OOPSIE, I DID IT AGAIN!

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This was a Sunday supper that was a bit different - but it was still DELICIOUS!  We were taking a meal train meal over to our friend's house that just had a baby - BUT!  They are on the Atkins diet so there were exact specifications for what they could and could not eat.  Well, I LOVE A GOOD CHALLENGE!!  So I made meatloaf from ground turkey, ground chicken, and ground sirloin with a sour cream paprika gravy, cauliflower (non-mac) and cheese, collard greens, a gorgeous salad with home-made apple cider vinegar dressing, oopsie bread and coconut macaroons for dessert!  WOO!  Below I've given you the OOPSIE recipe.  This is extremely bread-like and wonderful.  Just make sure to add only a DASH of salt - trust me on this one!  Low-carber's DREAM!

OOPSIE BREAD

3 egg yolks

3 tbs cream cheese

1 sachet sweetener (I use Stevia)

pinch of salt

3 egg whites

1/8 tsp cream of tartar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Whisk egg yolks, cream cheese, sweetener and (just a pinch of!) salt in a bowl until well blended.
In another clean bowl, beat egg whites until foamy, then add in cream of tartar and beat on high speed until stiff peaks form.  Gently fold in the egg whites to the egg yolk mixture until just blended, be very careful not to break the egg whites down. Fill the batter into a greased 6-cup muffin top pan.  Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes.  

NOTES: If you are making these to be savory (for burgers) you can add dry mustard or dill or other any other seasonings (just no more salt!) to the yolk mixture.  If you want a more sweet roll, add a very small amount of stevia or other  natural sweetener to the yolk mixture.  I double the recipe and bake in a muffin tin with the extra-large cups so that I can use for turkey burgers.  Once you store your oopsies, they can be frozen!

YOUR (CHRISTMAS) GOOSE IS COOKED! (With Hanukkah Flair)

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Every year for Christmas dinner, we make a traditional Jewish feast.  Though we are not Jewish, I think it turns out pretty authentic.  It consists of braised brisket, smoked goose, a noodle kugel, a vegetable side (this year was Parmesan-crusted baked green beans) and a rugelach for dessert.  It's truly amazing and we always take our time eating so we can savor every single, beautiful bite.  For the sake of this blog post, I am going to offer you the Christmas-inspired brine recipe I used on the goose prior to The Hubster smoking it.  It made for the juciest and most-moist goose EVER.  Shepen naches!

CHRISTMAS GOOSE BRINE

1 goose!

6 quarts cold water

One 12-ounce bottle amber beer, preferably Christmas blend, room temperature

1 cup kosher salt

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 pkg poultry seasoning (fresh thyme, rosemary and sage)

1 pkg star anise

2 cinnamon sticks

1/2 cup pumpkin pie spice

In a large pot, bring 1 quart of water to a boil over high heat. Add the beer, salt, sugar, fresh herbs and spices.  Stir until the sugar is dissolved.   Pour the hot brine into a container large enough to hold the turkey (I use a clean and sanitized igloo cooler) and add the remaining quarts of cold water to cool the brine. Place the turkey into the brine, making sure it is entirely submerged. Cover the container tightly with a lid or plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.  When you're ready to cook (or smoke) the goose, remove from the brine and pat dry with paper towel.  

FRANK-N-GHOST

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Mix of the Sunday supper and the month of HALLOWEEN!!  And so it begins......

FRANKENSTEIN STUFFED BELL PEPPERS

 4  bell peppers, tops cut off in a jagged (or Frankenstein fashion), and seeded

1 spaghetti squash, seeds removed and roasted

1/2 red onion, chopped finely

1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped finely (or leave as many seeds as you like the heat!)

1 can black beans, drained

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped coarsely

sea salt

pepper

2 tbs chili powder

2 tbs cumin

2 tbs garlic powder

juice of 1/2 lime

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

extra virgin olive oil (evoo)

With a paper towel, rub the peppers and tops gently with evoo and set on prepared baking sheet and set aside.  Into a bowl, scrape the contents of the roasted spaghetti squash with a fork, the onion, jalapeno,  black beans, cilantro, all the seasonings, the cheddar cheese and the lime juice.  Mix well and scoop into the prepared bell peppers.  Set the tops on top (ha!) and bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes, or until peppers are to your desired consistency.  Remove from the oven and let sit about five minutes.  Take a paring knife very gently and carefully cut eyes, nose, and mouth similar to the picture above.  Serve alongside ghostly autumn meat muffins below, or on its own for a great Meatless Monday!

NOTES:  Just in case you are unsure of the spaghetti squash, it is this easy to roast it: cut in half, seed and sprinkle with a little evoo, sea salt, and pepper.  Roast on prepared baking sheet at 350 degrees, flesh-side-down, for about 30 minutes and remove from oven.

GHOSTLY AUTUMN MEAT MUFFINS

2 pnds ground turkey

1 tbs sea salt

1 tbs pepper

1/2 tsp allspice

1/2 red onion, chopped and sauteed

1 egg

2 tbs red wine

1/4 cup oats

2 tbs extra virgin olive oil (evoo)

sliced Swiss cheese

Combine all ingredients down to evoo in a bowl.  In prepared muffin tins, pile the meat mixture into each muffin tin cup, and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and place one slice of Swiss cheese over each muffin and let sit for three minutes.  With a paring knife, slice around the ends of the Swiss cheese to fit each muffin, and carefully cut eyes and mouth into each slice similar to the picture above.  Serve your ghostly muffin alongside Frankenstein peppers for a ghoulish dinner party!

THE THIGHS HAVE IT

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This colorful and tasty Sunday Supper was perfect for the fall transition!  I had some apples and a couple of peaches just about on their last leg, and half a cauliflower head.  So I got some delectable chicken thighs and created an autumnal appetition of chicken thighs with pan au jus, sauteed apples, and au gratin faux-tatoes, and finished it off with a peach upside-down cake!  OhmuhGAH!!  I.  Can't.  EVEN!!

FRESH THYME CHICKEN THIGHS

1 pkg chicken thighs

sea salt

pepper

6 tbs fresh thyme

extra virgin olive oil (evoo)

Season chicken thighs with sea salt, pepper, and thyme.  In a heavy pan (I use my cast-iron, of course!) sprinkle enough evoo to cover the bottom of the pan and heat on medium-high heat for two minutes.  Add chicken thighs to pan, top-side-down to get a beautiful sear on them.  Cook for two minutes before turning heat to medium.  Cook another six minutes on same side and then turn.  Cook eight minutes on bottom side and remove chicken thighs from pan and let rest.

NOTES:  Remember not to overcrowd your pan or you will not get the brown color you are looking for here.

PAN Au JUS

drippings from chicken thighs

1/2 red onion, diced finely

1 cup broth of your choice (but chicken broth works best here, for obvious reasons)

sea salt 

pepper

1 tsp fresh thyme

1 tbs butter

Using the same pan the chicken was cooked in, keep heat on medium and add to the drippings the onion.  Cook for three minutes and add broth, scraping all the meaty bits from the bottom of a pan with a wooden spoon.  Add sea salt and pepper to taste, and then add thyme.  Bring to a slow boil, stirring constantly, and remove from heat.  Add butter and stir until melted.  Serve over chicken thighs

SAUTEED APPLES

6 apples, peeled, cored, and sliced into about 1/2-inch chunks

2 tbs extra virgin olive oil (evoo)

4 tbs butter

1/2 tsp ground clove

1/2 tsp sea salt

2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp pepper

In a pan on medium heat, add apples to evoo and butter and cook for two minutes.  Add seasoning and cook an addition five minutes.  Serve with chicken thighs and pan au jus.  And then wipe your eyes, because this WILL make you cry a little.  It's THAT GOOD.

Au GRATIN FAUX-TATOES

1/2 head cauliflower, chopped into bite-sized chunks

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup heavy cream

sea salt, to taste

pepper, to taste

1 tbs mustard powder

1 tbs garlic powder

Combine all ingredients into a prepared baking dish and mix well.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Serve alongside chicken-thighs-over-apples.  

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PEACH UPSIDE-DOWN CAKE

I got this AMAHZ recipe HERE

NOTES:  You're welcome.  ;-)

American Pie

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This was a dessert from a Sunday Night Supper, which I decided was going to be American.  It came after a beautiful chicken and rice dinner, with a side of green beans and yeasty pull-apart rolls, and was actually perfect for our transition into the fall weather.  We had Schmooly-Wooly & The Daughts over, and they LOVED IT!

EASY APPLE PIE

2 pie crusts (home made or store bought - your choice)

6 green apples, cored, peeled, and sliced

1/4 cup sugar

1 tbs cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1/2 stick butter, cut into thin slices

Heat your oven to 350 degrees.  Put one of your pie crusts into your pie plate, and then add the rest of the ingredients, stirring all of them together so that butter is distributed evenly among mixture and spices are mixed well and covering apples.  Place second pie crust on top and seal edges with a fork to decorate and close up tight at the same time.  Slice three cuts into the top of the pie crust, with the two on the sides, being shorter than the one in the middle.  Place on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown.  Top with some ice cream and get ready for yummy tones coming from the people eating it!!

NOTES: For summer, you can omit the cloves, but the flavor of them is perfect for fall. I used home made buttery crust that's super-easy, but most people prefer the ease of the store-bought.  I used organic dairy-free soy vanilla ice cream on top while it was warm so it got all melty.  Okay......it wasn't exactly Blue Bell, but it was delicious!!

Fudgy Wudgy

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It should be known by you (if it isn't already) that I am not the greatest baker.  The reason is this: SCIENCE.  I am a Creative.  I need to throw ingredients into a recipe willy-nilly when I think the flavor profile will match, or if I get a wild hair to try something new.  But with baking, it has to be an exact science.  And that annoys me.  BUT!  It sure tastes good!  And I've really been trying to get better at it.  The Hubster doesn't get many carbs or treats during the week so Sunday Suppers are very important because I try to include both as a sort of reward meal for his discipline.  So I took the easy cheesecake recipe I've always used and paired it with an idea I saw on a recipe board for fudge-filled cheesecake.  It worked PERFECTLY, and I didn't have to think too hard!  From willy-nilly to fudgy-wudgy!!

FUDGE-FILLED CHEESECAKE

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1 tablespoon vanilla, divided
2/3 cup chopped or crushed pistachios
4 pkgs cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 full pkg semi-sweet chocolate morsels

Beat butter with an electric mixer until creamy; add the 1/3 cup sugar, beating until mixed well. Gradually add the flour, beating at low speed until blended. Stir in 1 teaspoon of vanilla and pistachios. Press into the bottom and about one-inch up the side of a nine-inch spring-form pan.  Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes or until golden (but not too golden!). Cool on a wire rack.

Beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until light and fluffy; gradually adding 1 1/2 cups sugar, beating well. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until just incorporated. gently stir in remaining vanilla.

Pour half of the batter into the crust. Sprinkle with chocolate morsels to within about a quarter-inch from the edge. Carefully [our in the rest of your batter, gently spreading over chocolate morsels, if necessary. Place the cheesecake on a baking sheet.

Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour or until set. Cool on a wire rack for an hour, then refrigerate.

NOTES:  I use as many organic ingredients as possible for this recipe, including the chocolate morsels, but it IS dessert, so that is only going to make it clean and definitely NOT take away any calories or fat, which would take away the FUN of having dessert, anyway!  Also, if you are allergic to nuts, I recommend a graham cracker crust instead of the pistachios, but the pistachios is HEAVEN. I made my own whipped cream and slathered it on top, and then finely grated an organic chocolate bar for the garnish.  The moans and groans every time a mouthful was eaten tells me that was the right thing to do. 

How to Tune a Tuna

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This was a Sunday Supper night (hence the bread allotment for The Hubster!).  I decided to go with an Asian theme and did a teriyaki tuna steak with soy-sauce roasted Chinese broccoli and savoy cabbage and Japanese milk bread.  It was one of the best Sunday Suppers ever (and also one of the easiest)!  Prefer low-carb?  Eliminate the bread.  (But I wouldn't recommend it!)

TERIYAKI TUNA STEAK

4 tuna steaks

Teriyaki sauce

2 tbs Chinese five-spice

sea salt

pepper

Turn your broiler on to high.  Dab both sides of the tuna with your favorite teriyaki sauce.  Evenly distribute the Chinese five-spice among the tuna steaks, sprinkling on both sides.  Sprinkle both sides with sea salt and pepper to taste and place on a prepared baking sheet.  Broil for three minutes on each side and remove from oven.  Baste a little more teriyaki sauce on top and let rest for two-to-five  minutes.

NOTES: Organic Teriyaki sauce is hard to find, so use your favorite, but check the ingredients label for MSG elimination.  This is also fantastic refrigerated overnight and sliced into a salad!

SOY-SAUCE ROASTED VEGGIES

1 bunch Chinese broccoli

1 small head savoy cabbage, quartered

extra virgin olive oil (evoo)

soy sauce

sea salt 

pepper

On a baking sheet, place your vegetables.  Sprinkle all over with evoo, soy sauce, a LITTLE sea salt (see notes), and pepper.  Toss with your hands.  Bake at 350 for fifteen minutes for crispy veggies, and 20-25 for softer veggies.  If you are cooking with the tuna steaks, use the boiler while the tuna steaks rest and broil for 2-5 minutes.

NOTES: Soy sauce is SALTY so easy on your sea salt.  Remember: you can always ADD, but you can never take away.  I use the organic soy sauce I found in the natural food section of my local grocery store.  For palate contrast, I put some raw heirloom cherry-and-grape tomatoes on the plate.  Plus it just looks purty.

JAPANESE MILK BREAD

I used the recipe I found HERE

NOTES: Because the dinner was so fast-and-easy, I started this bread when I got home from church to make certain it was ready when the dinner was.  I schmeared it with tons of sweet, beautiful butter for Adrian.  He asked me to marry him again.  It's THAT GOOD.