BFMH: Frittata with Chevre and Caramelized Onions

This morning's breakfast is a type of dish I have never made before so it was an adventure!

A Frittata is an Italian dish made with fried beaten eggs; resembling a Spanish omelet. The origins of the name is from the Italian "friggere" which means "to fry".

Here is the recipe that I found for today's breakfast, originally from http://emmycooks.com/2012/09/22/frittata-with-chevre-and-caramelized-onions/

Frittata with Chevre and Caramelized Onions Recipe
Whisk together 8 eggs with a few generous pinches of salt and pepper and a good splash of milk.
Stir in 1 1/2 cup of caramelized onion and a good handful of chopped parsley. Heat in an oven proof skillet over medium heat, pour in a glug of olive oil and then add eggs. Cook undisturbed until edges are set, then dollop chevre all over the top and transfer to a 375 degree oven to finish cooking.

Me being me, I changed it up a bit. I added a thawed block of chopped frozen spinach I had in my freezer, thawed in the microwave, and wrung out add the extra water in dish towel before combine with the onions to add to the egg mixture. Additionally, some chopped mushrooms, and  cherry tomatoes made it in to the dish as well when I added the onions and spinach. I also reduced some balsamic while the Frittata cooked to be poured over the dish if desired. This sort of this is almost ALWAYS desired by me.

Ta Dah!

I asked Husband if you put it on a scale from one to delicious and his answer was  a pretty dang tastey!

I (as well as my Auntie) would probably eat cardboard with balsamic reduction so I found this meal through the roof.

Another success!


Until the next meal...

Everything you see...

Today is Husband's birthday! I already gave him his main present, a classy formal Disney watch. Seriously. It is really classy.

As he is working today, we will actually be eating his birthday dinner tomorrow night.So I am posting about tomorrow's dinner today, in order to leave Saturday's post for BFMH series. Deal with it. I can retroactively post. Gotta love technology. Moving on...

The In Laws here in town this past weekend (which was super duper great) and it turns out that M.i.L. makes Spaghetti and Meatballs for Papa G for his birthday every year. Unfortunately, M.i.L. had misplaced her recipe. Most fortunately though, I was able to find it online as it is a Martha Stewart Recipe! Needless to say, the Papa G's birthday has been saved and all will be right in the world this Hatch Day coming for him.

All this talk about Spaghetti and Meatballs, as well as talking about Swedish Meatballs (we went to Ikea), has gotten Husband asking for the same meal for his birthday. Alas, I am doing a low-carb diet so pasta (even whole wheat) isn't in the plans for me quite yet. I asked if I could do a Spaghetti Squash version of the dish and Husband, ever the sweetest man I know, said that would be dandy.

Here are the recipes I have found for Low-Carb Spaghetti Squash and Roasted Garlic and Herb Meatballs.

Spaghetti Squash and Sauce
Ingredients
2 whole spaghetti squash
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
4 cup prepared marinara sauce <tomato basil a la Trader Joe's for me> (sub out for an appropriate option if you're vegan)

Method
Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Split squash in half and scrap out seeds.
Line an oven tray with aluminum foil.
Season spaghetti squash with olive oil, salt, and pepper.
Place flesh side down and roast for 30 - 40 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat marinara sauce in a large saute pan.
When squash is cool enough to handle, using a large kitchen spoon, scrape the strands of squash from the inside of the skin. Toss the squash in the pan with the sauce until it is hot enough to serve.

Roasted Garlic and Herb Meatballs (don't use if you are vegetarian or vegan, duh)
Ingredients
1 bulb of garlic
1 tablespoon of butter
1 teaspoon of lemon juice
1 pound of ground turkey
1/2 cup chopped shallots (I used onions)
1 egg
1 teaspoon of dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried sage
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper (white preferred)
1/4 cup olive oil

Method
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Cut 1/4 inch off the top of the bulb of garlic to expose the cloves beneath, but don't peel the garlic as you want to roast it in the skin.
Place bulb in a piece of aluminum foil, place butter on top, pour lemon juice over the garlic and sprinkle with salt.
Bring up sides of the foil and twist together to close.
Cook for 60 minutes or until garlic cloves are soft and golden in color. Allow to cool.
Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.
Combine turkey, shallots, egg, rosemary, sage, thyme, salt, and pepper in a bowl.
use a fork to remove cloves from skin and add to mixture. Mix well. Roll into approximately 15 meatballs.
Place meatballs in a baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil over the top. Bake in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes. Turn on broiler for 5 minutes to brown. Serve and Enjoy.

As per usual, I went off book a little bit. I prepared the garlic in with the squash on Friday night to lower the energy costs a bit. I mixed together MOST of the ingredients (not the egg) for the meatballs and let it sit over night to allow the flavors to combine well. Also, I seared the meatballs in a deep saute pan before baking them to keep the moist while baking. I know some people are squeamish with the word "moist", but that is the only word in my opinion for well prepared meat or poultry. I then chose to use deep saute pan to heat the sauce and squash together on the stove top while the meatballs baked.

I think this turned out very well. Husband agreed with me in that it is an excellent alternative if you can't have / don't want the real thing. He really like my healthy no carb meatballs. This will probably be made again sometime.

Until the next meal...


**Today's title comes from Sophia Loren when she was asked about her physique: Everything you see I owe to spaghetti. **

All truly great thoughts are conceived...

In order to lead a healthier life style, I have taken up walk/running. The running part is a bit of a misnomer. I pretty much imagine there is a zombie behind me or another tribute (Hunger Games) is after me or sometimes just that Doctor has said run and he wasn't able to grab hand and then I run for as long as I can. Burst training. I have realized through these experiments that I stand no chance with any of them...yet.

But I can already tell that I stand a better chance than I did when I started walking consistently a week ago. It isn't a huge change, but one that I already have noticed some differences. Not getting winded over easy stuff and my mile time has already gotten a bit faster. 

I decided on this style of exercise for a few reasons:

1) I have seen the power of running to lose weight for several friends.

2) It's free. There are no membership fees to the world. Well, no down payment, at least.

3) Lastly, I want to participate in one of the Disney Run events some day.

So I figure I just have to be diligent, get out there every day and I'll see some improvement by Thanksgiving. 

Side note: I know there is nothing about  cooking in this post. I haven't cooked quite as much this week because of the In-Laws being in town, Husband and I actually ate out a few times! 

**Today's title is from the full quote "All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking." from Friedrich Nietzsche.**

You may die of a misprint.

Home alone.

No one to cook for, but myself.

As I will be spending the New Years in Brazil, I would like to be feeling my best while on the beach eating ice cream for my friends' wedding. So I am starting a low-carb diet (worked for the wedding to drop some pounds) and walk/jog training everyday. I refuse to be at my highest weight for such an exotic adventure.

So what is quick, yet yummy enough to keep myself from cheating on myself (aka the diet that I and choosing to follow) while I am home alone. That is where Portobello Mushroom Cap Pizzas come in.

Take a mushroom cap, slather on a bit of pizza sauce, top with your choice of deliciousness, and bake for 20 minutes in a pan with a bit of olive oil.

Ka Pow! You got yourself just about the healthiest version of pizza you can find! Plus, no binge or breaking of my choice to be thinner. Now lets just keep it up for 42 more days.

**Today's title is from Mark Twain: Be careful of reading health books. You may die of a misprint.**

Happy Birthday, Maman...

Today, 11.12.13, would have been my Mother's 69th birthday were she still alive. While I think of her daily, I find that I focus on living in her spirit verses in her memory nowadays. Everything about her use to be holy and sacred in my mind. I was fiercely protective of what people thought or said about her. I was selfish. I wanted to let everyone know about how wonderful she was, but I would get irked if someone who I didn't think knew her that well would say something about her. Their memories, their thoughts could never be as true or as important as mine or my brothers.

Something that I realized with the loss of my friend Diane is that every person's memories are valid. As a friend of Diane's daughter, my heart breaks for her loss of a most wonderful mother and it weeps for the pain she will have to endure to recover from such a sudden and wounding shock. As a daughter figure of Diane's best friend, I grieve for the loss of a friend, companion, and confidant for her. As a friend of Diane herself, I miss my friend. All of these relationships feel the hurt and anguish at the loss of one woman. This doesn't mean that any of the hurt is more important than another person's or that it isn't as real. Just different.

Through this most recent tragedy, I realized that my thinking about my mother has changed since I was 14, 18, 21, 25. I use to think of my mother as only as my mother. I, for so long, have only seen her through the lens of "daughter" as that is the only relationship we had the time to form.

As a nearly 30 year old, I can say with confidence that I know my father as the man who gave me life as well as reared me, but also, I know him as a friend, a (most of the time) welcome and able counselor, and the sort of man that people like and want to be around. I never had this sort of realization with my mother. She was on the verge of becoming my friend as well as nurturing mother, but that opportunity was not to be.

I understand now my previous selfishness of her memory and I am thrilled that I over the last few years, I have been able to come to the realization that I am not as selfish as I once was.


So on this day, as there is nothing physical I do for her on her birthday, I give her my thanks.

Thanks for setting me up for success with what little time she had with me. For instilling a love and admiration of art. All the arts. I thank her for showing me her passion so that I can remember and emulate her in pursing my own dreams and desires, no matter the size. I thank her for never kicking me out of the kitchen when she was cooking. I thank her for teaching me how to read and understand a recipe, but also for teaching me that it is ok to go off book. I thank her for answering my questions openly. I thank her, most dearly, that she never spoke to me in a way that belittled or made me feel like I was less than her simply because I was young. I thank her for believing, for her wit, for her joy. I thank her for her legacy, for all the peoples lives that she touched in some way or another so that they can bring their memories and stories to me. I thank her for her style, her grace, and her charisma in all things.

Thank you Maman. I miss you, but I keep you present in the things I do daily.

With my continued love,
Your Daughter

After a good dinner...

This is a very simple, but tasty meal which, of course, reheats well. As the In-Laws are In-Town, I decided to make something that I know to be delectable while not causing me to be over the stove for an hour or more.

This meal, as long as the chicken in is defrosted, takes about 30 minutes. A perfect amount of time to be cooking when you want to be hanging out with your guest. Plus it is pretty delicious and is a usual recipe for my pseudo family, the Henderson's.

Stuffed Marmalade Chicken Breast with Peas and Quinoa
For the Boobies:
4 chicken breasts
1 container soft flavored soft cheese
1 jar of marmalade
For the Quinoa:
2 cups of quinoa
3 Cup of water
1 cup chicken stock
1 clove smashed garlic
1/2 teaspoon of salt
For the Peas:
1 tablespoon of butter
1/2 of an onion, very finely sliced (or a couple bunches of scallions)
1 package of frozen peas
1/4-1/2 cup of white wine
fresh ground pepper

Method:
For the Boobies:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make a deep incision (but not all the way through) in each chicken breast and stuff with the soft cheese. I use the "garlic and herbs" flavor Boursin normally. Then place in a baking dish lined with tin foil (I don't have to scrub it as hard) and cover each breast with marmalade. Put into the oven and cook for 20-30 minutes.
For the Quinoa:
Bring water/stock to a boil, lower to med low heat, then add salt, garlic and quinoa. Cover and cook for 15 minutes. Check the quinoa by giving it a little stir to see how much water/stock is left. Use your best judgement and cook the quinoa till all the water/stock is absorbed.
<Don't forget to rinse the quinoa before cooking, it takes away the bitterness you can get with quinoa>
For the Peas:
Melt 1/2 tablespoon butter in a pan and saute the onion. Stir in frozen peas and then deglaze with white wine, using just enough so that the peas are steamed through. turn off the heat, and add the other 1/2 tablespoon of butter and add freshly ground pepper.

We got a different style of Maramalade this time which was less sweet than the normal Kroger brand I buy. I was nervous that it would effect the flavor drastically. It was certainly not what the dish normally tasted like, but it certainly didn't make it an unpleasant meal by any stretch. Just different.

Also, instead of the peas, we ended up getting a pretty much AWESOME couple of Asparagus bunches at the Burbank Farmer's Market. I prepared them the way I normally do for Eggs Benedict (A bit of olive oil, crushed almonds, and asparagus in a pan with a lid and shake it over medium heat time bright green.) and it was a perfect meal.

The In Laws liked it, Husband liked it, and I liked it, despite the differences to how I normally make it. So winner-winner-chicken-(stuffed with cheese and topped with jelly)-dinner!



**Today's title is is from a play entitled A Woman of No Importance by Oscar Wilde. Definately one of his lesser pieces, it has similar themes (and lines even) to his better known pieces Lady Windermere's Fan and The Importance of Being Ernest:: After a good dinner one can forgive anybody, even one's own relations.**

BFMH: Sticky Buns

First off: check out my friend's blog. It is pretty rad.

http://howtofeedastarvingartist.blog.com/

Right on to business....

So if you read about the awesomeness that are biscuit pizza's earlier this week, you know that I have a something in store for today that will be using left over refrigerator biscuits. Also, Husband and I get to go to PAX East this year, so I have been thinking about the east coast and the delish things there. So I landed on the idea of Sticky Buns made with Fridge Biscuits.

Here is the concoction I came up with from what I found online.
Cat's Epic Sticky Buns
1-2 tubes of refrigerator biscuits, cut willy nilly
1/2 cups chopped pecans and almonds
3 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup Maple syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Add raisins if you would like, I don't care for them personally and they are not traditional.

Preheat Oven to 375

Toast nuts until fragrant and slightly darker.

Let cool completely.

In a heavy saucepan, over medium heat, melt butter. stir in brown sugar, cream, honey, syrup, salt, zest, nutmeg, and cinnamon. (Raisins optional)

Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer until glaze is gold brown and glossy. 

Focus on the outside for this color. If you wait for the center to be brown, the toffeeish concoction will have burned. 

Pour the 3/4 of the glaze into the bundt pan, tilting the pan to coat much of the area the biscuit will be touching. 

Sprinkle in nuts 3/4 of the chopped and toasted nuts. 

cover with chunks of biscuit, overlapping edges and lightly pressing pieces together occasionally to form a bun ring.

Top with remaining glaze and nuts.

Bake for 20-25 mins minutes (not really, 25-30 for batch).

Allow to cool for 1-2  mins in pan then invert on to a serving dish and enjoy!

Well, for some reason, I couldn't toast a nut to save my life last night. So I ended up just using regular nuts, not toasted.

These turned out pretty great. Simple and very good. Not too sweet and perfectly moist. Make this sometime. Even the kids will like it.