Recipes & Cooking: January 2005 Archives

The best thing about these fudgey cookies is that there's nothing you can't eat raw, so the batter's fair game.

First you mix 1 cup flour, a pinch of salt and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda in a bowl, then you melt 5 tablespoons butter over low heat in a medium saucepan. Add 7 tablespoons cocoa and a cup of sugar, 1/3 brown and 2/3 white. Whisk together, then add 1/3 cup plain yogurt and 1 teaspoon vanilla then mix in the flour mixture.

Drop by the tablespoon 2 inches apart and bake in a 350 degree oven 8 to 10 minutes. They come out of the oven really soft, so you have to leave them on the sheet for a couple minutes to firm up. They're chewy and a good fix for a chocolate craving.

The best thing about these fudgey cookies is that there's nothing you can't eat raw, so the batter's fair game.

First you mix 1 cup flour, a pinch of salt and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda in a bowl, then you melt 5 tablespoons butter over low heat in a medium saucepan. Add 7 tablespoons cocoa and a cup of sugar, 1/3 brown and 2/3 white. Whisk together, then add 1/3 cup plain yogurt and 1 teaspoon vanilla then mix in the flour mixture.

Drop by the tablespoon 2 inches apart and bake in a 350 degree oven 8 to 10 minutes. They come out of the oven really soft, so you have to leave them on the sheet for a couple minutes to firm up. They're chewy and a good fix for a chocolate craving.

I'm not a big fan of most fish, probably because it's so good for you. But pair it with some smoked sausage to cancel that out and I'm in. I was looking for a way to use up this chorizo and decided such a bland fish could use a flavor boost.

I sauteed diced onion and chorizo then added salt, pepper and paprika and a can of diced tomatoes. Put two cod fillets on top and spooned some of the tomato mixture over them, then cooked it for 15 minutes in a 350 degree oven until the fish was opaque at the center.

I did the menu equivalent of buying an outfit to match a pair of earrings tonight. I had turkey gravy left over from the open-face turkey sandwiches of the other night, so I decided to make pot pies with it (I also had a box of ready-to-bake pie crusts).

To make the filling I mixed cubed chicken breast from a rotisserie chicken with the gravy, frozen peas and cooked, quartered baby carrots. Piled it into two ramekins and topped it with pastry circles cut about 1/2 an inch bigger all around. Baked in a 450 degree oven for 15 minutes to cook the pastry. I'm becoming a regular Sandra Lee (horrors!).

We did not get to the grocery store yesterday afternoon (although I did go to the drugstore for diapers last night and have to say I really like being out in the snow). But because I've been staying home with the baby I've been stocking up on food and we were in good shape. In fact, last night I had multiple options for Todd. He chose pasta with broccoli and chickpeas, a recipe from Gourmet (there were tons of recipes in the Jan issue I found I wanted to try).

Saute 2 minced garlic cloves and some crushed red pepper flakes in a couple tablespoons of oil for just a minute, then add a box of frozen chopped broccoli. Once the broccoli's thawed and heated through, add half a 15-ounce can of chickpeas. Toss in 2 servings of long pasta (we used linguine because it was what we had, but the recipe called for whole-wheat spaghetti).

We both really like it, with its touch of heat from the pepper flakes. It makes 2 very generous servings.

Rastall is the dining hall at Colorado College. I met my husband my freshman year of college, and we spent loads of time that first year, when we were just friends, in the dining hall with a loud, leisurely group of people (some with whom we still keep in touch).

So you can imagine the mixture of nostalgia and offense I felt when Todd burst out at dinner last night, "Rastall. That's what this reminds me of."

Granted, I had made a dining hall classic: hot open-face turkey sandwiches. But I certainly didn't want my version reminding my husband fondly of his college days. I have to explain, though. Todd did not consider Rastall a negative experience: The choices were relatively plentiful, the vast array of salad accoutrements is impossible to match in a home kitchen, and there was always cereal when things got really dire. One cook, Charles, was famous for his omelettes.

And it's not like I put a lot of work into dinner. I had purchased some Fresh Direct turkey gravy, which Todd liked but I found kind of salty, and simmered some sliced deli turkey in it, then piled it on squishy sandwich bread (the only kind to use for open-face, gravy-based sandwiches). Easy. And, for Todd, it fits into a little-known genre of college-nostalgia comfort food.

Friends with older babies tell me that I have oodles of free time now and that I'll learn what it really means to be busy when August starts walking and stops sleeping so much. I guess it's nature's way of curtailing a new parent's freedom slowly, edging me into it so I'm not too overhwelemed. Because I have to say that even though I'm home all the time I cannot always find the time to prepare the food that I had planned.

So I've been looking for dishes with make-ahead elements so there are things I can do whenever August decides to take a nap. Baked pastas and casseroles work well. A slow-cooker meal fits in, too, because he sleeps later than me in the morning and I can just throw everything in.

Another option is meals so quick I can wait until Todd comes home to throw them together. That's the category this soup falls into. In fact, the prep of this soup fell into a third category, things so simple that Todd can start the work while I instruct him from the sofa where I'm nursing.

He cut 3 all-purpose potatoes into relatively small pieces (but not quite a dice) and then I chopped an onion and two links of smoked chorizo. Sauteed that in a pot for a few minutes to soften the onion and get some color on the meat and potatoes, then added a couple cups each water and chicken broth. Simmered that until the potatoes were done, then I added half a box of chopped, frozen spinach. Seasoned with salt and pepper and served.

Friends with older babies tell me that I have oodles of free time now and that I'll learn what it really means to be busy when August starts walking and stops sleeping so much. I guess it's nature's way of curtailing a new parent's freedom slowly, edging me into it so I'm not too overhwelemed. Because I have to say that even though I'm home all the time I cannot always find the time to prepare the food that I had planned.

So I've been looking for dishes with make-ahead elements so there are things I can do whenever August decides to take a nap. Baked pastas and casseroles work well. A slow-cooker meal fits in, too, because he sleeps later than me in the morning and I can just throw everything in.

Another option is meals so quick I can wait until Todd comes home to throw them together. That's the category this soup falls into. In fact, the prep of this soup fell into a third category, things so simple that Todd can start the work while I instruct him from the sofa where I'm nursing.

He cut 3 all-purpose potatoes into relatively small pieces (but not quite a dice) and then I chopped an onion and two links of smoked chorizo. Sauteed that in a pot for a few minutes to soften the onion and get some color on the meat and potatoes, then added a couple cups each water and chicken broth. Simmered that until the potatoes were done, then I added half a box of chopped, frozen spinach. Seasoned with salt and pepper and served.

On a whim I ordered some prosciutto with my last Fresh Direct order, then realized that I don't really like uncooked prosciutto. (Horrors! Did I really admit to that?) So I had to find a recipe to use up the offending meat. And in the process I found a dish I'd make again.

I pounded some chicken cutlets, seasoned them with salt and pepper, then topped them with prosciutto. Mixed one box of thawed frozen spinach with grated Parmesan, salt and pepper, then spread that over the prosciutto. Rolled it up from the narrow end then fastened with a toothpick. Browned in a skillet, then added 1 1/2 cups chicken stock and simmered until the chicken was cooked through.

On a whim I ordered some prosciutto with my last Fresh Direct order, then realized that I don't really like uncooked prosciutto. (Horrors! Did I really admit to that?) So I had to find a recipe to use up the offending meat. And in the process I found a dish I'd make again.

I pounded some chicken cutlets, seasoned them with salt and pepper, then topped them with prosciutto. Mixed one box of thawed frozen spinach with grated Parmesan, salt and pepper, then spread that over the prosciutto. Rolled it up from the narrow end then fastened with a toothpick. Browned in a skillet, then added 1 1/2 cups chicken stock and simmered until the chicken was cooked through.

Before last night, I'd never used Ro-Tel tomatoes with green chiles, but last night I made a beef stew based on an Epicurious recipe that uses a can of diced tomatoes and a can of diced green chiles. I figured the Ro-Tel tomatoes would count as both, but I think they are far spicier than a can of diced green chiles would have been.

Todd really liked the stew, but there are two things I would have done differently: There was no thickener, so it was really watery; I would coat the beef in flour next time. And the spiciness of the tomatoes overwhelmed the subtler flavor of the cilantro; maybe if I had followed the recipe exactly it wouldn't have been a problem.

I started by seasoning then browning a pound of cubed stew meat, then added a chopped onion, some carrot and a couple diced stalks of celery. Cooked that a bit, then added the tomatoes, 1 cup chicken broth and some dried oregano. Simmered it for an hour, then added some chopped fresh cilantro. Served over rice.

Before last night, I'd never used Ro-Tel tomatoes with green chiles, but last night I made a beef stew based on an Epicurious recipe that uses a can of diced tomatoes and a can of diced green chiles. I figured the Ro-Tel tomatoes would count as both, but I think they are far spicier than a can of diced green chiles would have been.

Todd really liked the stew, but there are two things I would have done differently: There was no thickener, so it was really watery; I would coat the beef in flour next time. And the spiciness of the tomatoes overwhelmed the subtler flavor of the cilantro; maybe if I had followed the recipe exactly it wouldn't have been a problem.

I started by seasoning then browning a pound of cubed stew meat, then added a chopped onion, some carrot and a couple diced stalks of celery. Cooked that a bit, then added the tomatoes, 1 cup chicken broth and some dried oregano. Simmered it for an hour, then added some chopped fresh cilantro. Served over rice.