Throwback Thursday: Chicken & Zucchini Baked Ziti
I moved out of my apartment in Breckenridge today to move back to Boulder. Only one more semester of school in Boulder until I get to start culinary school! I am going to miss living in the mountains, the beautiful views from my front porch, the pace of life, and the cool weather. The one thing that I won’t miss about that apartment is the tiny piece-of-junk kitchen. When we first moved in, our stove would spark and pop every time we tried to turn it on- no it was not gas! This week’s Throwback Thursday recipe was made during this time, when I was afraid to cook anything on the stove. Instead I boiled the water for the pasta in the microwave to cook it!
Roasted Garlic Flatbread
I have stuck to my resolution to bake more bread. I have decided to start with a very easy bread that doesn’t take long to rise or bake- flatbread. I loved eating the flatbreads while working at Noodles and Company, if I had known they were this easy to make I would have made them at home earlier!
Feta-Basil Bison Burgers
Poolside grilling is always a good time. I like to make burgers when grilling at the pool because they are easy and don’t need a plate. I have made these bison burgers a few times in the last week and they have been a hit each time. Bison has a higher protein and mineral content per calorie than many other meats. I like bison burgers because they are a little bit healthier than regular beef burgers, but still give you a similar flavor.
Fruity Vanilla Creme Tart
It really doesn’t get much better than eating a cool, creamy tart with juicy fresh fruit on a hot summer evening. A few friends and I had a delicious bison barbeque this past week. We had one dish after another until we could hardly eat anymore… but then came the dessert. Consumption of this dessert took place around my kitchen counter with moaning, mmm’s and oh my god’s coming from stuffed faces.
Throwback Thursday: Sesame Chicken Chow Mein
I have finally transfered almost all of my old recipes to my new blog, only one or two more Throwback Thursdays after this one. I am going to start a new weekly theme idea once Throwback Thursdays are over. I would love to hear your input about what you would like to see. I was considering a few things. First, I was thinking about focusing on a different country each week and discussion the traditions, flavors and any other interesting things behind the culture. The other idea I had was to really focus on the senses, since that is what my blog is really about. I was considering zoning in on a different sense description each week and showing how it is represented in certain recipes. For example, I would use the word “tangy” one week and discuss what that really means and give you a recipe that really represents what the word “tangy” means. Please let me know what you think of these ideas and let me know if you have any others that you would like to see!
Greek-Style Mahi Mahi
I just realized that most of my fish recipes are for Mahi Mahi, but pretty much any white fish can be substituted for most of my recipes that use Mahi Mahi. I personally just use Mahi Mahi because I live in the mountains in the middle of Colorado and don’t have a very large seafood selection. Those of you who live on the coast are very lucky! While I was living in New Zealand last summer, I loved going to the farmer’s market every Sunday and buying fresh fish off the fishing boats.
Sun-Dried Tomato, Flank Steak & White Bean Stew
I feel the need to start this post by saying that this was supposed to be a recipe for Mexican Posole. Of course, I had a bit of trouble with the one ingredient needed to make an actual posole- the hominy. I have heard many people say that they usually used canned hominy, but I decided to use dry hominy since that was what was in the pantry. Recalling my artichoke disaster, I am noticing a trend that apparently canned food works better for a lot of things. Luckily, I had a feeling the dry hominy would take a long time to cook and decided to cook it separately, rather than cooking it in the stew. I must have refilled the pot with water at least four times, but the hominy still wasn’t getting soft. I don’t know what I did wrong, but I had to improvise from there. I decided that white kidney beans would be a good substitute for the hominy, since they kind of have a similar texture.
Cinnamon Crepes w/ Blueberry Compote
Cooking fancy breakfasts for friends is always a ton of fun for me, but I don’t get to do it often. Usually, when a large group of friends end up spending the night at the same place, breakfast doesn’t get made for everybody for one of three reasons; 1- they wake up with the thought “Man I need to go home”, 2- nobody is in the mood to cook, or 3- you don’t have the ingredients or kitchen to use. If you are not a twenty-something year old you probably hardly ever wake up in a random friend’s house. This means planning a breakfast party if you ever want to have a big breakfast with friends, which for some reason just doesn’t happen as often in our busy lives. I am happy that I was able to cook these delicious crepes for a group, rather than just myself! These are also the perfect idea for a Father’s Day surprise!
This is also my entry for the Highbush Blueberry Council’s recipe contest!
Throwback Thursday: Green Chile Chicken Corn Chowder
The title of this Throwback Thursday recipe may have some of your running for the door because it is a soup. Also, I know it may be hot where some of you are, but that doesn’t mean you have to cut out hot food! I know you will have a chilly night when you are craving a delicious soup and this recipe is going to hit the spot. It is a spicy, cheesy chicken corn chowder that is just the kind of heat you want in the summer time.
This soup is packed with green chiles, red peppers, onion, cheese, chicken and potatoes. If you are not one for spicy food you can simply just leave out the green chiles and cayenne pepper. This soup goes perfectly with the Ciabatta Bread from last Thursday’s throwback recipe. Dig in!
Artichoke, Celery Root & Potato Gratin
Until about two weeks ago I had always bought canned artichokes. My friend Kelcey and I decided to make a delicious vegetarian dish after planting our new garden and wanted fresh veggies for this recipe, so I decided I would buy fresh organic artichokes. Little did I know that trimming an artichoke is no easy task. We completely butchered two organic artichokes and ended up having to purchase canned ones in order to finish the dish. Another downfall to our dish was that we topped the bread with way too much cheese, which kept it from getting crispy and left us with a soggy bread topping… Not the most appealing. So here’s to round two!
