From Spices Inc.
We love testing recipes that have that 'sweet heat' - they start out sweet then finish with an unexpected, subtle warm heat. Sweet chocolate, warm cinnamon and smokey Ancho hit the perfect combination. Add tart cranberries, cashews and pistachios and this treat will be the hit of the party! This is a recipe that also makes a great holiday gift!!
Ancho chiles are fruity, sweet, slightly smokey flavor with undertones of plum, raisin, tobacco and a slightly earthy bitterness. We used a good amount, 1 Tablespoon, but you can start with less and add more to your desired level of flavor.
Use high quality chocolate, it really does make a difference. Try to find nuts that are roasted, but not salted. Shelled pistachios will save time as well. There are several ways to melt chocolate, we used a double boiler. Click here for help and tips for melting chocolate.
Ingredients:
1 Tablespoon Ancho Chile Powder
1/2 teaspoon Ground Star Anise
3/4 teaspoon Ground Cloves
1 teaspoon Ceylon Cinnamon Powder
2/3 cup pistachios, shelled and chopped
2/3 cup cashews, chopped
12 ounces dark, bittersweet chocolate, cut into pieces
2 Tablespoons coconut oil
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt (omit if the nuts are salted)
Directions:
In a small bowl, add Ancho Chile Powder, Ground Star Anise, Ground Cloves and Ceylon Cinnamon Powder, mix to combine.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Spread the nuts, cranberries and salt on the baking sheet.
Slowly melt 3/4 of the chocolate, remove from heat.
Add the remaining chocolate and coconut oil to the warm, melted chocolate.
Stir until chocolate and coconut oil are melted and combined
Add the ground spices and stir to combine.
Pour the chocolate onto the pan over the nuts and cranberries in an even layer. Use a spatula to spread the cocolate if needed.
Let cool to room temperature and move the baking pan to the refrigerator for 45 minutes until chocolate is set.
Break into large pieces and serve.
Remaining bark can be stored in the refrigerator.
Serves: 8
Nutritional Information (per serving):
Calories 429.1
Protein 6.6 g
Carbs 32.9 g
Fat 31.2 g
Sat Fat 15.5 g
Trans Fat 0.0 g
Fiber 5.9 g
Sodium 140.8 mg
Sugars 18.7 g
Thursday, December 24, 2015
Cioppino - a lovely seafood stew
From the Press Enterprise, Dec. 20, 2015
Classic holiday dishes usually are fattier, sweeter and heavier than our normal fare, so when a traditional dish actually is healthy without any tweaks, that’s something to celebrate!
So if cioppino isn’t somewhere on your holiday menu, let’s change that.
Cioppino is a tomato-based fish stew that relies on simple and healthy ingredients for flavor.
It’s the ultimate guilt-free comfort food.
Cioppino is incredibly versatile. You can make it as simple or fancy as you like depending on the seafood you use. Anything from the fishmonger’s best catch to frozen seafood mixes will work.
And a mix of fish and seafood each week is one of the best health moves we can make for our brain and heart health.
My cioppino version is super quick. The result is a light-and-lovely tomato broth that satisfies without weighing you down, which is the perfect foil for those belt-loosening meals that dot the holiday landscape.
The recipe takes just minutes to prepare, making it perfect for entertaining (spend more time with your guests!) and weeknight post-work dining alike.
You even could make the broth the night before, then simply heat it up and add the seafood moments before serving. That means you get a company-worthy dinner on the table in under 15 minutes.
Fresh fennel and orange zest are the secrets to great flavor. That hint of licorice plus that slightly sweet aromatic orange zest work magic together in the acidic tomato sauce.
And remember, any cioppino recipe really is a template, ready for you to personalize and make your own.
Once you make one cioppino this holiday season, I’ll bet you will be enjoying fish stews throughout the year.
Quick Cioppino
Start to finish: 30 minutes
Servings: 6
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 fennel bulb, trimmed and thinly sliced (a mandoline is best)
Kosher salt
8 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons grated orange zest
11/2 cups dry white wine
11/2 cups fish stock or clam juice
1 cup chicken stock (or more fish stock)
1/2 to 1 cup water
28-ounce can crushed tomatoes, finely chopped and with juices
2 bay leaves
1 pound cod (or other white fish), cut into 1-inch chunks
1 pound uncooked, shelled shrimp
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup chopped parsley
In a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium, heat the olive oil.
Add the onion, fennel and a generous pinch of salt.
Cook until tender, about 12 minutes, stirring often.
Add the garlic, red pepper flakes, tomato paste, oregano, thyme and orange zest, then cook, stirring until very fragrant, about 3 minutes.
Increase the heat to high and deglaze the pan with the wine and let bubble for 3 minutes, stirring.
Add the stock, 1/2 cup of water, tomatoes and bay leaves, then simmer for 10 minutes.
Taste, adjust seasoning, then add an additional 1/2 cup of water if too thick.
Add the cod and shrimp, then cover and cook just until the fish and shrimp are cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes.
Uncover, stir in the lemon juice, then top with parsley to serve.
Nutritional information per serving: 270 calories; 60 calories from fat (22 percent of total calories); 7 g fat (1 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 125 mg cholesterol; 910 mg sodium; 15 g carbohydrate; 3 g fiber; 6 g sugar; and 27 g protein.
Classic holiday dishes usually are fattier, sweeter and heavier than our normal fare, so when a traditional dish actually is healthy without any tweaks, that’s something to celebrate!
So if cioppino isn’t somewhere on your holiday menu, let’s change that.
Cioppino is a tomato-based fish stew that relies on simple and healthy ingredients for flavor.
It’s the ultimate guilt-free comfort food.
Cioppino is incredibly versatile. You can make it as simple or fancy as you like depending on the seafood you use. Anything from the fishmonger’s best catch to frozen seafood mixes will work.
And a mix of fish and seafood each week is one of the best health moves we can make for our brain and heart health.
My cioppino version is super quick. The result is a light-and-lovely tomato broth that satisfies without weighing you down, which is the perfect foil for those belt-loosening meals that dot the holiday landscape.
The recipe takes just minutes to prepare, making it perfect for entertaining (spend more time with your guests!) and weeknight post-work dining alike.
You even could make the broth the night before, then simply heat it up and add the seafood moments before serving. That means you get a company-worthy dinner on the table in under 15 minutes.
Fresh fennel and orange zest are the secrets to great flavor. That hint of licorice plus that slightly sweet aromatic orange zest work magic together in the acidic tomato sauce.
And remember, any cioppino recipe really is a template, ready for you to personalize and make your own.
Once you make one cioppino this holiday season, I’ll bet you will be enjoying fish stews throughout the year.
Quick Cioppino
Start to finish: 30 minutes
Servings: 6
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 fennel bulb, trimmed and thinly sliced (a mandoline is best)
Kosher salt
8 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons grated orange zest
11/2 cups dry white wine
11/2 cups fish stock or clam juice
1 cup chicken stock (or more fish stock)
1/2 to 1 cup water
28-ounce can crushed tomatoes, finely chopped and with juices
2 bay leaves
1 pound cod (or other white fish), cut into 1-inch chunks
1 pound uncooked, shelled shrimp
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/4 cup chopped parsley
In a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium, heat the olive oil.
Add the onion, fennel and a generous pinch of salt.
Cook until tender, about 12 minutes, stirring often.
Add the garlic, red pepper flakes, tomato paste, oregano, thyme and orange zest, then cook, stirring until very fragrant, about 3 minutes.
Increase the heat to high and deglaze the pan with the wine and let bubble for 3 minutes, stirring.
Add the stock, 1/2 cup of water, tomatoes and bay leaves, then simmer for 10 minutes.
Taste, adjust seasoning, then add an additional 1/2 cup of water if too thick.
Add the cod and shrimp, then cover and cook just until the fish and shrimp are cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes.
Uncover, stir in the lemon juice, then top with parsley to serve.
Nutritional information per serving: 270 calories; 60 calories from fat (22 percent of total calories); 7 g fat (1 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 125 mg cholesterol; 910 mg sodium; 15 g carbohydrate; 3 g fiber; 6 g sugar; and 27 g protein.
Thursday, December 17, 2015
Apple roses
Credit for this goes to Cooking with Manuela, http://cookingwithmanuela.blogspot.com, who has lovely pictures to go with it.
A couple changes: Instead of apricot preserve, I brushed the dough with melted butter, then sprinkled it generously with cinnamon sugar (1 tsp. mixed with 1/4 C sugar). I found using the mandolin blade on my grater made nice, thin apple slices.
This is one of the few things I've brought to the Berwick Press Enterprise office potluck that was enjoyed by my fussy co-workers!
Ingredients: to make 6 roses
1 frozen puff pastry sheet, thawed
2 red organic apples (I used red delicious)
half lemon, juice
1 tablespoon of flour, to sprinkle the counter
3 tablespoons of apricot preserve
cinnamon (optional)
powder sugar for decorating (optional)
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Directions:
1. Thaw the puff pastry if you haven't done so yet. It should take about 20-30 minutes.
2. Prepare a bowl with some water and the lemon juice. Cut the apples in half, remove the core and cut the apples in paper thin slices, as shown in my picture. Leave the peel so it will give the red color to your roses. Right away, place the sliced apples in the bowl with lemon and water, so that they won't change color.
3. Microwave the apples in the bowl, for about 3 minutes, to make them slightly softer. If you prefer, you can also simmer the apple slices in the water in a small pan (on the stove).
4. Unwrap the puff pastry over a clean and lightly floured counter. Using a rolling pin stretch the dough a little, trying to keep it in a rectangular shape. Cut the dough in 6 strips. These are about 2 in x 9 in (5 cm x 22 cm).
5. In a bowl, place three tablespoons of apricot preserve with two tablespoons of water. Microwave for about one minute, so that the preserve will be easier to spread. Spread the preserve on the dough.
6. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Drain the apples.
7. Place the apples on the dough, as shown in my picture. Sprinkle with cinnamon if you'd like.
8. Fold up the bottom part of the dough.
9. Carefully roll, seal the edge, and place in a silicone muffin cup. No need to grease the muffin mold if it's silicone. Otherwise, make sure to grease it.
10. Do the same for all 6 roses. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for about 40-45 minutes, until fully cooked.
NOTE: make sure the pastry is fully cooked on the inside before removing the roses from the oven! If after 30 minutes the apples on top look fully cooked, move the pan to a lower rack in the oven, and wait for 10-15 more minutes to avoid undercooking the puff pastry.
A couple changes: Instead of apricot preserve, I brushed the dough with melted butter, then sprinkled it generously with cinnamon sugar (1 tsp. mixed with 1/4 C sugar). I found using the mandolin blade on my grater made nice, thin apple slices.
This is one of the few things I've brought to the Berwick Press Enterprise office potluck that was enjoyed by my fussy co-workers!
Ingredients: to make 6 roses
1 frozen puff pastry sheet, thawed
2 red organic apples (I used red delicious)
half lemon, juice
1 tablespoon of flour, to sprinkle the counter
3 tablespoons of apricot preserve
cinnamon (optional)
powder sugar for decorating (optional)
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Directions:
1. Thaw the puff pastry if you haven't done so yet. It should take about 20-30 minutes.
2. Prepare a bowl with some water and the lemon juice. Cut the apples in half, remove the core and cut the apples in paper thin slices, as shown in my picture. Leave the peel so it will give the red color to your roses. Right away, place the sliced apples in the bowl with lemon and water, so that they won't change color.
3. Microwave the apples in the bowl, for about 3 minutes, to make them slightly softer. If you prefer, you can also simmer the apple slices in the water in a small pan (on the stove).
4. Unwrap the puff pastry over a clean and lightly floured counter. Using a rolling pin stretch the dough a little, trying to keep it in a rectangular shape. Cut the dough in 6 strips. These are about 2 in x 9 in (5 cm x 22 cm).
5. In a bowl, place three tablespoons of apricot preserve with two tablespoons of water. Microwave for about one minute, so that the preserve will be easier to spread. Spread the preserve on the dough.
6. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Drain the apples.
7. Place the apples on the dough, as shown in my picture. Sprinkle with cinnamon if you'd like.
8. Fold up the bottom part of the dough.
9. Carefully roll, seal the edge, and place in a silicone muffin cup. No need to grease the muffin mold if it's silicone. Otherwise, make sure to grease it.
10. Do the same for all 6 roses. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for about 40-45 minutes, until fully cooked.
NOTE: make sure the pastry is fully cooked on the inside before removing the roses from the oven! If after 30 minutes the apples on top look fully cooked, move the pan to a lower rack in the oven, and wait for 10-15 more minutes to avoid undercooking the puff pastry.
Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Stuffed Eggplant
EATDRINKDINETRAVEL
28.01.2014
STUFFED EGGPLANT
RECIPE: STUFFED EGGPLANT
Ingredients
one eggplant
2 medium tomatoes
2 cloves of garlic
2 shallots
2 tbsp. of olive oil
1/4 cup of dry white wine
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 tbsp. of feta cheese
2 tbsp. of coarsely chopped parsley
Method
Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise. Then cut the center diagonally to form a crisscross pattern in the flesh. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Place in a baking dish and roast at 180C for about 20 minutes. Set aside to cool. Scoop out the flesh and chop it.
Scald tomatoes and remove the skin, dice them.
Heat the olive oil in a skillet, add minced garlic and diced shallots, saute them. Add chopped eggplant and diced tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper, add wine and cook for about 10 minutes, until the wine has evaporated.
Stuff the eggplant skins with eggplant-tomato sauce, top with crumbled feta. Bake at 180C for about 10 minutes.
Before serving, top with fresh parsley.
Share:
Wednesday, December 2, 2015
Chai Tea Mix
My wonderful neighbor, Laura Davis, gave me this recipe. It's perfect for rainy weather, like today.
Laura and her family are very religious Christians. They're mainstays of their church, Wesley United Methodist Church, helping out at the weekly soup kitchen. Laura's husband Todd sometimes preaches, and he and their kids, Amelia, Evan and Marty, often play music for church functions.
Hanukkah fell soon after I moved in, around 2000. And soon after, small gifts from "The Hanukkah Man" started appearing each of the 8 days at my doorstep. Sometimes I'd hear giggles right before the gifts appeared - Amelia, who was 4 around then, was too excited to keep a secret.
I started having the family over for latkes and gave the kids Hanukkah gelt every year during the Festival of Lights, and Laura helps me shop for the synagogue Hanukkah party every year - she's much better at finding tczakhas than I am! And every Christmas morning, I stop by with gifts Santa carelessly loses from his sleigh as he crosses my yard.
I think it's fine proof that different religions can live in peace.
Ingredients:
1 C nonfat dry milk powder
1 C powdered non-dairy creamer
1 C French vanilla powdered non-dairy creamer
2 1/2 C sugar or splenda
1 1/2 C unsweetened tea (this is optional. Personally, I prefer to make tea, and use the rest of this mixture as a sort of creamer.)
2 tsp ginger
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cloves
1 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp white pepper
1 tsp allspice
Combine ingredients in large bowl. Blend 1 cup at a time in a blender of food processor until it's a fine powder.
To serve: stir 2 heaping tablespoons into a mug of hot water. Or tea, assuming you skipped the unsweetened tea ingredient.
Laura and her family are very religious Christians. They're mainstays of their church, Wesley United Methodist Church, helping out at the weekly soup kitchen. Laura's husband Todd sometimes preaches, and he and their kids, Amelia, Evan and Marty, often play music for church functions.
Hanukkah fell soon after I moved in, around 2000. And soon after, small gifts from "The Hanukkah Man" started appearing each of the 8 days at my doorstep. Sometimes I'd hear giggles right before the gifts appeared - Amelia, who was 4 around then, was too excited to keep a secret.
I started having the family over for latkes and gave the kids Hanukkah gelt every year during the Festival of Lights, and Laura helps me shop for the synagogue Hanukkah party every year - she's much better at finding tczakhas than I am! And every Christmas morning, I stop by with gifts Santa carelessly loses from his sleigh as he crosses my yard.
I think it's fine proof that different religions can live in peace.
Ingredients:
1 C nonfat dry milk powder
1 C powdered non-dairy creamer
1 C French vanilla powdered non-dairy creamer
2 1/2 C sugar or splenda
1 1/2 C unsweetened tea (this is optional. Personally, I prefer to make tea, and use the rest of this mixture as a sort of creamer.)
2 tsp ginger
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cloves
1 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp white pepper
1 tsp allspice
Combine ingredients in large bowl. Blend 1 cup at a time in a blender of food processor until it's a fine powder.
To serve: stir 2 heaping tablespoons into a mug of hot water. Or tea, assuming you skipped the unsweetened tea ingredient.
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