Leftovers Makeover

Loaded Leftovers Salad
Avocado
Leftover Tabouli from Mother's Day
Red Onion, diced
Green Onion, sliced
Vinagrette-- Lavendar infused Olive Oil, Regular Olive Oil, Apple Cider Vinegar, Balsamic Vinegar, Salt, Pepper, Black Cumin Seeds, Ground Mustard, Turmeric, Dried Cilantro, Duck Sauce (from Chinese Take Out)--- Yes! it worked great! With my new gadget from KISS THE COOK store in Wimberley- a handheld emulsifier dressing maker. 

Turkey Salad Tacos

I had leftover Turkey Breast for another meal and I didn't know what to do with it. At HEB, I found an avocado dressing which sounded good and I decided to try making a turkey salad tonight.

Turkey, Diced

Red Onion, small juliene

orange sweet baby tomatoes- halved

feta cheese

mint, minced

braeburn apple, diced

salt & pepper

about 3 or 4 tablespoons of the HEB Avocado dressing

and to make the Tacos- I used Multigrain tortillas, 

with a nice slice of avocado on the bottom of the salad. 

Easy & Delicious Dinner!

Pancakes? or Puddingcake

I started off with a glutenfree all purpose baking mix by the brand King Arthur Flour. I was excited because this mix claims to be useful for breads, cookies, pancakes, waffles, etc. Up until this brand- I had only ever used the Bob's Red Mill all purpose glutenfree biscuit mix 

and adapted it to meet my inspirations. 

I love mixes that have everything in them because it can be much less expensive than trying to do it yourself and can be quite versatile. Cheaper, Easier- I'm all for that!

so this is what I did:

1 cup of this all purpose flour is what it called for to make pancakes according to the box...

I sort of followed the box instructions and then I just went off into my own little world-

1/2 cup whipping cream instead of milk

1 egg

1.5 TB melted butter

1.5 tsp vanilla

2 or 3 TB brown sugar

1 generous dash nutmeg

a couple pats of cinnamon

I had to add water because my mixture was so thick.

I got a pan hot- with grassfed butter but what happened was that the fat from the cream , eggs, and butter made the pancake super thick- good flavor, 

but it was more like a bread pudding flavor and consistency. 

It was weird... and I could figure out how to fix it. 

So, today, I tried again- lowered the heat and cooked them longer- 

They are DELICIOUS!!!! and I ate them with grassfed butter and RAW LOCAL HONEY-

I have a little batter left over- and my next try, I'm going to pop them in the oven in a muffin tin 

and see what happens- I want then a little fluffier ? maybe I should have blended the ingredients to fluff them up, I used a spoon to mix. I'd like some air in them...

As a topping for the Pudding Cake- I took a couple drops of the Pomegranate Molasses -

I got at Savory Spice Shop, and drizzled over the honey on the pancake. 

Now the Pomegranate Molasses is sweet, but is extremely BRIGHT and Tangy!!! Not really a syrup, even though you could make into a syrup by adding sugar. I did not add sugar- I just dropped tiny drops onto my pancake as is- to see what would happen. It was potent- 

Also, just a plug on RAW LOCAL HONEY- eat some every day- just a small teaspoonful is fine- put it in your tea, in your smoothies..especially if you are prone to allergies. I've been doing this for a couple years (I do not religiously eat the honey but I try to eat it a little)- and I don't get allergies anymore... is that weird or what? I started to try this a couple years ago, and bought a super fancy honey. Turns out the honey was made in Brazil! So I have no idea why it worked- 

but I have since switched to Texas Honey.

 The theory is that the bees are picking up the pollen from the environment and then when you eat the honey, you are getting micro-doses of the allergens in your environment, and then your body builds up an immunity. 

Taste Buds agree! - its super thick and it actually gets thicker as time goes by- it doesn't need to be refrigerated and it is super creamy and sweet. just a little bit is very sweet. 

Experimenting in the Kitchen

MINT STICKS my thought was if the mint is fresh and delicious- what happens if you put the leftover sticks in hot water, will you get mint water? Not Really. 
I'm sure it gives off some oils and healthful properties, but it really didn't have any flavor at all. 
Some "food waste" like lemon rind and cilantro stems, or even celery leaves- are very useful for using in dishes. For instance the citrus rind can be dehydrated in the oven with sugar and turned into candy.

Tabouli without the tomato, without the lemon (because I didn't have any)

 and using some new spices I bought at SAVORY spice shop.... YUM!!!!

what you see is black cumin seeds being added to my Tabouli.

I used a Bulghur and Red Quinoa Quick Mix, Fresh Parsley, Fresh Mint, Balsamic Vinegar, 

Lavendar infused Olive Oil, and salt and pepper. 

 Red Lentil & Green Pea Mash  not all experiments have happy endings. The taste was good! but the texture was not too exciting to me. it came out clunky and hard to eat. I had a ton of it- so it is going to get blended with some tahini to make a hummus- some fresh lemon juice will pick this up off the ground and give it new life--which is what I was trying to do anyway but ran out of ingredients and time... 

Chickpea salad

YUM- but it's missing something

the chickpeas were made from scratch- so they are extra crunchy- 

but something is missing- maybe more olive oil. 

I used Turmeric, Cucumber, Cilantro, Hot Pepper Vinegar, mayonnaise, mustard, and Za'atar - 

which is another spice I found at Savory. Its a curry. 

The flavors were good- and it is super fresh and crunchy. I haven't put my finger on what its missing- but maybe some more veggies, like artichoke hearts and fresh lime juice. It marinated over night in the sauce and I think that really helped it a lot.

Other random easy experiments:

A turkey sandwich - oven roasted thin slices, mild slice of cheese (havarti), on Toasted bread --

spread the bread pieces with Honey

Turkey sandwich-- oven roasted turkey, bacon strips, sharp white cheddar (sliced) or Brie, on toasted seeded bread--

quince preserve on the bread

happy experimenting!!!

Fava

I've only ever really eaten this in Colombia- when I've visited. I love these beans in soups and stews and even roasted as nuts, but I don't see them very often here in recipes. They are extremely tough and need to be pre-soaked- at least a full 24 hours- then they need to be cooked for a good hour- at least. But once they are cooked, they are so creamy and delicious.

This soup is delicious and takes all morning . I made it for an Easter celebration- and I had about three or four hours cooking- I served with Fresh cilantro Chopped up small- Fresh Avocado, and Fresh White Rice. And a good hot sauce. All these elements can be added as each person wishes to make a perfect tasting soup. If you eat dairy - you might try adding a dollop of mexican cream- (just a drop)- to give it a nice creamy touch. This is a typical way to eat soup in colombia with many add-ins served at the table to personalize the soup. 

Greens Galore

Greens are always good and so simple to make in an oven- or even a toaster oven- especially a toaster oven that can go to high heats because since it is so small- it almost acts as a broiler and an oven- the tops of the greens become charred and crispy while the bottom portion of the dish roasts nicely.

All you need is to toss lightly in a good oil like try walnut oil, or flaxseed oil, or even avocado oil- salt lightly, if desired, and add any other seasonings that you wish- lightly over top-
and cook in the oven for about 30 minutes on a heat of at least 350- ideally 400-

Now the Swiss Chard- which is what this picture is of- will have two different textures- the leaves and the stems- That is okay- they can cook at the same time- but they have completely different textures. If you like your stems more soft- then make sure they are up on top of the leaves- so they will receive the direct heat from the top of the oven- unless your oven is convection in which case- that will not work-

If you prefer your greens more soft, you can simply drizzle a bit of water- like 1/4 cup in with the greens- the water will heat up and evaporate creating steam- and this will wilt the greens more-

also, the way you chop the greens will affect the cook time- If you leave it in big sheets- it will not cook the same as if you chop it into bite sizes- because the surface area is different. Cutting through the fibrous leaves with a knife and tossing before cooking will greatly impact the quality of the dish after it is cooked. and its much easier to serve ready to go.

Different Greens cook differently- but they all SHRINK. So you can load up your pyrex dish- or aluminum pan with greens- it can be a big mountain of greens. NO problem. they will shrink in size.
the pieces that stick out the top will get charred and crispy from the oven heat. this adds dimension to the dish.

Don't overcook- and keep an eye on them so they don't burn . Yes- they go from perfect to burnt in just a few minutes once they reach their point of doneness. It varies slightly depending on whether it is kale or spinach or swiss chard, or bok choy- - I tend to feel that Kale has to go in the oven for the longest- but I tend to like my vegetables crisp, light, and airy.... not soggy and weighed down.

about 40 minutes is ideal-
if you are making Chips and using more oil- you need to be careful they don't burn.

happy greens!

Eating the Earth

I love to work with items from scratch so if I'm going to make a stew or a soup, I start at the beginning. If I don't have all day, I may start with a good quality low salt stock, ideally vegetable, chicken, or beef.

For this stew in picture, I was going for a really Earthy flavor... it was the fall and I wanted something warm and comforting.

I started with sauteeing the onions and garlic (fresh)- then adding the liquid- If I had hours to spend- I would use little bits of vegetables that could be cooked down into a flavorful broth- or I could even use bones from a whole chicken or turkey- (the bones give off incredible depth of flavor and are incredibly nutritious) 

The beans are best done from scratch- which requires that you soak them the night before and then cook them for at least an hour the next day. Fresh beans have such a nice crunch to them- and you have so much control over how much you cook them. Beans in cans are usually very mushy- which is fine if you are in a hurry, but don't underestimate the power of fresh.

The herbs I used in this stew were a mixture of dried and fresh---- I love Herb de Provence, I love Rosemary- dried and fresh. I love Fresh Thyme.

My rule of thumb is- if it is going to cook long- use dry--- and then when you are almost done- throw in the minced fresh herbs- or use as a garnish after it is served. Certain herbs need to be fresh, like cilantro- unless of course you get the dried cilantro which is better for cooking soups and sauces and things that require a longer cook time. Don't use fresh cilantro in a long cooking item- the flavors will leech out of the cilantro and you will be left with wilted stringy pieces---- it's not that you cannot do it, its that the best part of the cilantro is the FRESH kick, and the flavor profile- which is ideal when freshly chopped or thrown into a salad. It doesn't do well in cooked stews and things- unless added in later in the cooking process.

In this stew in the picture, I definitely used DRIED CUMIN  which reminds me of home. I don't know what that even means, but the spice makes me feel like I'm connected to a place in my ancestry that is really comfortable. That makes sense to me because I am part Colombian and cumin is a spice they use a lot.

I think it is interesting to try and figure out what spices really call to you- and to cook from the soul.