Embracing the Cold

It’s been cold. Downright cold. So cold that we had a wind chill day and a snow day this week at school.

I don’t mind occasionally be trapped inside. It makes for a fairly productive day around the house…alright, fairly productive day in the kitchen. I enjoy spending these kind of days testing out recipes and standing by the warmth of my oven. It’s quite relaxing (minus the whole dirty dishes situation that I create-I should take a picture of that disaster someday).

Lately, this weather has me loving spicy soups and stews. Something that warms you from the inside out. When I came across this Winter Curry, I knew it would be the perfect meal for a chilly, snowy day.

This curry includes a variety of spices that warms your soul. Don’t be intimidated by the wide range of spices that are included in this recipe. Dry spices will last a long time and are well worth the investment for the adventurous cook. They are extremely handy to have around when you need to liven up a dish.

I love this stew. It’s healthy. Warming. And filled my belly for an entire week.

Confession: This recipe is not Matt approved. He hates…hates sweet potatoes and any form of squash. I don’t get it. (He too has no understanding of my deep disgust of mushrooms. In my defense-they are a fungus). Sometimes a girl’s gotta make something she likes just because she likes it. Trust me-you’ll like this, too. That is of course, unless you (like Matt) have the same unusual hatred of delicious sweet potatoes and squash.

Winter Vegetable Curry
Makes about 10 cups of stew (plenty to serve a crowd or last throughout the week)

3 tablespoons black mustard seeds
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and grated
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon turmeric
5 cups butternut squash or sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
6 cups cauliflower florets
1 cup water
1-15 oz can unsweetened coconut milk
1-15 ounce can diced tomatoes
1-15 oz can chickpeas
1/2-1 cup currants
Sriracha to taste

In a large pot, warm the oil over medium heat. Add the mustard seeds and heat until they begin to pop.
Add garlic, salt, and ginger. Let cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly.
Add spices, squash or sweet potatoes, cauliflower, and chickpeas. Stir until veggies are coated.
Add water, coconut milk, diced tomatoes, and currants. Bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat and let simmer until the vegetables are tender (20-30 minutes).
Stir in Sriracha. A little goes a long way, so add a small amount and taste. Repeat until desired heat is reached.

Serving Suggestions:
Serve stew over wheat couscous, quinoa, or rice.
Top with steamed frozen peas, Greek yogurt, mango or peach chutney,  freshly chopped cilantro, and additional Sriracha

*Recipe adapted from Moosewood Restaurant Favorites (my new favorite cookbook)

Enjoy! And stay warm!

Tastes of Thanksgiving

Ahhh, Thanksgiving.

A holiday where it is perfectly acceptable to gobble up unfathomable amounts of delicious food and spend some quality, relaxing time with your family.

Here are a few things I am thankful for this Thanksgiving season:
1. Family and good health
2. The soon-to-be addition to our family (and the fact that I am one again able to successfully eat-most days!)
3. Stuffing

That’s right…stuffing. I adore stuffing. All kinds of stuffing. If stuffing isn’t on the Thanksgiving table, you might as well count me out. Well not really, but I do love the stuff.

This recipe is especially fantastic and most tasty (thanks mom!). It’s made with sweet apples and dried cranberries, savory sausage, and a unique choice of fresh potato bread. It has definitely become one of my favorites.

Give it a try! You too will be thankful for stuffing!

Apple Sausage Stuffing

Ingredients:
8 cups cubed potato bread, about 12 slices
1 pound mild turkey sausage-removed from casing, cooked, and crumbled
2 teaspoons canola oil
3 Golden Delicious apples, peeled and chopped
1 cup dried cranberries
2 teaspoons poultry seasoning
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 clove garlic, chopped
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon salt
pepper, to taste

Note: The recipe also calls for 3 stalks chopped celery and 2 medium chopped onions. Feel free to add. I’m not a fan of celery…Matt hates onions, so these are omitted from our version!

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
In a large bowl, toss bread cubes, sage, thyme, salt/pepper, and canola oil until bread it well coated.
Pour cube mixture onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and bake until bread is toasted, about 10 minutes.
Toss halfway through toasting to make sure bread is evenly toasted.
Meanwhile…
In the same bowl, toss chopped apples, dried cranberries, sausage, and garlic.
Once the bread is toasted, add to the fruit/sausage mixture.
Reduce oven to 350 degrees.
Pour chicken broth over the mixture, tossing gently (very gently) trying to keep the shape of the bread crumbs.
Put mixture into a large baking dish and cover with foil. Bake for 35-45 minutes. Remove the foil for the last 15 minutes of baking.

*Recipe adapted from Eating Well

Enjoy!

What’s your favorite dish on the table this Thanksgiving?

Today’s Workout-officially back on track with workouts to keep this cookie-lover (and the cookie monster within) fit this holiday season!

Too Many Tomatoes

My garden is going tomato crazy.

I pick so many tomatoes each day, it’s almost too much. I wonder…If my garden was sprouting cupcakes and chocolate, would feel like same way? Unlikely.

While my garden has been on a tomato craze-I’ve whipped up a new pasta dish that we really enjoy. We’ve had it a few weeks in a row, it’s that good (and we have that many tomatoes).

I don’t really know what I’d call it or where I got the idea. I feel like a small part of me is Italian (even though that is not true at all). I can gobble up any sort of tomato dish, chop fresh garlic on a daily basis, and I strongly believe that pasta is a major necessity.

If I had to name this dish, I’d probably call it Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes, because tomatoes are definitely the star of this dish. Regardless of the name, this dish is delish. It’s fresh and comes together easy. I hope you give it a try!

Before everything gets rolling, you’re going to want to roast up some small, fresh tomatoes. Roasting tomatoes in the oven is the most genius dinner discovery I have made. It takes a yummy tomato and scrumptifies it (yes I made that up) times a million.

Oven Roasted Tomatoes

Turn your broiler on high, leaving the oven racks in the middle of the oven.

Slice up a good amount of smaller tomatoes, such as cherry or grape. I used about 2 cups.
Place them upright up on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper.
Drizzle with olive oil.
Sprinkle with sea salt and fresh pepper.

Place the cookie sheet into the oven. Let roast, on high, until tomatoes start to brown. Timing depends on the size and juiciness of your tomatoes, so keep an eye on them.

The result is something magical-chewy and sweet.

Meanwhile, you’ll want to get started on the pasta. Here are a few ingredients that I always have on hand at my house (all of which happen to be in this dish)…

Gemelli pasta (my personal fav), mascarpone cheese, parmesan cheese, artichoke hearts in brine, prosciutto or pancetta, garlic, and basil.

Having all of these ingredients on hand can help bring a delicious meal together in no time at all.

Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes

*Recipe by Sneaks and Sweets, serves about 4

Ingredients:
1/2 box of Gemelli Pasta
1 TBS olive oil
4 ounces pancetta, diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup artichoke hearts, chopped (purchase canned artichokes in brine)
1/2 cup (or more) pasta water
1/4 cup mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus more for topping
Freshly ground black pepper
2 cups oven roasted tomatoes (see above)
*optional-Fresh chopped basil

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.
Boil half a box of Gemelli pasta until al dente.

Note: DO NOT drain the pasta water-this is good stuff (thank you Giada)!

While pasta is cooking…

In a large pan, heat olive oil with diced pancetta until browned.
Add garlic, frozen peas, and artichokes. Sautee until peas are thawed.
Using a slotted spoon, remove cooked pasta from boiling water and place directly into pan, along with 1/2 cup pasta water.
Add mascarpone and parmesan cheese, stirring until incorporated. This should form a nice sauce that lightly coats pasta.
Pepper to taste.
Gently fold in roasted tomatoes.
You may find you need to add a little more pasta water (only if pasta looks dry)-add a little at a time.
Place pasta on a serving platter.
Top with freshly grated parmesan cheese and basil.

NOTE: This pasta would be equally as delicious without pancetta if you are vegetarian. Maybe you could add in some garbanzo or cannellini beans for a little extra texture.

Today’s Workout

3 mile run, power 100