Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from August, 2014

Citrus Couscous

I've had a few boxes of plain couscous in the cabinet for a while now.  Previous attempts at using it wasn't greeted by much enthusiasm from anyone but myself. In an effort to start clearing my pantry out, I searched for a recipe to see how I could use some up.    I settled on this recipe from Cooking Light, but played a little loosey-goosey with it.  I don't ever remember to buy green onions so I substituted dried chives, about a tablespoon.  I also used dried parsley, about 3/4 of it stirred into the mixture when it called for it, and the rest over the top when it hit the plates.     I used half the zest from the orange, next time I'd use it all.  I used 2T of lemon juice, because I didn't want the rest to go to waste.  Normally I'd pour any leftovers into an ice cube tray, freeze completely and then put it in a zip top bag, but my freezer is packed right now. I had put a little spoonful on my son's plate, expecting it to be pushed around and not eate

Buttermilk Brined Chicken Salad

Chicken on the grill is my nemesis.    I always seem to overcook it.    I saw this recipe on the Eating Well web site, and it just looked so delicious and easy.    I brined the chicken for about 7 hours, and it was good.   Next time I'd probably do the full 12 hrs.    I had 4 breasts in the package, and no two were the same size, so I was creative in placing them around the grill where I knew the hot and cooler spots were.     I checked to make sure they were cooked through with an instant read thermometer, pulling them each when they were 160º.   Carryover cooking took care of the rest.  For the salad, I had some baby spinach to use up, and sliced up some red onion.   I drizzled the dressing over the chicken, took my photo and then tossed everything with the greens.     Absolutely fantastic summer meal!                       * Exported from MasterCook *                   Buttermilk-Brined Chicken Breast Salad   2               cups  buttermilk   2        tablespoons 

Grilled Zucchini Rolls

My son is suddenly open to trying veggies in all kinds of ways.  So in the spirit of "striking while the iron is hot", I've been making veggies in all kinds of ways   LOL   Some of our last farm trip included some zucchini, and it's pretty easy to get him to eat veggies in sweet stuff like breads, so wanted to try something a little more savory.     The verdict?  These are a little fussy, but if you've got everything ready to go, it goes quickly.   Jake helped with the layering of the spinach and basil and the rolling.    In the end, he ate 2 and he liked them.    Woo hoo! Print With Image Without Image Grilled Zucchini Rolls ingredients: 3 zucchini (about 1/2 pound each) -- sliced lengthwise into 1/4-inch slices 1 tablespoon olive oil 1/8 teaspoon salt 1 Pinch freshly ground black pepper 1 1/2 ounces reduced-fat soft goat's cheese -- used 1/3 less fat cream cheese 1 tablespoon freshly minced parsley leaves -- used dried 1

Old Fashioned Chocolate Fudge

My husband loves fudge.   There's a place in Maine called The Candy Man that makes the most amazing fudge.   We even used it as our wedding favors.    Tim's been craving that fudge for a while, but we've been too busy to make the drive up there to get some.    I found this recipe and though I've had terrible results with fudge in the past, I gave it a go. Absolutely no changes to the recipe.   The flavor is excellent, and I liked it a lot better by the second day.    Is it as good as The Candy Man's?  No, but it was close and for this week, good enough.    I think it might have done with another minute or 90 seconds of beating with the wooden spoon.   Thank you so much to Book_Worm at Allrecipes for sharing this one.   Old Fashioned Chocolate Fudge Print With Image Without Image Author: Jolene's Recipe Journal Ingredients 2 cups granulated sugar 1/2 cup cocoa powder 1 cup milk 4 Tablespoons butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Instructions Prepare an 8"x8&