Category Archives: pastas, nuts, and grains

May 02 7 comments
pastas, nuts, and grains

Dark Chocolate Coconut Granola Bars

Despite the fact that a large portion of my time (and energy) is dedicated to the art of food, I’m not always a good eater.  And although I’m dedicated to putting a healthy and well balanced meal on the table every evening (except for days when I fry something, or when we order Chinese because my head hurts), I don’t always carry that policy through for the other meals of the day.  The thing is that unless I’m eating breakfast and lunch at home, I usually forget to consider them.  I don’t consider them at the grocery store, I don’t consider them the night before, and I absolutely don’t consider them as I’m running out the door in the morning, heavily processed low fat granola bar in hand.

I know, it’s awful.  Two bad-for-me-granola-bars does not a healthy lunch make.  The thing is, I pretty much always hate sandwiches and buying snacks means cutting other grocery bill corners, and I’d rather eat local organic kale for dinner one night, you know?  Unfortunately (for the kale), Dan does not share my opinion, and has loudly expressed that it is his job to take care of me and that I’m making it very hard for him by not eating properly.  And because it’s a recession and I don’t want him to lose his job, I’ve decided to try harder.  I’m a great employer, obviously.

And I really have been trying harder.  Making exciting bread so that sandwiches are delicious and not boring.  Making flatbread and hummus to snack on throughout the day.  Remembering to grab a ramp biscuit out of the freezer before I start getting dressed in the morning.  Baby steps to maturity, you could say.  Today, I took it up a notch by trying to replicate my favorite (but oh so expensive) granola bar, the Kashi Dark Chocolate Coconut.  It’s exactly what it sounds like, and heavenly.  They are delicious, fairly good for you, easy, and I know I’ll go out of my way to grab one tomorrow morning.

Dark Chocolate Coconut Granola Bars

2 cups oats

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

1/4 cup coconut

1/4 cup wheat germ

1/2 cup honey

1/3 cup brown sugar

Pinch of salt

2 cups dark chocolate

4 tbsp coconut, for topping

Spread oats, walnuts, and 1/4 cup coconut on a baking sheet.  Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

While that is in the oven, melt brown sugar and honey on the stove.  When the sugar is melted, throw in salt and set aside.

Mix together, honey mixture, oat mixture, and wheat germ in a large bowl.  Line a baking pan with parchment or aluminum foil and spread the granola out.  I like the granola pretty thin, but you can make it as thick as you’d like.

Bake at 300 for 20-30 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp.

Once the granola has cooled, melt the chocolate in a double boiler.  Break the granola apart into rectangles or chunks, and dip each piece in the chocolate.  Sprinkle with coconut and set aside so the chocolate can set.

Jan 28 8 comments
beans, slaws, quiches, mashers, and casseroles, pastas, nuts, and grains

Macaroni & Cheese

For the past two days I’ve been holed up in my apartment, sick.  Yesterday I took in way more Criminal Minds/Gilmore Girls than is probably healthy (though they may cancel each other out) and got winded chasing down the UPS man who was trying to drive off without delivering our new computer.  That’s right, ladies & gents, this recipe is coming at you from our brand new 27″ iMac, dubbed Admiral Adama.  And yes, we named our beautiful new computer after Edward James Olmos’ character on Battlestar Galactica.  We’re nerds.  We’re also planning on naming our puppy Starbuck.

Anyway I am incapable of just being home sick because I always feel I should be doing something.  So I made macaroni and cheese.  Because I didn’t feel good and I wanted the creamy, sweet and spicy goodness that homemade macaroni and cheese can be.  Plus, once the computer was delivered I decided to wait for Dan to get here to set it up so taking pictures of cooking and fantasizing about them on the giant HD screen was as close to feeling good as I could get.  And, naturally, promptly after sticking the dish in the oven I collapsed on the couch, exhausted.

Homemade macaroni and cheese is a pretty simple meal.  Not nearly as simple as opening a packet of powdered cheese and dumping it straight into boiled pasta, but you know, easy compared to making your own bread or some of the other things I encourage you to do here on a regular basis.  In fact, I would venture a guess that the majority of you could pull this off on a weeknight.  Or you could make it ahead and freeze it.  What I’m trying to say is that I made it while dying of the flu* so it shouldn’t be a problem for you to pull off anytime.  Just some shredding, boiling, combining, and baking.

I’m going to go ahead and admit that editing these photos was way more of a pleasure than cooking, or even eating, this dish.  I mean, this computer (and it’s giant screen) has had me making a stream of exclamations that sounds more like a “that’s what she said” joke than anything else.  But I can’t help myself, I’m totally enamored and expect to fall further in love once Dan and I have figured out the logistics of sharing a computer.  That, naturally, will be the hard part.

This could be because I’m almost as much of a computer nerd as I am a food geek.  In fact, sitting in front of it’s giant screen right now and thinking how much more I like this than editing on the couch with my 15″ MacBook, I’d venture to say that really only pie could beat this feeling right now.  Anyway, back to my disjointed and rambling post.  This recipe is, as I said, easy.  But also delicious by all mac n’ cheese standards.  It’s creamy, filling, sweet and a little spicy, with just the right ratio of gooey inner cheese to crunchy outer cheese.  I use spices such as paprika and nutmeg to give it a different flavor profile, but feel free to tweak it to your wants and needs.  It’s great for curling up in front of the tv and watching your favorite bad shows, perfect for this time of year when your body is TIRED OF THE COLD but they’re forecasting snow.

*I may not be literally dying.  It just feels like it. {drama queen} Also, if you look closely at the last picture, you’ll see Edward J. Olmos on the far right of the screen.

Macaroni & Cheese

1 lb penne pasta

1 1/2 cups white cheddar cheese

1 cup extra sharp yellow cheddar cheese

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

4 tbsp flour

4 cups milk

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 small lemon, juiced

1/2 stick butter

Shred all of your cheese.  Measure out all your spices.

In a sauce pan, heat milk & cream over low/medium heat.  If the pan gets too hot, the milk will curdle.

In another pan, melt butter.  Whisk in flour, making sure there are no clumps.  Slowly whisk in warm milk mixture.  Remove from heat and add 3/4 of all the cheeses and the spices.  Continue to stir until cheese has melted and formed a sauce.  The sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Boil your pasta 3-4 minutes until slightly cooked but still very firm.  Preheat your oven to 350.

Drain your pasta and pour into casserole dish.  Pour cheese sauce over and stir slightly to coat.  Top with the remaining cheese, spread evenly over the top.  Bake for 35 minutes, or until the pasta is tender and the cheese has a nice brown crust.

Jul 05 2 comments
pastas, nuts, and grains

Cayenne Candied Pecans


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One of the hardest foods for me to resist at fairs, carnivals, and outdoor concerts is candied nuts.  The smell of them lure me in and I can’t say no.  My favorite nut, the pecan, is also my favorite candied nut.  I like it when nuts are not just sweet when candied, but also spicy, so when I make them at home, I mix in a little cayenne to give it a kick.

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Candied pecans are a malleable food because they can be served alone as a snack or used as a topping in salads, on top of soups, or with a little vanilla ice cream.  They have a shelf life of a few weeks, so you can make a batch and then dole them out as needed, which is something I always appreciate.  They’re like the bacon bits of sweet toppings.

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Candying nuts is pretty easy.  You want to moisten the nuts so that the sugar and spice can stick, so you dip them in frothed egg whites first, and then in the dry mix.  For my dry mix I used brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, cayenne, red pepper, and nutmeg.  My main flavor makers were cayenne and cinnamon, but I added the other flavors to make a complete taste.  After I baked them I tossed them again in more sugar and spice and then let them cool.  This makes sure that there is a crusty sugar layer on the outside.  The spice is subtle and the overall experience is wonderful- crunchy, chewy, sweet, and spicy.

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Cayenne Candied Pecans

2 egg whites

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup pecans

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1 tbsp cayenne

1 tbsp cinnamon

Dash of red pepper

Dash of nutmeg

Use a whisk, mixer, or immersion blender to froth your egg whites.  Add vanilla extract.  Add the pecans and coat entirely.

In a separate bowl, mix white sugar and spices.  Split in half and set one half inside.  To the other half add brown sugar.  Dip the pecans in the brown sugar mix and place on a wax paper covered baking sheet.

Bake your pecans in a 350 oven for 20 minutes.

When they’re done, toss them in the remaining sugar mix and place them on a rack to cool.

Apr 23 0 comments
cookies, cakes, and cupcakes, pastas, nuts, and grains

Grammy’s Chicken Spezzatini & Molten Lava Cake

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One of the most unfortunate things about living in Florida was how far away we were from my mother’s side of the family.  My grandparents made frequent trips down to see us, but we still didn’t see them as much as I would have liked.  When we moved to North Carolina we were closer, but it wasn’t until I decided to go to school in Baltimore that I got the opportunity to see my grandparents on a regular basis.  They had, by that point, moved from New Jersey to the D.C. area, so I got to see them a few times a semester.

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I have really enjoyed reconnecting with my grandparents of an adult.  They’re both completely hilarious and adorable and a lot of fun to be around.  My grandmother, Marlene, is a little morsel of a woman, barely (if at all) reaching five feet, which means I have towered over her for at least ten years.  She can quite literally fill a conversation all by herself, which is why a phone call that starts with “I don’t have a lot of time to chat” usually ends an hour later with me completely filled in on the goings on of everyone in my family, plus some extras.

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As you can probably imagine, my grandmother is also an amazing chef.  One of my favorite “bits” that my grandparents do goes as follows.  We’ll be out at a restaurant, and my grandmother will be perusing the dessert menu and come across an item that she makes well.  She’ll exclaim “Molten lava cake!  I make an excellent molten lava cake!”  My grandfather, in turn, will huff, and respond “HA!  When was the last time you made a molten lava cake?  You never make ME molten lava cake.  You don’t even make me cookies!  Do you know what I would do for some cookies?”  I call it a bit because even though I’m pretty sure they do this to entertain me, I know Poppie probably wants some damn cookies.

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When I invited my grandmother to be a part of this mother’s day series, we decided that it would be fun if we cooked something together, as they only live half an hour away from us.  So this past weekend Dan & I drove to Gaithersburg and spent the afternoon cooking, drinking, and laughing with my grandparents.  My grandmother had a rough menu laid out when I got there, but we made a few decisions ad-lib, much to Poppie’s chagrin (he’s a planner).  We made Chicken Spezzatini a la Lieggis, Molten Lava Cake, and sangria.

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Chicken spezzatini is breaded chicken cooked with mushrooms and white wine.  It is served with fettucini or spaghetti that has been tossed in olive oil, butter, and parmesan.  We also had it with a side of fresh spinach tossed in garlic and olive oil, one of my favorites.  Molten lava cake is a dense chocolate cake baked in a ramekin, with a liquid (or molten) center.

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Our molten lava cake didn’t turn out quite the way we expected it to.  On account of the sangria, Grammy & I didn’t feel as compelled to follow the recipe as we usually would have, and so the center was not really molten at all.  I’ll take responsibility for over whisking, though I should really just blame Poppie & Dan for the heavy-handed sangria.  It was wonderful to spend the afternoon relaxing and cooking slowly, trying fruitlessly to refuse appetizers and then getting scolded for not eating enough dinner.  It was a wonderful meal and I loved every minute of it.

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Chicken Spezzatini
Source: Marlene Waldron

4 boneless and skinless chicken breasts (cut into slivers)

2 cups mushrooms, sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 lemon

1 cup dry white wine

2 tbsp olive oil

1 cup flour

1 cup chicken broth

2 tbsp melted butter

1 cup milk

Salt & pepper

Dip each piece of chicken in milk, and then dredge in flour.  Heat olive oil and butter in a pan and brown each piece of chicken, then set it aside.  Add mushrooms, garlic, and salt & pepper to the pan.  Add wine and lemon juice, and allow to reduce.

Pour in chicken broth and allow to reduce again.  Add chicken back into the pan, and let the whole mixture simmer for at least half an hour.

Sprinkle with parsley and serve along side fettucini.

Serves 4.

Molten Lava Cake

2 tsp melted butter, for glazing ramekins

1 cup chocolate chips

1 stick butter, room temperature

2 whole eggs, room temp

2 egg yolks, room temp

1/4 cup sugar

3 tbsp flour

1 tbsp cocoa powder

Begin by melting butter and chocolate together.  Set aside.

Whip eggs, yolks, and sugar with an electric mixer until a ribbon forms.

Combine flour and cocoa powder, and sift into egg mixture, half at a time.  Fold in melted chocolate and butter.

Brush each ramekin with melted butter, and pour mixture into ramekin.  Allow the ramekins to stand at room temperature for 20-30 minutes before baking.  Bake at 450 for 8 minutes.

Serves 4.

(Second to last photograph by Daniel C. Hoerr)