Tag Archives: Sauces

Apple Cider for supper

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I love apple cider. I also really love what it does to a sauce… the longer it simmers, it becomes thick and bubbly and caramel-y. Once that sauce is poured over the meat with the onions and apples, it just oozes into every crevice of the meatballs. I served this with my Autumnal Orzo and the flavors were perfect together. If you’re looking for something different to serve this weekend while the weather is glum and blustery, this may be your answer!

Apple Horseradish Meatballs

  • 1 small apple (diced)… the firmer the apple, the better
  • 1 small onion (diced)
  • 1 1/2 pounds meatballs (turkey or beef)
  • 2 Tbsp. butter
  • 1/2 Tbsp. fresh horseradish
  • 1 cup fresh apple cider
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
Melt the butter in a saute pan and add the onions and apples. Saute until the onion is soft and then add the horseradish and soy sauce. Simmer for 1 minute… the soy sauce should  bubble energetically. Slowly whisk in the cider and the water and bring to a boil. Reduce the sauce by half. Add in the meatballs and stir to coat them with the sauce. Serve with orzo.

It does cut the mustard

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I’ve waited a few months since making this recipe to post about it.  I’ve been trying mustard for a few years now, but never knew that you may want to let it be for about 8 weeks before you start to slather it on sandwiches because it is wicked hot fresh out of the pan. But now… it is perfect.  Now I feel safe using it as my standby ingredient in recipes and am really pleased with the taste.

This recipe was unintentionally adapted from The Organic Family Cookbook. I say unintentionally because I wasn’t going to doctor the recipe at all, but I was unable to find brown mustard seeds, so instead of splitting the volume between yellow and brown mustard seeds, it’s all yellow here. The consistency is coarse, but it’s thick so I actually like it better than store bought since it sticks to the crevices of your bread and doesn’t ooze all over the place.

Simple Mustard (by Anni Daulter)

  • 2 Tbsp. dry mustard
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 c. white vinegar
  • 1 c. whole yellow mustard seeds
  • 1/2 c. water
  • scant 1/4 c. raw honey
  • 1/2 tsp. sea salt
  • 1/8 tsp. black pepper
In a heavy bottomed sauce pan, mix the dry mustard, eggs and vinegar and bring to a boil. Reduce heat after 30 seconds and simmer until the mixture is thick.  (Keep a close eye on the pan as the mixture bubbles up and then pops, spraying out of the pan.) Cover and store in the fridge overnight.
In a glass bowl, combine the mustard seeds and water.  Cover and let sit overnight.
In a food processor, combine the two mixures after they have rested over night.  Puree until smooth, adding the honey, salt and pepper to taste (you may want to add more than I did.) Store in an airtight container in your fridge.
*Notes: This recipe make 4 cups of mustard, which is a LOT. I gave at least half of mine away.  Also the author notes that it will last for 4 weeks, but since I allowed mine to mellow for 8 weeks before using, I don’t agree.  In fact, I think the longer it has sat in my fridge the better it has become, but that’s my opinion only.  Adapt as you need!

Summer Fondue Night

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Confession: this heat turns me into a whimpering baby.  I don’t want to eat, I don’t want to move, I don’t even want to think.  Today, the heat index was 103, which I realize is no where near as bad as it is where my college roomies live in Oklahoma and Arizona, but for this Ohio girl who loves her snow, I felt like I was suffocating.  We came home from a birthday party and I realized that I needed to feed the kids and nearly broke down in tears.  I made an off-handed comment about just wanting cheese and crackers for supper to Matt and he asked why we couldn’t do that.  Lightbulb!

Veggies, cheese, meat and dip platter

We eat a lot of fruit in the summer.  Tonight, the four of us put away a quart of strawberries, several cups of watermelon, bananas and cucumbers (which I do realize are not a fruit, but at 96% water, they made the dinner plates for a reason.).  I wanted some protein so I sliced up some local cheese and pepperoni to eat with a quick dip for the cucumbers.  And graham crackers.  We eat a LOT of graham crackers in this house.  Everyone gobbled their meals down and I had some leftovers to keep for snacking.  Yay!

Peanut Butter Fondue, fruit and crackers

Peanut butter fondue

  • 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
  • 8 ounces Greek yogurt
  • 2 Tbsp. strawberry jam
Whisk together until smooth and fully incorporated.  Serve as a dip with various fruits, crackers or even carrots.

My favorite

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I’m glad I got back into making my own yogurt again.  Now, I have a fresh quart of plain yogurt whenever I need it to do neat things like marinate chicken.  For months, I’ve had to make a note and a specific trip to the store if I wanted to make a lot of the dishes I’m dying to try.  Sunday afternoon, while the Pear butter was simmering, I grabbed some chicken out of the fridge and coated it in a thick bath of yogurt and spices, fully intending to grill it up for supper.  But then, we got company and company that doesn’t like Indian food.  Well, company that hasn’t ever had Indian food and I’d love to challenge their opinion of it.  I let it marinate overnight and we had this on Monday night and my goodness, I didn’t make enough of this to share.  As it was, I wept a tiny tear when I gave up the leftovers so Matt could take them to work this morning. 
Chicken Tikka Masala one of my absolute favorite Indian dishes.  I always order it when we go to an Indian restaurant and whenever I see the sauce jarred in the grocery, I buy it to try.  I haven’t had any since about a week before I had Sylvia so I was just dying to savor every bite.  And this dish did not disappoint.  Creamy and with just a hint of spice this is a dish that even the 7 month old licked her fingers over.

Chicken Tikka Masala
  • 1 c. yogurt
  • 1 c. fresh cilantro or coriander
  • 3 Tbsp. fresh grated ginger
  • 3 Tbsp. fresh minced garlic
  • 3 Tbsp. garam masala
  • 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
  • 1 lb. chicken
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 jalapeno, minced  (this makes a fairly mild sauce, feel free to add more if you desire)
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 2 tsp. cumin
  • 2 tsp. paprika
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 8 oz. pureed tomatoes
  • 1 c. whole milk
  • Cilantro for garnish
  • Naan
 Mix the yogurt, cilantro, ginger, garlic, garam masala, and red pepper flakes.  Cover the chicken in the marinade.  Allow to set for at least 4 hours, but preferably over night. 
In a large saute pan, melt some ghee and saute the onion, garlic and jalapeno until tender.  Sprinkle the cumin, paprika and salt.  Saute until fragrant.  Pour in the tomatoes and simmer 5 minutes.  Add the milk and cook over low until the sauce thickens.  In the meantime, grill the chicken until cooked through.  Cut the chicken up into small pieces and add to the sauce.  Serve over brown or basmati rice and with warm naan.  

** For the Cheflets:  Liam ate this just fine, but I’ll admit he was more interested in the naan.  I gave Sylvia the rice with a small amount of sauce on it.  She got the flavor, but none of the zing.**

Freezer ready Friday night

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Tonight while I was diving home from the butcher shop, I heard an ad on the radio about not “losing money” to fast food restaraunts during the hectic holiday season.  Excited, I turned it up.  I was thinking it would be a nice ad for a local business or a healthy tip.  Nope.  It was instead an ad for brand specific products at Walmart.  I was a bit disasppointed. 
However, in my freezer at home, I have my own versions of the meals suggested by the announcer.  My favorite is Sweet and Sour Chicken.  The recipe below is for a double recipe.  I generally freeze both meals, but you could make one and freeze one.  Whatever suits your schedule!
Sweet and Sour Chicken Freezer Packs
  • 1 1/2 c. chicken broth
  • 1/4 c. cornstarch
  • 1/2 cup ketchup
  • 4 tsp. soy sauce
  • 6 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
  • 1/2 c. sugar
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 2 tsp. sesame oil
  • 2 lbs. chicken
  • 5-6 cups vegetables
  • 2 cup brown rice
Thinly slice the chicken.  Place it uncooked in a quart-sized freezer bag.  In another freezer bag, place the vegetables.  Using a large mixing cup, heat the chicken broth in the microwave until it’s almost boiling.  Carefully whisk in the rest of the sauce ingredients.  Divide the sauce in half.  (I used a tall measuring cup to hold the freezer bag upright while I added in the sauce.)  Put all 3 bags in a large, gallon sized freezer bag.  I also add in 1 cup of uncooked rice per bag, but it’s not necessary.

 When you are ready to cook, put the rice in a saucepan with 2 cups of water, a dash of salt and 1 tsp. butter.  Bring the rice to a boil and allow to boil for 1 minute.  Turn the heat down to a simmer and cook, covered until the water is absorbed; about half an hour.  In the meantime, add some oil to a large skillet and cook the chicken.  Add in the vegetables (Note: I used an assortment of frozen “Asian vegetables”) and stir.  While it is easy to cook this with the meat and vegetables frozen, the sauce needs to be thawed out before it is added.  I thawed mine in the microwaved while the chicken was cooking.  Then, pour it into the pan and let it simmer for 10 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked and the vegetables are warmed through.  (I know that there will be some gripe about the cornstarch, but I’ve tried this recipe with various flours in an attempt to thicken the sauce and while they did thicken it, they altered the flavor.  So, cornstarch won.)  

Who want to eat rice cereal when Mama lets you eat off her plate?!

When the sauce has thickened and the chicken and vegetables are cooked, serve over the cooked rice.  And with a side of homemade eggrolls!

October fresh

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In the interest of full disclosure, I haven’t been such a healthy eater these last few months.  During the last weeks of my pregnancy and early weeks of Sylvia’s life, other people were doing my grocery shopping and buying whole grains kind of slipped through the cracks.  Little by little processed foods found their way into my cabinets and freezer and I started to feel pretty crummy.  I knew every time I opened my cabinets and saw boxes and plastic containers, something really needed to change, but I didn’t have the motivation to do anything about it.
I joined a Moms fitness group and as luck would have it, they are doing a weight loss challenge.  My BMI is hideous so I signed right up. Part of the challenge involved writing down everything that I eat.  Nothing like having to admit to a woman who runs marathons that you’ve had pizza twice in 72 hours to whip you into shape.  I lost a pound in 3 days because I was conscious of what I was doing.  Part of my issue is boredom munching.  Being aware of how much I snack because I’m not doing anything else has kind of scared me.
Thankfully, I had been out a bulk food store the weekend prior to this and restocked my pantry.  The flour was empty, so I replaced it with whole wheat.  I didn’t have a single box of pasta, so I bought semolina flour vegetable pastas.  It felt good to fill my shelves with food that had value.  I did my batch cooking that weekend with food that had been harvested or raised within 100 miles.  For 2 weeks, I’ve been pulling from my freezer meals that were prepared thoughtfully and sustainably.  I’ve not been rushed at supper and tempted to order out because I’m prepared.  It took a whole day and a half to get things organized, cooked and prepped, but it’s been totally worth it.  
Yesterday, I saw a post about October Unprocessed.  I went to the site and read through and decided this was what I needed to do to really get myself back where I belong.  I had had Subway for lunch, felt guilty and told Matt we’re going to start behaving again.  There was only mild grumbling.  For supper, I made grilled turkey and cheese and homemade tomato soup from the tomatoes I canned last month.  I can’t tell you how good it was.  I’ve adapted the rules to fit what my toddler eats and what is already in my freezer for the month, but I’m not messing around any more.  
After supper, I made ranch dressing and spicy remoulade.  Matt had brought home some Boar’s Head Spicy remoulade a few weeks ago and I totally fell in love with it.  Turns out, though, I couldn’t find a recipe that suited my needs, so I played around until I got what I wanted.  Poor Matt got stuck with baths tonight while I tinkered around in the kitchen.  However, I ran samples in to him so he could help with the process so I think that it was worth it in the end.
October Remoulade
  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 Tbsp. minced sundried tomato
  • 2 tsp. Dijon mustard
  • 1 tsp. dried parsley
  • 1/2 tsp. cayenne
  • 1/2 tsp. chili powder
  • 1 Tbsp. lemon juice
  • 2 tsp. horseradish
  • 1 minced garlic clove
  • splash Worcestershire
  • 1/2 tsp. paprika
  • 1/4 tsp. sea salt
  • 1 shallot, minced

Saute the shallot and garlic in a small bit of butter, until fragrant and translucent.  Stir in the sundried tomato and mustard and heat through.  Remove from the heat and mix in the remaining ingredients, the mayonnaise last.  Spread on sandwiches, use as a dip or eat it with a spoon.  Store in a sealed container in the fridge.

Bagels and the week in review!

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It’s been busy around here!  I learned how to make amazing chocolate pudding, a necessity in my opinion.  I won’t be sharing the recipe since I wrote it and a few changes on a scrap of paper, but didn’t credit the original source.  Just believe me when I tell you it’s heavenly!

Yesterday, I canned my first batch of corn.  It took me most of the day since I had to work around naps and meals and train track building.  And I was nervous about using a pressure cooker all by myself.  As luck would have it when I placed a paniced phone call to my friend about how to close the lid, she was a few blocks away and dropped by to walk me through the process until I got the cooker up to the right pressure.  Even after her help, I was still paranoid about the steam, so I did let the cooker cool down to a far lower temperature than was strictly necessary.  However, in the end, I had 20 neatly packed pints of corn to add to the shelves in my store room.

Since the pressure cooker heated up my kitchen as much as it did, I went ahead and made a batch of Michael Symon’s spicy ketchup.  I didn’t read the directions right and wound up doubling it, so I tried canning it in a hot water bath.  I’m excited to open those little jars, but need to remember to buy some reusable lids for my small jars since I only have wide mouth jar lids.  The small lids will come in handy when I start cracking open my jams, too!
And while I was at it, I went ahead and made a batch of bagels.  I love these bagels so much.  I’ve played around a little with the flavors, but I just keep coming back to the plain ones.  If you like a bagel with a hard crust on it, you’ll want to do an egg wash before you bake them, but I don’t.  These are so easy for Liam to eat and we go through a batch a few days.  
Simple Bread Machine Bagels
  • 1 c. warm water
  • 3 c. flour
  • 2 Tbsp. white sugar
  • 1 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 2 1/4 tsp. yeast
  • 3 Tbsp. brown sugar
Combine the first 5 ingredients in the pan of your bread maker and process on the dough cycle.  (If you don’t have a bread maker, mix these ingredients well and knead for 10 minutes.  Allow to rise for 1 hour.)  Remove the dough from the pan and divide until 8-12 balls.  Flatten each ball and poke a large hole in the center.  Shape into the general bagel shape and place on a dry silpat.  Cover and rise for 30-60 minutes.  

Boil a pan of water and add the brown sugar to it.  (The brown sugar can be interchanged with Malt Syrup if you’d like.  It’s purpose is to give the bagels that nice golden color we’re all used to, so if you don’t want to add the sweetener, you don’t have to; the bagels will still be wonderful.)  Boil each bagel for 1 minute, flipping halfway through.  Drain them on a towel before placing them on a buttered baking sheet.  Bake for 20 minutes at 375 degrees.  Keep in an airtight container for up to 1 week… if they last that long!

Spicy, spicy!

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If you are making Lola fries, you can’t eat them without spicy ketchup.  Trust me.  There is something the way rosemary and salt blend together with the spice in the ketchup, you’d be a sad person to miss it.  Unless you can’t handle spice.  Then, I’d recommend simply cutting the spices in half and seeing how that works for you.  This ketchup works well not only with potatoes, but also with meat.  Michael Symon has a recipe for barbecue sauce in his book that uses his spicy ketchup as the base.  I’ll be trying it tonight with the roast duck we’re having.  Regardless of how it turns out, I’m just looking forward to how my house is going to smell!
Spicy Ketchup (Mansfield style)
  • 1 small yellow onion, minced
  • 3 cloves of garlic, diced
  • Kosher salt
  • 1 Tbsp. Olive oil
  • 2 Tbsp. Adobo paste (I used this instead of the Fresno chilies and Ancho Chilies, not really because I was trying to change his recipe, but as the title suggests, I live in Mansfield… we don’t have those specialty peppers in stock… ever.)
  • 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
  • 2 Tbsp. brown sugar
  • 1 tsp. ground mustard
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 6-ounce can of tomato paste
  • 2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar

In a 2-quart saucepan, sweat the onion and garlic in the olive oil over medium heat.  Add in a “three finger pinch” of kosher salt.  Cook until translucent, about 2 minutes.  Add the adobo paste and crushed red pepper flakes.  Cook for about a minute or so before adding in the brown sugar, cumin, cinnamon stick, tomato paste, mustard and vinegar.  Stir to combine and then let it cook for 10 minutes, watching so that it doesn’t splatter.  In the first 5 minutes of cooking, add in 1 cup of water.  Allow the sauce to combine and then add another cup.  Wait about 15 minutes before adding a final cup of water.  Stir so that the thick sauce from the bottom of the pan mixes in with the water.  Cover and allow to simmer for 2 hours.  Make sure you check the sauce and stir regularly during that time.  At the end of 2 hours, remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool.  Remove the cinnamon stick.  You can either puree the mixture to get rid of the chunks of onion and garlic (and peppers if you choose to use them) or leave them in.  I chose to  leave them in because I loved the bits of onion on my fry!  When the ketchup is completely cool, cover it and store in the fridge for up to a month.