but I've been wanting to branch out into Indian. After a quick gchat consult to make sure I wasn't forgetting anything too important, I was in business. The whole process took maybe a half hour, and made enough that I had some leftover for lunch (well, whatever you call eating a first meal a 2:30 after classes...)

Almost Chicken Saag

Ingredients 

(this is definitely one that you can improvise on, depending on what you have in the fridge/pantry)

-1 small/medium onion

-2 cloves of garlic

-2 decent sized pieces of chicken. I used 2 frozen chicken breasts, but you can use thighs or whatever

-1 bag frozen chopped spinach

-Something creamy to get the texture and hold everything together. I used sour cream, although you could sub in plain yogurt

-Cheese! I used a handful each of some grated swiss and cheddar I had left over from the stratta, but I don't think it's a huge deal what you use, as long as you steer clear of blue cheese or gorgonzola or something like that. This part isn't super legit, but it makes everything come together!

-Cumin

-Ginger. I love it, and had a knob in the fridge, so I grated up a tablespoon or so. You could also used ground ginger, just add a couple shakes at the end

-Rice

Start your rice cooker (my favorite thing in the kitchen, even if it has gotten busted up and is missing the steam vent part!) or do whatever it is you do.

Halve the onion and cut into thin slices. Heat some oil in a medium-large pan over medium heat, mince the garlic, and sauté the two until the onion is soft. I tossed in the grated ginger and sautéed that up at the same time. While that is happening, I defrosted my chicken (good job if you can skip that part) and cut it into slices — you could just cook the chicken whole, but the strips go much faster! Once the onion looks good, add the frozen spinach to the pan and nestle the chicken strips in there. Sprinkle on a couple pinches of cumin and mix in. If you've got a lid, throw it on. I never do, but a sheet of aluminum foil does the trick. Cook covered for a couple minutes, then uncover, flip the chicken slices, and let them finish cooking for another minute or two. Turn down the heat to low, sprinkle on a handful or two of cheese, and mix that in. Add two good spoonfuls of sour cream, mix in, and let simmer for a couple minutes if it looks too wet. It should be creamy, not liquidy. Once the consistency seems right, spoon some on top of rice and get to it! 

You can adapt it a little... Katie tossed in a can of chick peas and some diced tomato, and I think I'd do something to add a little heat next time.

This weekend we're planning on attempting Eggs Benedict, one of those foods that I love getting at restaurants but have no idea how to make on my own. Wish us luck getting the hang of poaching... and Hollandaise...

Instead of sleeping, I linked to my articles.

Review of Rooster's BBQ (along with some musings on missing Southern food!) and another look at the finest — or really any — vino $4 can buy in this week's Food & Drank section.

p.s. - The title for this post is something I think I'm going to run with. My friend Grace suggested I detail what exactly I'm procrastinating doing, so we'll see how long I can go before I start repeating myself. Stupid? We'll see.

I know, I know

I've been shamefully neglecting my blogging responsibilities, it seems like it takes ridiculous amounts of work looming (like the two papers and a presentation I'm working on today!) to get me to post.  I keep meaning to do better and have even taken pictures of meals, only to forget about writing them up, or rather decide that Hulu or going out are better uses of my time. I've also been shockingly busy (for a second semester senior, that it. It's a different criteria), but as the weather finally improves and we start to grill more, I hope to be all over that, if only so I can one day remember what I've been doing and can possibly recreate them in Arizona (!) or wherever I end up after that. If Grace can get her act together to keep hers going, so can I!

I haven't completely forsaken the whole foodie thing in my absence, though! The Food & Drank page is alive and well (reviews, reviews, and more reviews!) I've also started trying to get better about understanding what it is we drink. Getting into wine seemed like a logical next step in our foodie development, so my housemates and I have taken to performing very rudimentary wine (and occasionally beer) tastings - see one of our early forays here.

Holidays, though, are always worth documenting. I'm always sad to miss Easter at home (fully documented in Food & Drank! I told you I've been writing!) so we decided to do it up right. I made my mom's Ham Stratta, one of my friends made Grand Marnier French Toast, another brought her excellent Breakfast Potatoes, and we rounded it out with ambrosia (old school!), fruit, and mimosas.

My mom's stratta is really good, always one of the highlights of Easter at home. I altered the recipe a bit from the one I put in the paper, and clarified a few things (she was nice enough to dash it off in an email to me when I was trying to shop and get ready!) Honestly, though, I'm not really sure how you could go wrong with this one. Eggs and cheese? What's not to love?

Ingredients:
-A loaf of white bread (you'll need pretty much the whole thing)
-4 cups cubed ham (I bought a 1 lb pack of pre-cooked ham steaks in the meat/deli section and chopped it up myself)
-2 cups grated sharp cheddar
-2 cups grated swiss cheese
-6 eggs
-3 cups milk
-dry mustard (My mom uses Colman's, but I couldn't find it so I used dijon with no problems)
-Crushed Ritz crackers for topping

Beat the milk and eggs together, adding in a little (tsp?) mustard. Cut the crusts off the bread, spread a thin layer of mustard on each, and lay half of the slices down in the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Spread half of the cubed ham and half of each of the cheeses over the bread. Repeat for a second layer. Pour the egg mixture over everything.

Cover it and let it sit for the egg to soak in. My mom and I are usually not very patient, and you can let it hang out in the fridge for just an hour or so, but I made mine the day before and left it in the fridge overnight (all the better to party on a Saturday night and avoid getting up any earlier than necessary!)

When you're ready to cook it, preheat the oven to 375. Sprinkle the top with crushed Ritz (I added a little more cheese too). Bake for 45 minutes to an hour, until it's puffed up.

Easy and delicious, plus it can feed a ton of people, pretty much the perfect brunch item!

Baking Bonanza: Chocolate Bourbon Ricotta Cupcakes

There is some perfection that is almost beyond words. These cupcakes are a prime example. I first had them  this fall when my internship supervisor offered me one as a pick me up on a rough morning. Each bite of these swirled wonders is a mix of chocolate and orange, with the bourbon adding a richness and the ricotta keeping the texture light and fluffy.  When I got home from work, I immediately tracked down the recipe, from the incomparable Orangette. It was a hit with my friends at school, so I figured that since I'm home for winter break with a much nicer kitchen to work with, I'd try making them for the family. Everyone liked them, and they're definitely going on the make again list!

Chocolate Bourbon Ricotta Cupcakes
Adapted from Orangette (who in turn adapted it from Gourmet)
makes about 12 cupcakes





These are a little time consuming, but well worth it. The gist of it is that you make two batters, layer and swirl them, and deliciousness ensues.

Ricotta  mixture ingredients:
-1 cup whole-milk ricotta
-1/4 cup sugar
-1 large egg white (I used a whole egg by accident and it turned out fine, so don't stress)
-1 tbsp bourbon (feel free to up that a bit if you want the richness of the Bourbon to come through a little more strongly)
-1 tsp finely grated orange zest (I end up using more like 1 or 2 tbsp zest, I always get carried away. And then there was the time I tried to zest a grapefruit... but that's a different story.)
-1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips (Again, up it if you want! Don't skimp on the good stuff!)
-pinch of salt

Chocolate batter:
-1 1/2 cups flour
-1/3 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder (I can never seem to find legit Dutch-process stuff at the grocery stores I go to, so I've used regular Hershey's and Godiva unsweetened cocoa powder)
-1 tsp baking soda
-1 cup sugar
-1/2 cup canola oil
-1/2 cup milk
-1 egg
-1 tbsp distilled white vinegar
-1 tbsp vanilla extract
-1/4 tsp orange-flower water (I have yet to find this anywhere, so I go ahead and do a tbsp of orange extract. This makes them particularly orangey, so if you want to tone it down, adjust accordingly)

Preheat your oven to 350, and prep a muffin tin with liners.

Mix up all of the ricotta mixture ingredients in a medium sized bowl, and stash it in the fridge to chill.

While that's cooling, mix the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and sugar) in a larger bowl. In a small bowl, mix together the wet ingredients (oil, milk, egg, vinegar, and extracts). As you stir, mix the wet ingredients into the dry ones in the large bowl.


Grab the ricotta mixture ingredients from the fridge. In each cupcake liner, layer a spoonful of chocolate batter, a spoonful of the ricotta mixture, and a top layer of chocolate batter. Once they're all full, go through and swirl with a knife (You're supposed to do a figure eight swirl, but my helpers and I never seem to be able to accomplish that in a graceful manner. As long as it gets sort of mixed up, you should be okay.)


Bake the cupcakes for about 30 minutes (if they don't pass the clean toothpick test, leave them in for a little longer.) They're incredible warm, but they hold up well for a couple days - assuming they last that long!

And if you, like me, find yourself with an awkward amount of ricotta left (about a 1/2 cup?), make a half batch of Lemon Ricotta muffins (Or cupcakes? Without the frosting, it all seems to be semantics.)

Making the best of leftovers: Rice pudding

This week has been pretty atrocious. Finals left me feeling pretty beat up, and everyone was exhausted and cranky. Since we're leaving for break, we've been making some crazy mishmosh meals combining all sorts of stuff that's left in the fridge and cupboards. A bowl of rice with a leftover Morningstar Asian patty, the dregs of the soy sauce left in the back of the fridge, and some random frozen veggies? Why not!

As always, there was extra rice leftover (thank you, weird capacity rice cooker!), and since hanging onto it wasn't really an option, I got to thinking about what I could do with it rather than tossing it out. We were taking a ridiculous trip down memory lane (check this link about gruel. If you get it, we are meant to be friends.), and somehow the idea for rice pudding just came to me. You're really supposed to use uncooked rice, but using cooked rice gave it an only slightly mushier texture, and saved some time.

In college random remnants of food land, here's how it works:

Ingredients:
-2 cups of cooked rice
-3 cups of milk
-1/3 cup sugar
-cinnamon stick
-splash (1/8 tsp?) of vanilla
-dash of salt
-optional: orange zest, splash of bourbon

Put the rice, sugar, and milk in a saucepan and bring to a boil, mixing until the sugar is dissolved. After a minute or so, turn the heat down to a simmer (or, on our crazy stove, as close as you can get before the flame goes out!) Throw in the cinnamon stick and zest as much orange peel as you feel like right into the saucepan. I've come to believe that a splash of bourbon takes pretty much any cooking project to a whole new level (more about life changing cupcakes once I make it home), so if you've got some around and are feeling it, add a splash. Let it simmer until it gets to the consistency you're looking for; keep in mind, a little more of the milk will evaporate after you turn off the burner, so this doesn't really require pin-point accuracy. Shake some nutmeg on top, and some ground cinnamon, if you have it, mix, and enjoy! It's good both warm and cold, so your really can't go wrong.

Rice pudding, in the process of becoming delicious...

Get into the Christmas spirit with Thumbprint Cookies!

I'll admit that this may not be the most novel idea in the universe. College student, loves to write and cook, sets up blog as procrastination tool. (Yes, this is finals week, and I should be working on papers and senior seminar research presentations and a whole host of other things...) But here we are.

I started a dining section for my college newspaper (yea, Food & Drank page!) as a way to fund outings for my friends and I to try some new restaurants (Red Stag Supperclub!) and go back to some old favorites (Barbette!), and found I really enjoyed writing about food, and that it was fun getting to be a little more in-the-know about the Twin Cities food scene.

On the home-front, my long suffering roommate, listening to me swear at kitchen gadgets and come up with crazy person shortcuts when I haven't left myself enough time for complicated processes or long wait times ("Simmer for an hour, my ass!"), joked that I should write a book detailing the crazy Amy cooking method.

Going off of that, plus my jealousy of my friend who has a food blog, I decided it was time to throw another collection of ruminations about food, recipes, and restaurants out into the blogosphere. Without further ado, off we go!

_______________________________________________

After spending the afternoon bitching about how not into instrumental Christmas songs and Josh Groban I was (Come on, Pandora! Step up your game!) I decided to do some constructive Christmas elfing activities. A couple weeks ago my friend Katie and I decided to throw a cocktail party, and, like the wonderful hostesses we are, decided to make some treats for the occasion. With a little help from Epicurious' excellent collection of cookie recipes, we spent a Thursday night running back and forth between "Jersey Shore" in the family room and a cookie extravaganza in the kitchen. One of my favorites, which I found on the cookie list when I was surfing Epicurious over winter break last year, is their thumbprint trios. In an effort to feed as many hungry college friends as possible, we ditched the trio part (they're supposed to be made as three thumbprint cookies stuck together) and did them old-school, with pretty good results.

Thumbprint Cookies

recipe adapted from Epicurious/Gourmet, Dec 2007

makes about 25 cookies

You'll need:
-1 1/4 cups flour

-1/2 tsp salt

-1 stick butter, softened (they said unsalted; I only had a little less than a full stick of salted and it turned out fine)

-1/2 cup sugar

-1/2 an egg (just mix in a bowl and pour in the half)

-1/2 tsp vanilla extract

-a couple types of jam/jelly/preserves (I went with strawberry, blackberry, and marmalade)

-2 medium mixing bowls, electric mixer (if you want to make life easier on yourself) or a regular mixing spoon, baking pan, saran wrap

This is a two step operation. First, you need to make the dough. In one of your mixing bowl, mix together the flour and the salt. In the other, use the mixer to beat the butter and sugar together on low, until combined and fluffy, about 2 minutes. In several batched, slowly mix in the flour-salt mixture, still on low. Once the dough is formed - don't worry if it's clumpy, it'll still go together - put it onto a piece of saran wrap and roll it into a cylinder about an inch and a half in diameter. They say let it chill, wrapped, for an hour; I say throw it in the freezer for about 20 minutes (an episode of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" on Hulu, anyone?)

Set your oven to 350 and grab the dough from the freezer. Slice off a bit of dough, roll into a ball and do your thumbprint thing! They should be around an inch wide and a half inch deep. Fill with a half spoonful of jam/preserves/whatever. At home, cooking on my parent's dime, I use Sarabeth jams, but here I went with Smuckers and Target brand. Raspberry, strawberry, apricot, marmalade, you can't really go wrong. Put your filled cookies on a greased baking sheet, toss in the oven for 15-20 minutes (my rental house has a 60's style gas oven that always gets things done faster than it should, so check once you get to 10 mins!) and voila, you have some tasty, fruity goodness to brighten up finals, winter blues, or Christmas parties.

Said long suffering roommate, who earlier accused me of turning into a Scrooge after I got a little too picky about a few too many Christmas songs, pronounced them to be good. Here's hoping this buys me a few more song vetoes!