Ger-pocolypse, 2012

I was all impressed with myself that I was going to get a good cooking post up today.  We're eating good stuff this week:

Fajitas (Monday):

1 large bell pepper (color of your choosing), sliced
1 large onion, sliced
1 lb boneless skinless chicken, sliced in about 1/2 inch slices
flour tortillas
grated cheddar cheese
optional: sour cream, guacamole, salsa

Saute the pepper and onion in about 2 tbsp olive oil over high heat (I recommend a cast iron skillet, if you have one).  When the peppers and onions are blackened and soft, remove to a bowl. 
Over high heat again, saute the chicken until slightly blackened and cooked through, about 6 minutes.  Toss the peppers and onions back in the pan to reheat.
Serve in flour tortillas topped with cheese and whatever other toppings you desire.

 Ham and Cheese Biscuits and homefries (today):

 Your favorite biscuit recipe*
about 1/2 lb deli ham, sliced thin
4 oz. cheddar cheese
deli mustard

Preheat the oven to 425.
Mix up the biscuits, then divide the dough in half.  Press or roll half the dough until it is about 1/2 inch thick across and roughly rectangular.  Cut the rectangle into six even pieces and place on a lightly greased cookie sheet.
Top each biscuit with two slices of ham, folded, then some of the cheddar.
Press the other half of the dough into a 1/2 inch thick rectangle, and spread lightly with the mustard.  Cut into six slices and top each sandwich, mustard side down. 
Bake for about 15-20 minutes, until the tops have lightly browned.  
I served with homefries and pineapple.

*I love the Moosewood Cookbook biscuit recipe.  If not for the threat of dying of scurvy, I might try to live on them.  But you could do any recipe, including Bisquick or (and I really don't recommend this) biscuits out of a can. 

 Southwestern Hamburger skillet (tomorrow):

 Yeah, I'll get this one up tomorrow.  It's only half done anyway.

So there I was, cooking up tonight's dinner AND tomorrow's dinner, because that's how I roll, when for some reason I go into the sunroom and notice that the cover is not on the gerbil cage.  How long has the cover been off the gerbil cage?  I have no idea.  But I do know that there is only one gerbil in said gerbil cage, where previously there had been two.  

See?  One.  Two.

 And up close.  Two.

Did I mention that we have two dogs that would be more than happy to consume misplaced rodents?  Did I also mention that that fact dawned immediately on the 7 year old whose gerbil had gone missing?  Cue the waterworks.  And the burning dinner.

I was luckily able to salvage the homefries (we're still out of ketchup, as we have been for two weeks) and get the biscuits out of the oven.  They were super tasty, but I didn't get pictures of the completed meal.  

And, since I like a good narrative arc, we did a little poking around after dinner and found the escapee gerbil underneath an armoire.  We scooped that little bugger up and plunked him back in his home, where his brother gerbil is adamantly refusing to let him back into their shared little gerbil house.  It's a squeakfest in there.  But Lea was elated, and I think we all learned a valuable lesson in putting the top back on the friggin' cage.

Let's hope tomorrow's dinner comes with a few more pictures and a smidge less drama.

Wedding toast

My sister got married Saturday night (this is probably not a shock to most of you).  We're very lucky to now have Fred in our lives, and the wedding was beautiful.  

 Lea was a beautiful flower girl.  

And Gail a beautiful bride.  

No doubt this site will be inundated with pictures 

when we get them from the photographer.

As the maid of honor* I had the pleasure of making a toast at the wedding.  It's a little nervewracking to get up in front of all those people, especially because Pete keep telling me that my toast was too long.  Well, that's what happens when you give someone used to lecturing the opportunity to speak with a microphone.  

*Just so you know, you do not make friends with your wife by insisting on calling her a matron of honor, instead of a maid.  FYI, fellas.

A Toast to Gail and Fred

 Gail and Fred, you’ve made a beautiful wedding.

There is much to love about a traditional wedding ceremony.  It is timeless.  It is meaningful.  Given the temperature out there tonight, I love that it’s short.  The thing that I love the most is the simplicity of the vows.  You have promised to be there for each other through whatever life throws at you.  And you two, having seen the marital challenges and joys of many you love, have gone into your marriage knowing that life can through some pretty intense curveballs. 

You married for love, but today you, perhaps unknowingly made the hard choice.  Because today, you stood in front of family and friends and willingly said “there will be times that my life will be harder for choosing you, and that is a burden that I embrace.”   

Having spent a lot of time with you two, it is clear how much you love each other.  Louis De Bernieres wrote in Captain Corelli’s Mandolin “Love is a temporary madness, it erupts like volcanoes and then subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part...Those that truly love, have roots that grow towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossoms have fallen from their branches, they find that they are one tree and not two.”  You have decided that you will bloom and fade and bloom again together, and move forward in this life as one.

Regardless of how much you will bloom, marriage isn’t all roses.  If planning a wedding teaches you anything, it’s that there will be days that you don’t like each other.  Comedianne Rita Rudner once said, “I love being married. It's so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life. "  But on those days when you’re driving each other that special kind of crazy, you will remember that you have bound yourselves together here today.  You will remember that the devotion that you two have for each other, and the commitment that you made to one another transcends whatever temporary obstacles that you will face. 

Because in choosing marriage, you are choosing hope.  Choosing to be there for better, for richer, and in health too.  You will look at each other and believe, as poet Roy Croft said,  " I love you, not only for what you are, but for what I am when I am with you. I love you, not only for what you have made of yourself but for what you are making of me."  Your marriage will make each other better, and together, you will enrich the lives of those who surround you with love today.

So that love, that commitment, that hope, is truly why we’re here celebrating.  The wedding is lovely.  Let’s toast the marriage.  

What I've Been Thinking About

Sad little blog, I was worried that this would happen when school started.  Here are all the ideas for posts that I have been thinking about but haven't had time to write.

• The Election.  Just kidding.  Thinking about it gives me a stomach ache.  We all know who I'm voting for, and I just have to take deep breaths.

• Good music.  I was hoping that exposing my children to OK Go and the like would mean that in 5 years I won't have to listen to whatever new Justin Bieber nightmare is out there.  Instead my house has been turned into a series of Rube Goldberg machines.

• Snack foods.  That's right.  I made these, motherf*ers.  They're goldwhales and they were delicious. 

• Teaching.  The highlight of my day was that one of my students said before class started "Ms. Murphy, I really like this class."   Unprompted, no less. (That was me bragging a little.  Sorry.)

• Family time.  The Boston Museum of Science rocks.  You should totally go with your family.  But before you bring your 5 year old into Mammoths and Mastodons, you might want to consider whether or not he'll ask about the gigantic penis on the mastodon model.

 Yep.  Giant wang.  He noticed.

• Cooking.  That goes without saying.  I've been cooking, and good stuff too.  Like for instance, have you ever tried pizza with a creamy pea sauce instead of tomato sauce?  Don't knock it 'til you try it.  

 And there was prosciutto.  It was really good.

• Weddings.  The countdown is on til my sister's wedding.  Weddings are about 50% "Yay!  Love!  New family!" and 50% "Oh shit.  I have to wear a corset with this dress."

• Health Insurance.  It's possible that Lea broke her finger roughhousing with Jax.  It will cost us $250 for x-rays to definitively rule it out.  We're in a wait-and-see-pattern.  Something is very wrong with this reality.

• The CFP.  For those of you not down with the lingo, that's Certified Financial Planner (exam).  I've tried to think of something clever to say about this.  If you can find something witty to say about Financial Planning and its accompanying exams, please message me.  

• Birthdays.  Jax is going to turn 5 soon.  FIVE.  <Pouty face>  He'll be so big.  I'm not ready.

 But look at what he can do now!  All by himself.

• Grading.  I think that I cannot procrastinate any longer.  I miss you, little blog.  I'll come back.

Chicken Parm

Here's the thing.  Everyone should know how to make chicken parm.  If there's a person on the planet who doesn't like it, I don't want to know them.  It's perfect - a little fried, a little cheese, and served with a side of carbs.  

Here's the other thing.  It just takes practice.  It's hard to heat the oil to the right temp so the chicken cooks through but the breading doesn't burn.  You have to figure out if you like regular breadcrumbs or panko, how much cheese is just the right amount for you, whether you prefer it with pasta or spaghetti. There's no right answer; it's always delicious.  But it takes practice - the first few times the chicken will be burnt, or gummy, or be ready 15 minutes before the pasta.  When you have a good chicken cutlet down, though, there's nothing you can't do in the kitchen.

Chicken Parmesan
4 thin sliced chicken breasts
1/3 c. panko
2/3 c. italian seasoned breadcrumbs
2 eggs
olive oil for frying
jar of tomato sauce
3/4 c. grated mozzarella cheese

Mix the panko and traditional breadcrumbs together on a plate.  In a wide bowl, beat the eggs.  Carefully and completely dip each chicken breast in the egg, then dredge through the breadcrumbs, pressing down so each piece is completely coated.  There will probably be some breadcrumbs left over.

In a deep wide frying pan, heat about 1/2 c. olive oil.  A good test for heat is to drop in a small piece of regular white bread.  If it sizzles and browns in about 30 seconds, it's a good heat.  Place 2 chicken breasts in the oil and cook until a golden brown, then flip and do the same on the other side (this should take about 3 minutes per side, depending on how thin the chicken is).  Remove from heat and place in a lightly greased 8X11 glass dish.

Add about another 1/4 c. of olive oil to the pan and repeat the process with the second two chicken breasts.  

Pour tomato sauce on each of the chicken breasts.  Top each piece of chicken with some of the grated mozzarella.  Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.  Make it perfect by broiling it for a minute or two to brown the cheese slightly.  

Serve over pasta, grating parmesan cheese over all.  Add a side salad and your meal is perfect.  Viola!

Knight of Carver, Princess of the Apple Orchard

We've been busy as heck.  There was the annual trip to the King Richard's Faire 

Waiting for the jugglers

Human powered rides

Jax being knighted.  Apparently now we'll have to call him "Sir Jackson"

With the King and Queen

On the jousting field, being introduced with the other new knights

On the way out.  Sir Jackson didn't want to be seen with the rest of us, apparently.

and our annual trip apple picking with good friends.  (Then there was some delicious pulled pork and an apple pie, but I didn't make the pulled pork, so no recipe for that, and the apple pie used a store bought crust, so that's too "cheater" to post).

Sassy princess and her good friend Kaley

Got a good one.

Suffering.  The Pats game was on.  Made only mildly more bearable by the fact that they lost.

She's gonna be a rock star someday, that one.

And today was Rosh Hashanah.  We dined at my folks house, but I was responsible for the sides.  And the kids wanted to make challah, so we took that on as well.  So in case you're curious about what sides are easy to make (and yummy) for a crowd of 12, here you go.

First, the outsourced recipes:

Challah
I used this smittenkitchen recipe.  It was perfect.  The only thing that I did differently was make four small loves instead of 2 large ones, and so I used a single (3 strand) braid.  

Braided and round and raisin.  Booya.

Braided and round and plain.  Perfect for any occasion.

So.  Good.

Mustard Potatoes
I used this recipe from epicurious.  Again, the only tweak was that I steamed the potatoes before roasting them because I like my potatoes extra soft.  I also used a little extra olive oil in the mustard mix, but my mustard didn't stick very well, so maybe I shouldn't have.

Steaming.

Coated, but not cooked.

Ready to be served.

Couscous with Sweet Potato and Zucchini
(remember - this recipe generously served 12.  You could easily halve it.  This would also make a good vegetarian main dish)
2 boxes couscous
1 large sweet potato
1 medium zucchini
olive oil
1/3 c. pine nuts
1/2 cup golden raisins, soaked in hot water to soften
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp cinnamon 

Preheat the oven to 425.  

Peel and dice the sweet potato into 1/2 inch thick slices.  Chop into bit sized pieces.  Place on a rimmed baking sheet and coat lightly with olive oil.  Dust with the cayenne and cinnamon.  

Ready to go in the oven

Roast at 425 for about 20 minutes, then turn and roast for about 10 more minutes.  Add the zucchini to the pan and cook for about 10 more minutes.  Remove from the oven.  

Toast the pine nuts.  Heat a small pan over medium heat and add the pine nuts.  Stir frequently.  You cannot walk away from them, because they go from pleasantly nutty and browned to burnt and unedible in 3 seconds.  As soon as they are golden brown, remove from heat and set aside.

Uncooked.

Starting to brown.

Removed from heat.  It's a miracle I didn't burn them.  I always do.

Cook the couscous according to the box directions.  

Mix the couscous, pine nuts, vegetables and raisins (drained).  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Creamed Spinach with Blue Cheese Breadcrumb Topping

This was a hit.  The whole thing went.  I highly recommend it.

5 slices of white bread, toasted
6 oz crumbled blue cheese
36 oz fresh baby spinach
1 large shallot, finely diced
8 tbsp butter, divided
1 c. lowfat sour cream

Crumble the toast in a cuisinart until it is pulverized into large breadcrumbs.*  Sauté the breadcrumbs in 3 tbsp of the butter until lightly toasted.  Remove to a bowl and mix with the blue cheese.

Melt 11/2 tbsp of the butter in the pan and add half the spinach.  Sauté over medium heat until wilted.  Remove to a strainer in the sink.  Repeat the process with the second half of the spinach.

Uncooked, and practically spilling out of the pan.

Wilted and ready for straining.

Melt the remaining butter in the pan, and, over low heat, sauté the shallot until tender, about 8 minutes.

As the shallot is cooking, squeeze as much water as you can out of the spinach.  

When the shallot is done, return the spinach to the pan.  Add the sour cream and cook for a couple of minutes until the spinach is creamy throughout.  Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer the spinach to a greased 8X11 glass dish, and spread out so it's even.  Top with the breadcrumb mixture.

Untopped.

Yum.

**Cook in a 375 oven for about 35 minutes, or until the spinach is bubbling and the breadcrumbs are a golden brown.  

*if you don't have the time and/or wherewithall to make your own, try panko.
**  If you wanted to make this in advance, you could cover and refrigerate and bake in a day or so.  Just add about 10 minutes to the cooking time if it's starting cold.

Alright, folks.  It was a lovely long weekend.  Back to the grind tomorrow.

Strata

I feel silly even listing this as a recipe, because it's so versatile and you can use almost anything in it.  Leftover bacon?  Sure.  Different veggies?  You bet.*  Sourdough bread?  Go for it.  Vegetarian?  Leave out the meat.  Here's the recipe that I created to use leftover italian sausage.  

Best part of this recipe?  If you're using leftovers, it goes together in about 15 minutes the night before, and then bakes in about 45 minutes the next day.  Perfect for a weeknight.

Leftover Strata

about 6 cups cubed bakery bread (I used about 1/2 loaf of challah)
3 cooked italian sausage, cut into small cubes
2 tbsp butter
1/2 red pepper, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 c. fresh baby spinach, chopped
optional: 1/2 c mushrooms, sliced
1 c. shredded cheese (I used cheddar, you could use gruyere, monterey jack, or swiss)
6 eggs, scrambled

Grease an 8X8 glass dish.

In a large bowl, toss together the bread cubes and the majority of the cheese.

Let's be honest - this could be a meal in and of itself

In a medium pan, melt the butter over medium heat and sauté the pepper and onion (and mushroom, if using) for about 10 minutes, or until soft.  In the last minute or so, add the spinach and cook until wilted.  Add the sausage.  

Toss the vegetables and sausage in with the bread cubes and cheese, and transfer to the baking dish. 

Pour the egg mixture over the bread, and top with the remaining cheese.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Ready and set for tomorrow's dinner!

About 45 minutes before you are ready to cook, remove from the fridge and let come to room temp.  (This isn't 100% necessary, but it makes the cooking much more even.  If you can't do this, figure the cooking time will be slightly longer).  When you are ready to cook, heat the oven to 350 and cook for about 30 minutes, until the edges are browned and the egg is set in the center.  

Again, imagine it cooked.  There was some serious melting down in the Murphy household, and I forgot to take a picture.  Instead have a picture of Lea in her new ballet stuff.
It was very handy to have this dinner to throw in the oven when we got home from dance class.

*really, anything.  You could add fresh tomatoes, leftover asparagus, jarred artichoke hearts, peas, broccoli, whatever floats your boat.  This is a good recipe to play around with.

50th Birthday Beans

We had more plans this weekend than we've had in quite a while.  Friday we had the Auf Ruf for my sister and her fiancee.  For the non-Jews amongst us, that's the community blessing in temple that happens sometime before your wedding.  

The children were extremely well behaved and were rewarded by getting ice cream for dinner.  What?  They ate a carrot after services.

Saturday was a ladies paint-your-own-pottery get together as a pre-wedding thing as well.  

G.G. (Great Grandma) carefully polka-dotting an ice cream dish.

Gail, Lea, and Grandma making works of art.  

Saturday night was my brother in law's 50th birthday party.  That was a good time.  It's always nice to have an excuse to throw a bash with way too much food, and this was an especially good reason.  

Happy Birthday, Dan!

The various brothers and sisters-in-law divided up the menu.  I was responsible for ribs, baked beans, and cupcakes.  The cupcakes were courtesy of my friend Aimee, who's started up her own cupcake business.  We had strawberry margarita cupcakes and salted caramel.  They were quite tasty.

I have to admit, I think that my ribs and beans turned out pretty good too.  If you're thinking about making baked beans from scratch, and you have a slow cooker handy, definitely try these.  I started with this recipe, and then tweaked it a little; I wanted it a little less sweet, a little less bourbony, (don't worry.  Mine were still quite heavy on the liquor) and a little meatier.  Mine delivered.

You should know that you need to start these at least a day before you want to eat them.  If you're doing the overnight soak for the dried beans, you need to start two days in advance.  

Slow Cooker Bourbon Baked Beans
1 lb dried navy or cannelini beans
1 medium onion, medium chop
1 clove garlic
2 c water
3/4 c. your favorite BBQ sauce
3/4 c. loosely packed light brown sugar
1/8 c. ketchup
1/8 c. mustard (I used gouldens)
2 tbsp maple syrup
1/2 c. bourbon
1/4 c. apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1-2 tbsp smoked salt (if you can find it).
6 pork ribs, sliced apart (I used baby back)

Soak the beans, either using the quick soak method or by soaking overnight for about 8 hours.

Once the beans have been through an initial soak, drain the water, and refill the pot with fresh water.  Boil the beans while you do the rest of the cooking steps.

Sauté the onion in a couple tablespoons of whatever fat you prefer (butter, oil, or bacon fat).  When the onion is soft and tender, add the garlic and sauté an extra minute or two.  Remove from heat.

In the slow cooker, mix the rest of the ingredients, excluding the ribs.  Then, drain the beans and add them to the liquid mix.  Stir in the onions and finally put the ribs in the mix.  Cover the slow cooker and cook on low heat for 10 hours.  

After 10 hours, the beans will likely still look quite liquidy.  Remove the lid and let cool for an hour or two.  The ribs should be falling off the bones at this point.  Remove the bones from the mix and shred the meat that needs shredding.  Turn the slow cooker back on, and let cook on low heat again for anywhere for 6-10 more hours.  Serve hot.

Imagine there's a picture right here of the finished beans.  I forgot.

If you have leftovers, you could always use them like I did tonight, as part of a leftover pulled pork, baked bean, zucchini pizza.  Totally delicious.