ChezCindy: Corn & Quinoa Salad with Roasted Carrots & Mint

Try this lovely salad as a simple lunch, or serving it at a small gathering for brunch. You can roast the carrots ahead of time, even using left-over carrots roasted for last night's dinner.  Use fresh corn cut from the cob for best results. If cutting corn from the cob is new for you, follow the link for instructions on how to do so.  Fresh mint adds a refreshing finish to the salad.  And it gives you a second use to go along with the mojitos you might serve with the salad.  The recipe for the salad dressing is my standard vinaigrette.

Corn and Quinoa Salad with Roasted Carrots and Mint
2 cups fresh corn cut from the cob
4 cups cooked quinoa
2 cups roasted carrots, cut in pieces
4 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh mint
salt & pepper to taste
Agave vinaigrette salad dressing

Combine the cut corn, cooked quinoa, roasted carrots and fresh mint into a large bowl.  Gently stir to combine.  Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and a small pinch of black pepper over the ingredients.  Spoon on 1/3 cup of vinaigrette, stirring to combine.  Taste, adding more salt or dressing as desired.

ChezCindy: Carrot Cake Tea Cakes

Happy Spring!  Make this elegant yet comforting cake to celebrate each day for the gift it brings.

Carrot Cake Tea Cakes

The Cake

2 cups granulated sugar

1 1/3 cups vegetable oil

3 large eggs, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 cup dried currents

1 cup chopped toasted walnuts

1-pound carrots, grated

1/2 cup crushed pineapple

The Frosting

16 ounces cream cheese

1/2-pound unsalted butter (2 sticks) 

1 teaspoon vanilla

a pinch of kosher salt

1-pound powdered sugar

Makes 12 large 3/4-cup cupcakes*

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare 3/4-cup cupcake trays by spraying thoroughly with non-stick cooking spray oil with flour. 

Working with a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, using medium-low speed, cream the sugar, oil and eggs together until pale yellow in color and well combined.  Mix in the vanilla.  

In a separate medium size bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; whisk together to combine.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing on low speed to combine.  Add in the dried currents and chopped walnuts, stirring until combined.  Add in the grated carrots and the crushed pineapple, mixing until combined.  

Using a large spring-loaded ice cream scoop, transfer the batter into the prepared cupcake holders, filling each cupcake well nearly full, about 3/4 full.  Place the trays on the center rack in the oven, bake for 40-45 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.  Remove from the oven to cool completely.  When cool, invert the cupcakes onto a wire rack.   

Make the frosting while the cupcakes cool.  Using an electric mixer, mix the cream cheese, butter, vanilla and a pinch of kosher salt until combined and creamy.  Add in the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time, on low speed, mixing well.  When most of the sugar has been added, taste for desired sweetness.  Add more sugar, or stop, to your preferred taste.  Frosting should be smooth and creamy.  

Frost each cake generously.  Enjoy.

*Recipe can also make a large cake using 2 8-inch round cake pans.  Adjust bake time to 55-60 minutes.   

ChezCindy: Asian-style Turkey Meatballs

Quick and easy meatball recipe with a three-ingredient simple sauce.  

I served the meatballs as lettuce cups.  They'd also be good with fluffy rice and steamed green beans for dinner.  Or as an appetizer for a party.

 

Asian-style Turkey Meatballs
1 pound ground turkey or chicken
1/3 cup plain breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons finely chopped green onions
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1 large egg
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon Chinese five-spice powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Asian Meatball Sauce
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1/4 cup Thai sweet chili sauce

2 tablespoons gochujang siracha sauce (Weak Knees brand recommended)

Make the Meatball Sauce:  Combine the hoisin, sweet chili sauce, and gochujang siracha sauce in a medium size mixing bowl, stirring to combine.  Set aside for use with the meatballs.

Make the Meatballs:  Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Working with a large mixing bowl, combine all the meatball ingredients together, mixing until evenly combined.  Scoop out the meat mixture into 1-ounce portions to form meatballs roughly the size of a golf ball.  Place the meatballs in a single layer onto a large sheet pan with sides.  Roast the meatballs in the preheated oven for 10 minutes.

Remove the sheet pan from the oven, brush the meatballs with half of the sauce.  Continue baking until the meatballs are browned and reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees, about another 5-6 minutes. 

Remove from the oven.  Transfer the cooked meatballs to the bowl with the remaining sauce.  Toss to coat with the sauce.  Serve with a garnish of thinly sliced carrots, cucumber, red pepper, and cilantro or parsley.  Serve in a lettuce cup for an appetizer, or with steamed white rice for dinner.  Serve hot or at room temperature.

 

ChezCindy: Cinnamon-Sugar Banana Bread

Just when I thought there could not be another banana bread recipe I would write about, along comes this one.

The story here is that I have been making food for our friend who is an ER doctor.  He is a bachelor and does not cook.  During this time of Stay at Home, his options for ready to eat food are limited.  One of his favorite sweet treats is anything made with bananas and chocolate.  No shortage of those 2 ingredients in this house.  I had just given him the banana muffins I wrote about recently and was pondering what to make this time.  I remembered a recipe from King Arthur Flour that was actually their Recipe of the Year in 2018.  Right.  Humble banana bread as recipe of the year.  The standout difference for this banana bread is a mix of cinnamon sugar sprinkled over the top before baking.  It forms a crackling crust as it bakes and smells heavenly.  The original recipe calls for walnuts, but could be easily substituted with chocolate chips.  The chocolate, bananas and cinnamon are a great flavor trio.  Below is their recipe with my slight change omitting the walnuts, using chocolate chips instead.  

I'll  try not to add another banana bread recipe in the near future.  I hope you enjoy this one.


Cinnamon-Sugar Banana Bread
2 cups mashed banana, about 4-5 medium size
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup chocolate chips

Topping
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with the rack in the center of the oven.  Lightly grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl, stir together the mashed bananas, oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla.

In a separate smaller bowl, add the flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon together.  Stir in the chocolate chips.  Add the flour mixture to the banana mixture.  Thoroughly combine the ingredients together.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan.  Mix together the topping of sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar topping evenly over the banana batter.

Place the pan into the preheated oven, baking the bread for 65-75 minutes.  Check the loaf around 60 minutes to see if the bread getting too brown.   If so, loosely cover the pan with foil.  Continue to bake until a long toothpick comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs.

Remove the pan from the oven, cooling it on a rack for 20-30 minutes.  Turn the bread out of the pan and continue to cool for another 20 minutes before slicing.

ChezCindy: Sweet-tart Citrus Bars

I recently decided to make Lemon Bars for a friend's birthday treat.  I had 5 whole lemons in the fridge.  I thought that would be sufficient to squeeze out 1 cup of lemon juice.  Nope.  I was already in the middle of baking the crust, so I had to decide what to do, run to the store or improvise.  A quick search in the refrigerator bins brought discovery that I had fresh oranges.  Lemon Bars were now to become Citrus Bars.

It is always a pleasure when an improvisation brings forward something better than the original.  Lemon Bars are a childhood favorite that I have never stopped loving.  But these Citrus Bars might have jumped over as my new favorite.  Using a blend of orange and lemon juice brought a more balanced flavor.  There is the tartness of the lemons, but a hint of sweetness from the oranges.  I also used the zest from each, giving the bars little bits of orange and yellow speckled throughout.  Very pretty and so delicious.

Sweet-tart Citrus Bars
For the Crust:
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

For the Filling:
6 large eggs
3 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons lemon zest*
1 teaspoon orange zest*
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice, roughly 5-6 lemons
1/3 cup fresh orange juice, roughly 1-2 oranges
1 cup all-purpose flour

Powdered sugar for dusting


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Make the crust:  Using a mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light in color and creamy in texture.  Add in the flour and salt, mix until just starting to come together.  The dough will be crumbly and not fully combined.  Transfer the mix to a 9x13-inch baking pan.  Knead the dough enough to press it into the pan creating an even crust over the bottom of the baking pan.  Chill for 15 minutes.  Bake in the pre-heated oven for 15-17 minutes until lightly browned.  Set aside to cool.

Make the filling:  Whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon & orange zest, lemon & orange juices, and the flour.  Pour over the cooled crust.  Bake in the oven, on the oven rack centered in the oven, for 30-35 minutes until the filling is set.  Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature.

When cool, cut the dessert into squares or triangles, dust with powdered sugar.


* Remember to zest the citrus before cutting into the fruit.  It is not impossible to zest the lemon or orange after cutting into it, but it is rather difficult.

ChezCindy: Roasted Shrimp with Pasta

Scrolling through my favorite weeknight recipes, I was looking for my recipe for Salmon with Parsley Walnut Pasta.  I love this dish.  It is quick to come together with ingredients I usually have in the pantry.  I did have one issue. I did not have any salmon.  But, I had frozen shrimp in the freezer.  I thought the shrimp might be a good substitute for the salmon.  Turned out to be to be a really good change up for the salmon.  

Most often when I cook shrimp, I roast it.  Boiling is generally thought of for how to cook shrimp.  But I find that roasting retains greater flavor rather than boiling it away.  For the Roasted Shrimp Pasta dish, I used the exact recipe for Parsley Walnut Pasta.  Roasting the shrimp as shown below, finishing the dish by garnishing with a bit of Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley.  

Roasted Shrimp

1 pound shrimp, 12-15 count

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

few grinds of black pepper.  

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Peel and devein the shrimp, rinse and then pat dry to remove excess water.  Place the shrimp onto a sheet tray.  Use one with sides to contain the juices that will come from roasting.  The shrimp can be close together but not crowded.  Drizzle olive oil over each shrimp, sprinkle lightly with kosher salt and a bit of cracked black pepper.  Place the tray into the hot oven, roasting the shrimp for 8-9 minutes.  Remove from the oven.  Set aside to cool for a minute, serve immediately with the prepared pasta dish.  

ChezCindy: Simple Roasted Cabbage Planks

If you have never roasted cabbage planks you are in for a real treat.  Roasting vegetables brings out the best in all vegetables, including the humble cabbage.  The leaves soften and lose all bitterness, bringing out a gentle sweetness and golden buttery flavor.  I used green cabbage here.  Both red or green cabbage are equally delicious.  

I can eat the cabbage planks as a snack straight from the pan.  Or to be more civilized, they can be an unexpected side dish for roast chicken and mashed potatoes.  

If you want to stay lighter for a meatless meal, serve the roasted cabbage with fettuccini pasta tossed with crumbled feta cheese, chopped parsley and olive oil.  All good.  

Roasted Cabbage Planks

1 medium head of cabbage, red or green

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  

Working with a large sheet pan, drizzle the pan with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. 

Cut the cabbage in half through the core.  Set each half flat-side down onto the cutting board.  Leaving the core in place, cut through the core for each half to make 3-4 wedges (6-8 wedges in total).

Place each wedge onto the sheet pan, drizzle the remaining oil over the planks, turning over to drizzle both sides.  Sprinkle with kosher salt and a bit of black pepper to taste.  

Place the sheet pan into the hot oven, roasting the planks for 20-30 minutes.  Remove the pan from the oven, carefully turning each plank over to brown the second side.  The first side should be nicely browned and crisp at the edges.  Roast for another 10 minutes to brown the second side.  If you have cut the planks into thick wedges, you may need more roasting time.  The planks are done when the leaves are tender and the edges are browned.  Serve hot or room temperature.