Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry

As you can probably tell from the complete scarcity of posts, this winter has been completely crazy! Between school, work, college applications, and scholarship applications, cooking and blogging have fallen to the wayside. 

Snow days have come to my rescue! We've gotten about 6 inches of snow the past couple days, and that combined with plunging temperatures, well-timed wind, and President's Day has caused this to be most likely a one day school week. Hooray!

"Opus 28: Opus 28" Dustin Ohalloran

Ingredients

• beef, chopped into one-inch pieces
• broccoli, cut into florets
• peppers, julienned
• zucchini, julienned 
• onion, diced
• soy sauce
• vegetable oil
• red pepper flakes, optional
• garlic
• ginger

Directions

Heat oil and soy sauce in saute pan and add garlic, ginger, red pepper and onion. Cook until onion is translucent. Add zucchini and broccoli. Cook until broccoli florets have turned bright green. Add peppers. Cook until soft. Remove pan from heat and put vegetables in a bowl.

Add beef to saute pan and cook until desired doneness. Combine vegetables and beef. Serve with rice. 

Tomato, Zucchini, and Leek Galette with Garlic Goat Cheese

I have a confession. I don't like tomatoes or zucchini. I know. But I loved this galette.

The zucchini and tomatoes are matched perfectly with the leeks and garlic 

"Rather Be" Clean Bandit

Adapted from Farm to Fork

Ingredients

• 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cups thinly sliced well-washed leeks (white part only)
• 1 pound medium heirloom tomatoes, stem ends trimmed
• 8 oz zucchini, ends trimmed
• 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 
• 5 oz goat cheese
• 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
• 2 heads garlic
• 1/2 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
• 2 tbsp thinly sliced fresh basil leaves

Directions 

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the puff pastry dough to the 1/16th inch thickness. Cut out a 12 inch round. anPlace it on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Chill the dough in the freezer for at least 15 minutes or up to an hour. 

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

Heat the olive oil in a 10 inch saute pan over medium to medium-low heat. Add the leeks, 1/2 tsp salt, and t1/8 tsp white pepper. Cook, stirring as needed, until the leeks have softened, 5 to 7 minutes.Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the leeks to a plate; let them cool until you're ready to assemble the galette.

Slice the tomatoes into 1/4 inch-thick rounds, and arrange them in one even layer on a wire rack set over a baking sheet. Sprinkle with 1/4 tsp salt, and set aside to drain for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile,slice the zucchini to 1/8 inch thick rounds. In a small bowl, mix the zucchini slices with 1 tbsp of the olive oil, 1/4 tsp of salt, and 1/8 tsp of white pepper. Set aside

In a medium-sized bowl, combine the goat cheese, thyme, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon white pepper, and 2 tbsp of extra-virgin olive oil. Mix well with a rubber spatula. Squeeze each head of roasted garlic over the bowl, pressing the soft cloves out of the peel. Mix until the goat cheese is smooth and the mixture is uniform.

Remove the baking sheet from the freezer and spread the goat cheese mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 1 inch border around the edge. Spread the sautéed leeks evenly over the goat cheese. Blot the tomatoes dry and arrange them in a concentric pattern over the leeks arrange the zucchini slices in a concentric pattern over the tomatoes. Sprinkle the Parmesan evenly over the top. Fold the border o the pastry up and over the edge of the tomatoes. Bake the galette or 20 minutes or until the crust is golden and puffed

Remove the galette from the oven, and sprinkle the fresh basil over the top and drizzle with the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil. Set aside for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

Autumn Sweet Potato Soup

 The first weeks of schools have started, and temperatures are finally starting to reflect the month.

 I am proud to announce: fall has arrived! 

And what better way to welcome it than soup is there?

 "Everyday Superhero" Smash Mouth

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 large brown onion, peeled and diced
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 1/2 lbs orange sweet potatoes (yams), peeled and cubed
• 1 lb zucchini, sliced
• 2 qts (8 cups) yellow vegetable stock or chicken stock
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• Pinch of cayenne pepper (or more to taste)
• 3 medium tomatoes, peeled and diced (or 1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes)
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• Salt and pepper
• Chopped roasted peanuts or fresh thyme leaves for garnish (optional)

 Directions

Heat olive oil over medium till hot (not smoking). Sauté onion in the oil till it begins to turn golden, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and continue to sauté for 3 minutes more.Add sweet potatoes, zucchini, chicken or vegetable stock, thyme leaves, cumin, ginger, and cayenne to the pot. I like to use ¼ tsp of cayenne, which gives a nice spicy kick to the soup. If you’re sensitive to spice, start with 1/8 tsp. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce to a light simmer for 20 minutes. Add diced tomatoes to the pot. Simmer for 5-10 minutes more until all the vegetables are tender. Stir the peanut butter into the broth until it dissolves. Remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add more cayenne for heat, if desired. Soup may be served as-is (chunky with texture), or you can puree the soup with an immersion blender till smooth. Serve garnished with chopped roasted peanuts or fresh thyme leaves.

Vegetable Balls

 These were so good. Kind of unexpected as they were supposed to be vegetable meatballs.

Actually, they ended up tasting like zucchini pancakes, if you've ever had those, which are kind of like potato pancakes.

 

Music:

"Hot Air Balloon" by Owl City

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds spinach (I replaced some with zucchini)
• 1 cup panko
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 2 eggs
• pinch nutmeg
• 1 clove garlic mashed
• pinch of kosher salt
• canola oil

Directions

• Bring a dutch oven full of water to a boil.
• Blanch the spinach for 1 - 2 minutes.
• Drain into a colander.
• Immediately rinse with very cold water to stop the cooking process.
• Using your hands wring the water out of the spinach. Do this by taking about 1/4 cup of spinach into your hands and wring until no water runs from the spinach.
• Chop all of the spinach with a knife. Do not use a food processor or you will have mush.
• Place the spinach, panko, cheese, nutmeg, garlic and salt into a large mixing bowl.
• Beat the eggs in a separate mixing bowl, then add to the spinach mixture.
• Using your hands mix well.
• Form into small spinach balls.
• Add about 1" of canola oil to a large frying pan.
• Heat over medium heat.
• In batches, brown the spinach balls until golden brown; about 2 minutes per side.
• Remove with a slotted spoon or tongs, set aside on a paper towel.
• Continue browning the spinach balls

Grilled Vegetable Sandwich

I've loved this song, "Us" by Regina Spektor, for a while. Its just so bouncy! I'd also recommend "Fidelity" by her, though that one is a little repetitive for me.

 (I had it stuck in my head all week).

 

"Us"

 

"Fidelity"

 

I don't like mushrooms or zucchini, but I did like this sandwich. These were not actually grilled. They were broiled. (Sorry, I don't grill when it's 30 degrees outside)

 

Inspired by California Grilled Vegetable Sandwich

Ingredients:

• 1/2 a zucchini
• 2 portabella mushrooms
• 1/4 medium red onion
• 1/4 cup of sliced cheddar cheese
• 2 lettuce leaves
• Italian salad dressing
• 2 slices of bread

Directions:

1. Soak chopped veggies in oil and set on aluminum foil under the broiler (or directly on the grill)
2. Spread Italian dressing on bread and layer lettuce on top.
3. Place cooked veggies on sandwich
4. Put cheese on top of that.