Twice as Nice Dinner for Two

My final purchase at the Farmer's Market in Berkley Springs today was a butternut squash.  We had a nice lunch with local foods at Tari's Cafe on our final stop of our Anniversary Trip, so I'd planned a dinner at home with the egg dish and sides.  This was so good!  The Twice Baked Potato recipe was inspired by Food Network Magazine.  Here's my version:

Twice Baked Potatoes with Egg
(Serves 2)

1 large Russet Potato
Heat in microwave 5 minutes per side.  Scoop out flesh and place in bowl.  Add:

1/4 cup Skim Milk, warm
2 Tbsp. Swiss Cheese, shredded
1/4 cup Fresh Herbs
Mix with potato flesh.  Stuff each potato, then form a well in center of each.  

Fill center of each potato with
Shell Egg

Place each potato half onto parchment lined baking pan.  Bake at 375 degrees 20 minutes.
 
Garnish with
Mrs. Dash

The butternut squash dish was inspired by Eating Well Magazine.   Here's my take:

Butternut Squash with Olives
(Serves 2-3)

1 small Butternut Squash
Seed, peel and slice.  

1 tsp. Olive Oil
Saute squash slices in olive oil until brown on all sides.  Remove to bowl.

1/4 cup Red Wine Vinegar
2 Tbsp. Water
Heat to boiling and boil until reduced by half.

1/4 cup Onion, sliced
1 Garlic Clove, diced
1 tsp. Canola Oil
6 Kalamata Olives, sliced
Saute in canola oil a few minutes.  Add Vinegar reduction.  Heat and stir in squash.

Our meal is served with cucumber and tomato, fresh picked from my container garden.  Enjoy your Labor Day!

  

Carriage Cuisine

Our Lost River Picnic followed by a chance carriage ride through the park was a day to remember. The marinade for the kabobs was a good one:

Five-Spice & Ginger Marinade
(Serves 2)

2 Tbsp. Orange Juice
2 tsp. Honey
1 1/2 tsp. Sodium, less sodium
1 Garlic Clove, minced
1/2 inch Fresh Ginger, peeled and minced
3/4 tsp. Five-Spice Powder
1/8 tsp. Cayenne Pepper
2 Tbsp. Toasted Sesame Seed

That's Whole Wheat Spaghetti, Farmer's Market Carrots & Potatoes, Organic Zucchini and Cremini Mushrooms on the kabobs.  The tomatoes and green pepper were grown on my deck.

We had a beautiful view from our table.

   
When we learned the last carriage ride was in 10 minutes, we packed up quickly to get a spot.

A memorable event marking our 38th Wedding Anniversary.

Dinner and Flowers

The Curried Scallop-Apple Salad smelled wonderful cooking.  . an easy after the work week Friday dinner.  My flowers, a gift from my husband, are an early anniversary gift.

We were married on Labor Day, 30 years ago!

Here's the recipe:

Curried Scallop-Apple Salad
(Serves 2)

1 tsp. Olive Oil
2 Tbsp. Diced Onion
3/4 tsp. Curry Powder
Saute onion with curry powder in olive oil.

Add
1 cup Apple Juice
Bring to a boil for about 3 minutes. 

Place into a bowl and add
1 tsp. Cider Vinegar

1/3 # Scallop Pieces
1 tsp. Canola Oil
Brown scallops in oil about 3 minutes on each side.  Remove from pan.

Add to pan
1 Apple, diced
Saute 3-5 minutes.  

Add all ingredients to pan with
1/4 cup diced Dried Plums
Heat.  Serve over
Arugula and Spinach Mix  
 

A Sweet Pair

1/2 pound pears grown locally are a treat, and this recipe for Cinnamon Oat Baked Pears was equally delightful.  The recipe is from iheartnaptime.net and here is my version:

Cinnamon Oat Baked Pears
(Serves 2)

2 Pears, cored

3 Tbsp. Oats
Toast.
2 Tbsp. Pecan Meal
2 tsp. Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
1 Tbsp. Greek Yogurt, nonfat
1 Tbsp. Earth Balance Buttery Spread
Mix ingredients.  Stuff Pears.

3 Tbsp. Apple Juice
Pour apple juice in bottom of small baking dish.  Bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes.
We ate ours with a dollop of no added sugar ice cream (then a little dream whip).  This was delicious.

Now for the main course:

Stuffed Butternut Squash was inspired by Eating Well's recipe using Delicata Squash.

Stuffed Butternut Squash
(Serves 4)

Butternut Squash
Half and seed.  Place face down in a foil lined baking dish.  Bake at 425 for 30 minutes. 

Filling
6 oz. 92% Lean Ground Beef
1 Spring Onion
Brown beef with onion in non-stick skillet.  Add
2 tsp. Chili Powder

1/4 cup Quinoa
1/2 cup Water
Bring water to a boil.  Cover and simmer for 20 minutes until water is absorbed.  Mix in cooked ground beef.

Fill squash.  Serve with a homemade salsa.  

Veggie Gold (Meatless Monday)

This fun meal with spaghetti squash, lentils and corn cakes was filling and delicious.  Spaghetti Squash with Lentil Sauce was  inspired by Tammi Forcier.  Here's how I made it:

Spaghetti Squash with Lentil Sauce
(Serves 3)

1 medium Spaghetti Squash
Cut in half and remove seeds.  Roast in 425 degree oven 40 minutes.  Remove squash with fork.

1 1/2 cups water
Heat to boiling.  Add
2/3 cup Lentils
Turn water to simmer and cover.  Cook for 20-30 minutes until most of water is absorbed.
Place in colander.

1 tsp. Olive Oil
1 mini Sweet Pepper, diced
1/2 small Onion, diced
Saute onion and pepper.  Add
3 Tbsp. Tomato Paste, no added salt
3 Tbsp. Water
1/4 tsp. Chili Powder
1/4 tsp. Cumin
Heat.  Add lentils and stir.  Serve over spaghetti squash.
Garnish with
1 Fresh Tomato, chopped

The recipe for Silver Dollar Corn Cakes is from Cooking Light.

Silver Dollar Corn Cakes
(Serves 3)

1/2 cup Whole Wheat Corn Meal
1/4 cup All Purpose Flour
1/2 tsp. Sugar
1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 ear Fresh Corn, cooked and cut off the cob
Mix dry ingredients.

1 Egg
1/2 cup Skim Milk
1/2 tsp. Fresh Lemon Juice
Whisk egg, milk and lemon juice together.  Stir into dry ingredients.  Grill scoop of batter (mine were 2 Tbsp. each) a few minutes on each side.  Can make ahead and reheat.

My corn cakes were topped with  Earth Balance Buttery Spread.  


 

Dan's Mountain Dishes

Our menu was Mediterranean, yet our spot was a Western Maryland Mountain.  We found a deck in a state park at the top of Dan's Mountain, which was beautiful yet quite cold so we both donned blankets.  Our menu today:

Mediterranean Chicken Salad

Chez's Brown Rice Salad

Manakish Za'atar

Purple Grapes

The Chicken recipe was inspired by The Clever Carrot. Here's my version:

Mediterranean Baked Chicken

(Serves 3)

1-6 oz. Chicken Breast, skinned

1 clove Garlic, sliced

1 small Onion, sliced

1 small Zucchini, sliced

1 Yellow Squash, sliced

Mrs. Dash Seasoning

Bake at 350 degrees until internal temperature of chicken reaches 165 degrees.  Chill overnight.

1 cup Garden Tomatoes, cut in small pieces

1/4 cup Mozzarella Cheese Pearls

Fresh Basil Sprigs

2 Slices Lemon, cut in quarters

1/2 cup Northern Beans, cooked (I use the frozen cooked kind without salt)

Mix in.

Serve with Red Wine Vinaigrette:

2 Tbsp. Red Wine 

2 tsp. Olive Oil

Assorted Fresh Herbs

1 tsp. Honey

2 tsp. Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice

My Brown Rice Salad was adapted from a recipe my Australian scrapbook friend, Chez, sent me.  Here's my version:

Chez's Brown Rice Salad

(Serves 4)

3/4 cup Brown Rice (the quick cooking kind)

3/4 cup Water

Bring to a boil.  Turn to simmer and cook for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat.  

Stir in:

3 Dried Apricots, diced

1/2 ear Corn, cooked and cut off the cob

1 Mini Sweet Pepper, diced

2 Tbsp. Toasted Almonds, crushed

2 tsp. Sesame Oil

Chill.  Serve with Arugula Spinach Mix.    

I posted the bread recipe yesterday.

Enjoy your week!  

   

Manakish Express

BBQ Chicken on this Mediterranean Flatbread was a dynamic combination!  The inspiration for the pizza is from California Walnuts "Barbecued Chicken and Fiery Walnut Pizza".  Here's my version:

BBQ Chicken Pizza
(Serves 3)

1-6 oz. Chicken Breast
Roast at 350 degrees to an internal temperature of 165 degrees.  Slice and dice.  Mix with
3 Tbsp. Masterpiece Barbeque Sauce
Portion onto 
3 Baked Flatbreads with Za'atar.
Top with 
2 Thinly Sliced Tomato
1/4 cup Mozzarella Pearls, halved
2 Tbsp. Gorgonzola Cheese
2 Tbsp. Toasted Walnuts with Cayenne Pepper, crushed

Bake at 450 degrees 5 minutes.

Now for the bread!

Manakish Be Za'atar is a recipe from Al Wadi Al Akhdar, posted by Oldways.
Here's how I made it:

Manakish Za'atar
(Serves 8)

1 1/2 cups All Purpose Flour
1 1/2 cups Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
2 tsp. Rapid Rise Yeast
1 tsp. Sugar
Dash Salt
1 1/2 cups Warm Water
Mix half of flours and the rest of the dry ingredients in bowl of mixer.  Heat water to 125 degrees.  Slowly add to mixing bowl and beat at medium speed for 2 minutes.  Turn speed to low and beat with dough hook, gradually adding the rest of the flour until dough leaves the sides of the bowl.  Place in bowl sprayed with Pam.  Cover with plastic wrap.  Let rise until double in size.

Divide dough into 8 pieces.  Form into balls.  Roll each out onto pastry cloth.  Brush with
Olive Oil
Cover with Za'atar.
Bake on stone in 450 degree oven 5 minutes each.

Za'atar

3 Tbsp. Dry Thyme
1 Tbsp. Toasted Sesame Seed
1/2 tsp. Italian Seasoning
2 Tbsp. Lemon Peel
Mix and chop in food processor.

We split one of the breads when it came out of the oven.  Simply delicious!     
   

Friday Night Lite

An easy after work stew. . . very tasty on this rainy Friday!  The recipe was inspired by Alison and Jeff Nathan's "Sea Bass Nicoise".  Here's my version:

Wild Cod Stew
(Serves 2)

1 tsp. Olive Oil
1 Garlic Clove, diced
1/3 cup Fennel Bulb, sliced
1 Mini Green Pepper, diced
Saute vegetables in olive oil a few minutes.  Add:

2 Small Yukon Potatoes, peeled and diced 
3/4 cup Low Sodium Vegetable Broth
2 Tbsp. Apple Juice
1/2 tsp. Lemon Zest
Small Pinch Saffron Threads
1/2 tsp. Fennel Seed
1/4 tsp. Mrs. Dash
Simmer to cook potatoes.  Add:

1 Wild Cod Fillet, cut in bite size pieces
1 cup Diced Tomatoes in Juice, no added salt
1/4 cup Fresh Herbs
5 Kalamata Olives, diced
Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

I found the Saffron Threads at TJ Max for an affordable price.  The pepper and herbs are from my container garden.  The fennel and Potatoes are from the local Farmer's Market.  Have a great weekend! 
   

Sunny Goliath Pie

Sunny Goliath is the name of the tomato, grown from a seedling I purchased at WVU's greenhouse.  The recipe was based on Food Network Magazine's Tomato and Corn Custard Pie.  Seems I managed to use almost a whole gallon of milk this week, and I'd opened a container of ricotta cheese Sunday. .. so I used it in the pie instead.  It turned out great!  Here's my version:

Sunny Goliath Pie
(Serves 6)

Crust
1 cup All Purpose Flour
1/3 cup Earth Balance Buttery Spread
2-3 Tbsp. Cold Water
Cut buttery spread into flour with a fork.  Stir in cold water.  Roll out dough onto pastry cloth.  Place in deep dish pie pan sprayed with Pam.  Pinch edges.  Bake at 450 degrees 5 minutes.

Pie
2 Ears of Corn, purchased today at our work place Farmer's Market
Cook.  (I leave mine in the husk and cook each in the microwave for 2 minutes on one side, then turn and cook 2 minutes on the other side).  Cut off the cob.

Place corn cut off of 1 ear in the blender.  Add:
1/2 cup Part-Skim Ricotta Cheese
1/3 cup Skim Milk
1/2 tsp. Mrs. Dash
Blend, stirring down sides.

Place corn cut off the second ear in the bottom of the pastry.  Pour the corn-ricotta mixture over.  Bake at 350 degrees 30 minutes.

Remove from oven.  Turn oven temperature to 450.  Top pie with:
Yellow Tomato Wedges
3 Tbsp. Fresh Cut Basil
1/3 cup Swiss Cheese
Bake 10 minutes.   

Served with Roasted Vegetables (thanks Chris for cutting these!) and Watermelon.

Stuffed, But Not Stuffed (Zucchini)

I'm loving the stuffed zucchini boats, and tonight I combined a couple recipes for this one:

Quinoa Stuffed Zucchini
(Serves 3)

1/4 cup Quinoa
Simmer in water to cover about 20 minutes.  Drain.

1 Medium, Thin Zucchini
Boil squash in water to cover 5 minutes.  Cut in half.  Remove pulp and dice.  

1 Turkey Italian Sausage Link
3 Tbsp. Onion, diced
1 tsp. Olive Oil
Brown sausage in onion and oil.  Add reserved squash pulp.  Saute a couple minutes.  Then add:
1 cup Diced Canned Tomatoes with juice and no added salt
2 Tbsp. Fresh Oregano
Cooked Quinoa
1 tsp. Mrs. Dash
Heat.

Remove from heat.  Stir in:
1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese, part-skim

Stuff zucchini shells with mixture.  Add remainder to an ovenproof bowl.  Sprinkle with:
1 Tbsp. Gorgonzola Cheese
Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.

My muffins were tough, but since this a work recipe that is very good, I'll post it just the same.

Apple Cinnamon Muffins
(Serves 12)

3/4 cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
3/4 cup All Purpose Flour
1/4 cup Sugar
2 tsp. Baking Powder
2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1/3 cup Applesauce, unsweetened
1 Egg
1/3 cup Skim Milk
2 Apples, peeled, cored and chopped
In a separate bowl, mix applesauce, eggs and milk.  
Whisk together flours, sugar, baking powder and cinnamon.  Stir the applesauce mixture into the flour mixture until just blended.  Fold in the apples.  Portion 1/3 cup batter into cupcake pans sprayed with Pam.

2 Tbsp. 2 Tsp. Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
2 Tbsp. 2 tsp. All Purpose Flour
1 cup Oats
1/2 cup Applesauce, unsweetened
1 1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
2 Tbsp. Sugar

Mix flours, applesauce, cinnamon, oats and sugar.  Portion heaping Tbsp. of topping over batter in each muffin cup.  Take at 375 degrees until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean (approximately 25 minutes).  Cool 5 minutes in tin.  
    
I took a few muffins to my son Chris, a college student working till 9 tonight, who will be hungry when he gets off work. 

Heavenly Hash & Tapenade Toast (Meatless Monday)

I called the hash "heavenly" as some of the vegetables were from my garden and most of the rest was from local gardens.  The recipe is from Cooking Light.  Here's what went into mine:

Heavenly Hash & Poached Egg
(Serves 2)

2 small New Potatoes
Boil until fork easily enters potato but still slightly firm.  Drain, cook and peel.  Cut into thin 1 inch long strips.

1/2 cup fresh Green Beans, cooked and cut into 2 inch pieces.

1/2 small Yellow Squash, diced
1/2 small Green Summer Squash, diced
6 Grape Tomatoes, quartered   

2 Spring Onions, diced
1 Garlic Clove, minced
1 tsp. Olive Oil
Saute onion and garlic in olive oil.  Add potatoes and squash.  Cook a few minutes.  Then stir in other vegetables.  Add spices:

1 tsp. Herbes de Povence
1 Tbsp. Fresh Parsley

Keep hot while poaching eggs.

2 Eggs
Heat water in a small skillet to simmer.  Add 1/2 tsp. White Vinegar.  Add eggs, one at a time.  Simmer until white is set. 

Serve egg over a bowl of hash.

Tapenade Toast
(Serves 2)

1 Garlic Clove
1 tsp. Canola Oil
1 Tbsp. Almonds
6 Kalamata Olives
1/2 cup Spring Mix
1 Mini Green Pepper
Chop in food processor.  Spread on top of

2 Slices Multigrain Bread
Broil in toaster oven 6 minutes.  Serve with bowl of hash and egg.
   

Mountainside Meal

We dined with the deer today on our picnic at North Bend State Park in Union, West Virginia.  As we ate on a mountainside table, we watched 3 deer grazing in front of us.  Our menu today included:

Crab and Fresh Produce Salad

Plum Cake with Ricotta Cheese

A can of crabmeat is expensive, but I cut the 1 pound crabmeat into 3 and froze 2 servings for a later date.  Here's what I placed in the salad:

Crab and Fresh Produce Salad

(Serves 2)

1/2 Medium Cantaloupe, seeded and sliced in 1/2 moons pieces

1/2 each Yellow and Zucchini Summer Squash, sliced in coins and steamed for 1 minute

1 Pickling Cucumber, sliced in coins

1 Carrot, peeled and sliced in coins

8 Grape Tomatoes, sliced

1 Yellow Pepper, sliced in coins

5 oz. Crabmeat

1/4 cup Fresh Herbs (Basil, Cilantro and Tarragon)

Lime Dressing

1 Tbsp. Fresh Lime Juice

1 tsp. Grated Lime Rind

2 tsp. Canola Oil

1 tsp. Honey

I posted the Plum Cake recipe last night.  Since I couldn't pack ice cream or whipped cream in a picnic basket, I packed ricotta cheese to garnish.  The fun part was shaving the nutmeg bean at tableside.  The finale was delicious.

Enjoy the week! 

 

Plum Good!

I love plums and tonight's dessert features that juicy summer fruit.  The original recipe is from Clean Eating Magazine.  I've been trying to buy the spelt flour for 2 weeks at the co-op and the bin was empty.  So I substituted other flours instead.  Here's my version:

Plum Cake
(Serves 10)

1 Egg
1/4 cup Brown Sugar
Beat in electric mixer.

Stir together dry ingredients:
1 cup Oat Flour
1 cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
1 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Cinnamon
1/4 tsp. Cardamom
Dash Salt

Mix together liquid ingredients:
1 1/2 Tbsp. Lemon Juice
1 1/2 cup Skim Milk
3 Tbsp. Earth Balance Buttery Spread, melted
1/2 tsp. Vanilla Extract

Alternately add dry and liquid ingredients to egg/sugar mixture.  Stir with spoon.  Do not over mix. Pour batter into 10 inch springform pan sprayed with Pam.  

3 Plums, cut in thin wedges
Place on top of batter in cake pan.  Bake at 350 degrees 35 minutes.  Broil for another 3-4. 

Seems I overestimated the ripe tomatoes growing on my back porch, so I picked a pepper to stuff too!  The Tuna Salad recipe was inspired by Eating Well magazine.  The Tomato and Watermelon Salad is from Food Network Magazine.    

Tuna Salad-Stuffed Vegetables
(Serves 2)

1-5 oz. can Tuna, very low sodium in water
Fresh Spring Mix (from our container garden)
1/2 cup Northern Beans, no salt (I use the Hanover brand frozen cooked beans)
1 tsp. Olive Oil
1 1/2 Tbsp. Rice Wine Vinegar
2 Tbsp. Fennel, chopped
3 Kalamata Olives, chopped
1/2 tsp. Thyme
Mix drained tuna, oil, vinegar, thyme, fennel and olives.  Remove interior of vegetables.  Stuff with tuna mixture.  Serve on a bed of greens with beans.

Tomato and Watermelon Salad
(Serves 5)

1 cup Watermelon, diced
4 Strawberries, hulled and diced
Diced Tomatoes (I used the reserved tomato flesh)
2 Tbsp. Balsamic Vinegar
1 Tbsp. Fresh Lemon Juice
1 tsp. Canola Oil
1 tsp. Granulated Sugar
1 Tbsp. Chopped Fresh Tarragon
Mix and chill.

We have a simple picnic planned for tomorrow!     

Crustless Quiche

The "Sunny Goliath" Tomato crowning the quiche was grown on my own deck-a seedling purchased at WVU Greenhouse.  The quiche has many other fresh vegetables-eggplant, yellow squash, zucchini, mushrooms and fresh basil. Here's my recipe:

Crustless Quiche
(Serves 6)

3/4 cup Eggplant, peeled, diced
3/4 cup Zucchini, unpeeled, diced
3/4 cup Yellow Squash, unpeeled, diced
3/4 cup Fresh Mushrooms, sliced
Can cook vegetables for a few minutes, though I skipped that step and the finished product was just fine.  Spray the pie pan with Pam.  Fill the pan with vegetables.

6 Shell Eggs
1 cup & 2 Tbsp. Skim Milk
3/4 tsp. Mrs. Dash
Beat eggs, milk and seasoning.

Pour egg mixture over.  Bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes until eggs are almost set.

1 Tomato, sliced
1/4 cup Fresh Basil
1 cup Swiss Cheese, shredded
Open oven door (do not remove quiche from oven).  Layer tomato, basil and finally cheese over top of each.  Bake an additional 5 minutes.  Cool 5 minutes before cutting.  Cut each pie in 6 servings.  

We finished the meal with Blueberry Cornmeal Shortcake!