brussels sprouts

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Fear of Frying

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Some foods are just fantastic when fried. Potatoes, mozzarella cheese, and even pickles can benefit from a roll in some batter and a dip in boiling oil.

Fish cakes, like the ones I made last night, are another food that, even when lightly pan fried, taste just a little bit better. Unfortunately, my fear of frying got the better of me, and I baked them.

It turns out that they didn’t need to be fried, even only slightly browned, they were fresh and healthy without all of that extra oil.

I started with a cup of teeny tiny potatoes, tossed into boiling water until they were nice and soft.

teeny tiny potatoes

small potatoes

I also got some water boiling to steam the last of the Alaskan cod from the Foodbuzz Alaska Seafood recipe contest. They sent me a serious amount of cod, and it lasted very well in the freezer over the months. I cooked all of the cod from frozen, as Alaska Seafood mentioned in the materials that they sent me, and I was always surprised how good frozen fish could taste. In this case, I used my steamer basket to cook the cod until it was flaky.

Alaskan cod

I whipped up the seasonings on the side, a cup of panko bread crumbs, some salt-free dill and lemon seasoning, and a few spoonfuls of Dijon mustard.

dijon mustard and dill seasoning

bread crumbs

When the fish and potatoes were tender, I added them to the bread crumb mixture, then mashed my heart out with a potato masher.

cod and potatoes

Once the mix was a bit cooler, I added two whole eggs and thoroughly stirred everything up. The cod cakes went into a 400 degree oven for about 15 minutes and ended up nicely browned. They reminded me a lot of Morton’s crab cakes which are full of crab meat and not fried. It turns out some things are good fried, but they are even better baked Smile

dinner is served

Served with a simple side of roasted Brussels sprouts and mushrooms left over from my chicken dish the other night, this was a great meal for a night when I wanted something healthy and warm. Since we are going on vacation to Ireland soon, I am doing my best to get in lots of workouts, vegetables, and water. Once I get to Ireland. . . well, all bets are off. It’s called Supermac’s, it’s Ireland’s higher-quality answer to McDonald’s, and it is fabulous.

Random story and question: The other day, when I was running, I saw a Manwich can hanging out of someone’s busted open trash bag. It brought me back to childhood and the Manwich commercials. My mother would never buy Manwich despite my desperate requests for it. We also never ate Hamburger Helper or sugary cereals like Cookie Crisp.

What food/s did you really want to eat when you were younger but were prohibited by parents? Have you tried them as an adult, and if so, did they live up to expectations?

Tags: baked not fried, brussels sprouts, cod, cod cakes, cooking, easy recipes, fish, Food, healthy, healthy cooking, healthy recipe, mushrooms, protein, recipe, roasted vegetables

Brrrr. . . it is officially winter and my favorite time of year for staying in and cooking for cozy at-home dinner dates. My plan for Sunday night was to make 40 garlic clove chicken, but the recipe sort of evolved as I was cooking.

I started with a large head of garlic, wrapping it in foil and putting it in the oven at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes. I always go by the smell; once the smell of roasted garlic starts to come through, I shut off the oven and leave the garlic in to cook in the still-warm oven.

garlic

Once the garlic was roasted, I let it cool, set aside three cloves, and squeezed the rest into a bowl. I topped it with a pat of butter, salt, and pepper, and used the back of a spoon to mush it all together.

roasted garlic

Instead of making a whole chicken, I used four chicken breasts which I placed in a glass baking dish, then rubbed with the garlicky butter. I then topped them with a mixture of 1/2 cup Bonny Doon Vineyards Verjus and 1/2 cup chicken stock. Verjus is Bonny Doon’s non-alcoholic wine, and it is just perfect for sauces.

Bonny Doon Verjus

free range chicken broth

In addition to the sauce for the chicken, I needed gravy. Why is gravy so good? I started with a roux made from butter and all purpose flour. I let it get a golden brown before adding a cup of Verjus and 1/2 cup of chicken stock, a shake of salt, and a generous grind of pepper. I also added a few of the roasted garlic cloves, mashing them into the gravy so that the garlic was almost dissolved into the gravy.

roux

The gravy goodness bubbled away on the stove while I checked on the chicken and tackled the veggies.

garlic gravy

The chicken was moist and perfect. I only wished I had browned it before baking it.

garlicky chicken

I thought that my veggie side was too simple to post, but it was so good, so why not?

Brussels sprouts

I cut a bunch of Brussels sprouts in half and sliced an onion into rings.

Brussels sprouts and onions

I added the onions to a little bit of olive oil and butter and let them cook until almost brown then added the Brussels sprouts and chopped cauliflower.

cauliflower and Brussels sprouts

The onions and butter added so much flavor. It was pretty amazing for a bunch of veggies Smile.

We served up our dinner with the new Sam Adams’ Infinium.

Sam Adams Infinium Sam Adams Infinium

Sam Adams’ website shares a bit about this very special beer:

A groundbreaking brew, made with only the four traditional ingredients: malted barley, hops, water and yeast, Infinium™ is a crisp champagne-like beer with fine bubbles and a fruity, spicy aroma. The crisp clean malt character and delicate fruit notes in this beer are complemented by a slight citrus flavor from dry hopping with Bavarian Noble hops. Bottle conditioning adds another layer of complexity and light spice notes.

We really liked this beer. It definitely has a nice crispness to it and the feel of a festive-occasion drink. Hopefully Infinium will stick around for awhile!

It was a perfect Sunday meal and ended up being really quick because I used the chicken breasts. Which gave me time to watch Love Actually while relaxing in my comfy bed. I rarely just do nothing, and this was a nice way to spend an afternoon!

What is your favorite holiday movie? I love Love Actually and It’s a Wonderful Life for Christmas and The Worst Witch at Halloween. Smile

Tags: Bonny Doon Vineyards, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, chicken, cooking, cooking at home, date night, Food, garlic, gravy, recipe, Sam Adams Infinium, vegetables, Verjus

I am in love with Brussels sprouts. I may be cheating on heirloom tomatoes for the fall and winter, but Brussels are just so much more available to me. And they are local at that.

My love is not just a matter of convenience, oh no. I love their brightly-colored green globe beauty, their sometimes-spicy natural goodness, and their versatility in seasonal meals.

For our pre-flight lunch I decided to whip up a spicy and sweet Brussels sprouts side dish to eat with leftover meatballs.

I started with this bowl of beautiful Brussels.

Brussels Sprouts

I cut each in half, removing the tough bottom and cleaning off the outer leaves.

Brussels Sprouts

The recipe calls for just a few simple ingredients: some sort of oil (I used chili oil.), sriracha, and real maple syrup from my friend’s family farm in the Berkshires.

Brussels sprouts and sriracha

I simply put the cut Brussels sprouts flat side down in a pan very lightly coated with chili oil and let them cook on high for 4 minutes until they were really sizzling. Then I added about 2 teaspoons of sriracha, stirred everything together, and lowered the heat. At the very end, I drizzled on a tiny bit of maple syrup, tossing the Brussels sprouts again to make sure they were all coated. I prefer them to be cooked for just a short time, but it is certainly up to you how long you want to cook them!

Brussels Sprouts

Sooooo delicious! Brussels sprouts like spicy candy could turn anyone into a believer!

What is your favorite vegetable?

I am very excited to be in San Francisco for the Foodbuzz Festival. Today’s agenda includes a trip to Santa Cruz and a tasting at Bonny Doon Vineyards. Bonny Doon will be pouring wine at the Foodbuzz Festival as well. They make some fantastic wine! Have a great day everyone!

Tags: brussels sprouts, maple syrup, recipe, sriracha, vegetables, Vegetarian

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