Week 4 – Quinoa (Kari)

This recipe was very good, and is something I will be making again. The cashews were the best part of the dish.

Quinoa Indian Chicken Curry

Author: I Can Cook That

Recipe type: Dinner, Weeknight Meal, Poultry

Prep time:  15 mins

Cook time:  30 mins

Total time:  45 mins

 Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed and drained
• 4 cups chicken broth, divided
• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch pieces
• 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 6 teaspoons curry powder, divided
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 medium head cauliflower, chopped into 1 inch pieces
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp celery seed
• ½ tsp fennel seed
• ½ tsp tumeric
• ⅓ cup plain low-fat yogurt
• ⅓ cup nonfat sour cream
• ½ cup cashews
• ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper

Instructions

1. Add the quinoa and 2 cups chicken broth to a pot and bring to a boil.
2. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for about 15 minutes or until almost all the liquid has been absorbed.
3. Cut the chicken into 1 inch pieces. Add the chicken to a bowl with 1 tablespoon olive oil and 2 teaspoons curry powder. Mix to coat.
4. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the chicken pieces and cook for about 7 minutes or until just done, stirring to cook evenly. Set aside.
5. Using the same saute pan, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add the yellow onion and garlic. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
6. Add the peas, cauliflower, cumin, celery seed, fennel seed, tumeric, and the remaining 4 teaspoons curry powder.
7. Add the remaining 2 cups chicken broth and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. (The original recipe didn’t specify when to add the chicken pieces back in. I decided to add them along with the chicken broth to allow them to simmer in the mixture.)
8. Remove from heat and stir in the low-fat yogurt and nonfat sour cream.
9. Stir in the quinoa, cashews, cilantro, salt, and pepper.

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Week 2 – Fresh Herbs (Abby)

I’m a bit behind on this post, since I didn’t make the meal until late last week and then was out of town over the weekend. This spring Scott (the boyfriend) and I bought some basil, chamomile, and mint plants. I have fallen in love with using fresh herbs while I cook, and so I was excited when Kari and I decided to go with them for our second week ingredient. In fact, this almost turned in to a week long “challenge” for me, since almost everything I made last week had fresh herbs.

My cute boxwood basil plant 🙂

For the specific challenge meal, I decided to use the huge piece of salmon that Scott had bought. I thought rosemary would be a good pair for the fish, so I picked some up while at the grocery store as well. It was such a simple meal to prepare; I first rubbed it with some olive oil, and then seasoned it with some roughly chopped fresh rosemary, sea salt, cracked black pepper, and a little crushed thyme (unfortunately not fresh). I then grilled it on top of some tinfoil, skin side down. I didn’t get any pictures of it, but I served the salmon with some baby red potatoes that I boiled and seasoned with butter, olive oil, fresh basil, chopped rosemary, and salt and pepper. It was a perfect summer meal.

Week 2 – Fresh Herbs (Kari)

From Kari:  With all this rain, the oregano in my garden was starting to take over the world.  This recipe was easy and so delicious.  I added just a little basil from my garden to the oregano.

I used the pesto with quinoa pasta and tomatoes.  While the pasta cooked, I sautéed some chopped tomatoes and added a little cream and a spoonful of the pesto.  Then, when the noodles were done and drained, I added a couple more spoonfuls of pesto to the noodles and mixed it all together–and ate it up!  I still have some leftover pesto to use…pesto pizza?  Any other pesto ideas?  Feed it to my cute chickens?

Oregano Pesto

Ingredients

1 cup of fresh oregano
1/2 cup of parmesan cheese
1 large garlic clove
1/2 cup of almonds
1/3 cup of olive oil
salt and pepper

Instructions

Combine the oregano, cheese, garlic, almonds and salt and pepper in a food processor, until the mixture resembles a coarse meal.

Slowly stream in olive oil until the mixture become smooth.

The cute chickens 🙂

Week 1 – Rhubarb (Kari)

Kari here. This past weekend my in-laws were visiting.  The smell of rhubarb filled the house.  Everyone loved it– we even caught George (my father-in-law) helping himself to a piece at lunch time while we were away.  Delicious. The parchment paper was a must.  Also delicious for breakfast the next day 🙂

RUSTIC FRUIT TART

Makes 2 (12-inch) tart crusts.
Note: This recipe must be prepared in advance. When making two tarts, double the filling ingredients.

For the crust:
• 21/2 c. all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling dough
• 2 tbsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 12 tbsp. cold unsalted butter (11/2 sticks, cut in 1/2 -in.pieces)
• 1/2 c. cold vegetable shortening
• 1/2  c. ice water

For each tart filling:
• 1/2 c. sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp. cornstarch
• 2 c. fruit of choice, sliced thin or left whole, depending on the fruit
• Melted butter and sparkling sugar

Directions:
To prepare crust:

Whisk together flour, 2 tbsp. sugar and 1 teaspoon salt. With pastry blender, cut in butter and shortening until well distributed. The mixture should resemble coarse cornmeal.
Sprinkle water over flour mixture, blending and sprinkling until all the liquid is used. The dough may seem rather sticky, but that’s OK.
Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, pat it into a loaf shape and cut in 2 equal pieces and flatten into fat disks. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days. (You can also double wrap 1 disk and store in the freezer for use within 2 months.)
About 30 minutes before you want to bake, remove dough from the refrigerator and place it on the counter to take off the chill. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a baking sheet and fold over the edges about a half-inch to create a rim, to capture the fruit juices if they should begin to ooze.
On a well-floured pastry cloth or silicone sheet, roll out the dough, working from the middle to the edges, until you have a rough circle about 12 to 14 inches around. Don’t roll the dough too thin or the fruit may break through the sides of the tart.
Drape half the dough over the rolling pin and use the pin to lift the dough gently onto the parchment paper.

To prepare filling: 

Mix together the 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch and pinch of salt. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the mixture over the dough, leaving a 2-inch border. Toss the remaining mixture with the fruit (1 cup Rhubarb + 1 cup strawberry). Arrange fruit in center of dough circle.
Gently lift the border of dough up and toward the fruit, folding or pleating as you complete the circle. If desired, you can brush the dough border with some melted butter and sprinkle with sparkling sugar.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until golden brown and bubbly. If fruit juices have oozed onto the parchment, gently work the tart loose, slipping a knife under the crust. Then slide the tart onto a wire rack to cool slightly (or completely) before serving.

Week 1 – Rhubarb (Abby)

Abby here. For the first week of our recipe challenge Kari and I chose rhubarb. Rhubarb is such a quintessential spring item that it only made sense we used it as our first ingredient. I absolutely love the tartness of rhubarb, and when paired with the right things it is completely perfect for those warm spring evenings.

I had found a recipe for an Eton Mess with rhubarb quite a while ago (from the crumb.com) that I wanted to try, so when we decided to go with the stalky fruit I immediately knew what I wanted to make. I had never heard of the dessert before, but it sounded delicious. An Eton Mess, for those of you who like me, haven’t heard of the treat, is a traditional English dessert. It is a mixture of fruit (traditionally strawberries), cream, and meringues. The slightly crunchy meringues contrast the light whipped cream perfectly, and the rhubarb is such a nice compliment to the pair. The three components are combined right at the last minute and are barely mixed together, so it results in a swirly, beautifully colorful treat.

I had never made meringues before so it was a fun challenge for me. Also, Isabelle Boucher (the author of the recipe) added Greek yogurt into the whipped cream to lighten it up some; it was something I had never tried, and to be honest was a bit nervous about (I really love whipped cream). I was pleasantly surprised, and the yogurt ended up being a perfect complement to the cream and to the flavors of the dessert in general. The recipe was deceptively simple and may be one of my new favorites. I have seen other variations of the Eton Mess as well, with various summer fruits, so I plan on trying those out at some point because my boyfriend and I loved this one so much.

Rhubarb Eton Mess

Serves 6

Ingredients:

Meringues:

• 2 egg whites
• ¼ cup white sugar
• ¼ cup brown sugar
• ¼ tsp white vinegar
• ¼ tsp corn starch
• ½ tsp vanilla extract

Rhubarb Compote:

• 2 cups chopped rhubarb
• ½ cup orange juice
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 tsp orange zest

Yogurt Whipped Cream


• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• ½ cup Greek yogurt
• 2 tbs sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla extract

Instructions:

Make the Brown Sugar Meringues (up to 2 days ahead)

1. Preheat the oven to 250F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. On medium speed with a mixer, whisk the egg whites until soft peaks begin to form. Increase the speed to medium-high and slowly add in both the white and brown sugars, one spoonful at a time. Continue whisking until the sugars have been completely incorporated and the whites have formed stiff peaks. Finally, gently fold in the vinegar, corn starch and vanilla.
3. Spoon the meringue into twelve large dollops onto the prepared cookie sheet.
4. Bake for 90 minutes, or until the surface of the meringues feels dry to the touch. Turn off the oven and leave the meringues in with the door closed to cool for at least an hour, or preferably overnight.

Rhubarb Compote (can be made up to 1 week ahead)

1. In a medium saucepan set over medium-high heat, combine the rhubarb, orange juice, sugar and orange zest. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, and then reduce the heat to low and simmer for around 10 minutes, or until the rhubarb is soft and beginning to fall apart. Set aside to cool off to room temperature.

Make the Yogurt Cream (shortly before assembling)

1. In a large bowl, whip together the heavy cream, yogurt, sugar and vanilla until it stiffens and soft peaks form.

Assemble the Eton Mess (at the last possible minute)

1. Crumble the meringues into a large bowl. Spoon the cream and rhubarb compote on top, and fold until just barely combined (the mixture should still look streaky).
2. Divide evenly between six dessert bowls or martini glasses, and serve immediately, and enjoy!

Welcome!

Welcome to the new blog and my newest project! I am the photographer of Abigail Thompson Photography for those of you who are coming across this site from there.

For those of you who have been following my work for a while you may have picked up on the fact that I always seem to want some sort of challenge to take part in. I have previously done a 52 week project (one self-portrait every week), and three 365 projects (one photograph a day for a year). It has been a while since my last project and I was craving something more structured to work on this summer. On top of that I have been wanting to try out a bunch of different recipes, which has led me to this. And so, after talking with Kari, my older sister, we have decided to embark on a recipe challenge for the summer (or longer). Each week we will choose an ingredient and will both find/create a recipe based around it. As often as possible we will choose something that we can find at our local farmers market (for her in Minneapolis, and for me in Manhattan, Kansas). Then we will each post our recipes and photographs of the dish here to share with you all.

We still have some things to figure out logistically, so please bear with us as we work out the kinks. Things will probably be shifting around and changing quite a bit over the next few weeks we go. Hopefully you all enjoy, and maybe even feel inspired to try out your own challenge!