Justin & Meredith Winokur's Kitchen Cooking Notebook
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posts/2012/12
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Shakshuka and Roasted Pumpkin -- back to top
I made shakshuka but I didn't really follow any recipe. The key was I wanted to include lots of broccoli (I love broccoli in tomato sauce). I also used lots or peppers including a habanero seranno and fresno peppers (I nearly died of a coughing fit when they hit the pan). I also had carrots, plain green peppers, 1 28 oz and 14 oz can of tomatoes and a bunch of spices. I then poached 6 eggs into it (one serving for the next day). I also included fat free feta cheese.
I also made roasted pumpkin. I sliced it and roasted it at 425 for a while and then ate it off the skin. It was not very flavorful and not all that good. I won't make it like that again (though I probably won't be buying pumpkin again this season.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2862, 2012-12-05_213248
Healthier Gajar Halwa (Carrot Pudding) -- back to top
I finally made the gajar halwa I have been thinking about for a while. It is very good but it is remarkably unhealthy when you follow the normal recipes. I read a few recipes, most notably this one and with using the pressure cooker and baking powder as suggested in the Modernist Cuisine for soup.
It was very good. Not as good as stuff I have had previously but better than some restaurants. According to my indian friend, if he had it and wasn't told it was made healthier, he would have believed it, but he also agreed it isn't as good as the traditional versions he has had.
I took notes on exactly what I did and they are below. But, in the future, this is not the way I will do it. The biggest changes are I will use less salt (it was way too salty), a bit more cardamom, and much less liquid. I ended up having to keep it cooking without the lid for a while to cook off the excess. I do not know if I can reduce the butter but I may try. I also may try adding some cinnamon and nutmeg. Not much but a little.
Here are my notes. They are not exactly as I took them since I consolidated amounts (adding more cooking time or more seasonings). Also, I took the notes fast. I think I forgot to record some things which I have since corrected.
Some additional notes: A lot of recipes talk about not letting it turn to mush. I personally like it a bit mushy. It is more pudding like in my opinion. To each his own I guess. Also, some recipes talk about a hint of cardamom. I like cardamom so I do not mind piling it on. And I may try a bit of ginger powder too. Finally, I am not a huge fan of raisins in things so I cut that, but I would consider some cashews next time.
Pressure Cooker Healthier Gajar Halwa (aka Carrot Pudding)
Again, these are my notes of what I did, with notes on what I'll do next time.
In the pressure cooker, combine
Put in pressure cooker for 15 minutes. Note, the lock when on quickly, but steam only started to escape after 5 minutes for 10 minutes at pressure. I'll increase this by 3-5 minutes next time.
Release the pressure and simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally until it is at the desired consistency. I kept went a total of 19 minutes simmering.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2867, 2012-12-05_213408
I had bought these 100 calorie "Flatoush Wraps" things and decided they were better than tortillas both in health and size for an easy pizza. I also bought some cheap cans of tomato sauce. So I made really easy pizza. The pepperoni was low-fat turkey pepperoni and certainty tasted like it. Meh.
So, anyway, this was pretty easy, fast and tasted okay. Not amazing, but okay.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2870, 2012-12-06_213515
Shirataki Noodles and Shrimp -- back to top
I steamed about half a pound of shrimp and did the microwave thing with shirataki noodles. I added a wedge of laughing cow, some parm cheese and garlic powder. Nobody can say that shirataki noodles can take the place of real pasta nor it is that good, but it did the job. So it ended up being a pretty big but low point meal. Again, not the greatest meal, but it was easy and fast.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2873, 2012-12-07_194623
Carrot Pudding again -- back to top
I made the carrot pudding again. I didn't have enough carrots so I cut it and kept most of the other stuff. Again, below is a list of what I did and maybe I'll add some more notes on the way.
For the most part, it was good, but I do not think it was as good as last time. Maybe I was just less excited about it. I think that next time, I may use half sugar and half splenda to give it a more real feel. I also used less butter. I think that is okay, but it is a bit less rich. Maybe I 'll try about 45 grams next time. I originally cut the splenda, but I added two more packets (back to a total of 18)..
I am not sure if I taste the other spices. I will probably keep them to see if I get the same flavors. I tried to cut the milk, but I chickened out as the carrots absorbed it all immediately and I was worried about it burning
Also, I had a good idea: I want to try half beets and half carrots. It should work fine or even better as beets have a lot of natural sugar too.
Oh, and I combined all of the spices first then added them (Except the baking powder which I forgot and added after the others).
Anyway
Cook for 15 minutes (of VENTING, not total). Then do a quick (not water) release
Then cook on medium for 10 minutes. (I timed it to a good texture)
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2880, 2012-12-09_101319
Sloppy Joes and Zucchini Fritters -- back to top
I made sloppy joes based off my normal recipe but I added a bunch of seasonings. I also used splenda instead of sugar. I also adjusted down to about 2/3 of a lbs for the beef. I let it simmer for a long time (which I think is extremely important). I also added Dave's Insanity which made it pretty hot. It was extremely good. I also put spinach on it to get some extra nutrients.
I also made zucchini latkes for chanuka. I followed the recipe (but I corrected the mistake with the flour on it) and with dried minced onion instead of real. I intended to make this earlier but didn't have everything so the zucchini got extra time to dry out. So, I do not know if that is why, but they were really dry (the onion probably didn't help either). I also think I over-cooked them a little. Oh well, I know for next time
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2890, 2012-12-09_200205
Black Bean Empanadas and Edamame -- back to top
I am writing this a bit after the fact so I do not recall everything. I made the standard empanada dough. I do not think I followed all of the timing on the recipe, but it came out okay. I again steamed the beans for a bit like last time which made them easy to mash. I do not recall if I put Dave's Insanity in, but I think I did. I remember them being very spicy.
They were good but not all too notable but it was good. I always forget how much of a pain-in-the-ass it was to make empanadas but it was good.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2887, 2012-12-10_212710
Baked Chicken Thighs -- back to top
I wanted something quick and easy and I already had chicken thighs. I just baked them in the oven like 2012-11-29. I did one with a mix of rosemary, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and onion powder. The other one was Old Bay. The Old Bay was better.
I also sautéd spinach with garlic and minced onion
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2899, 2012-12-13_200856
Carrot Stuff refined -- back to top
I made carrot pudding again. I am trying to work on the recipe. I actually made two batches where one was with half beets, half carrots. I am starting to get a feel for the recipe. The beet one tasted a bit metallic I think I put too much baking powder in so I cut it a lot for the next. I also did half sugar and half splenda. That made the carrot one (and maybe the beet) extra caramelized. I wonder if I could now cut back on the sugar a bit more. Interestingly, the carrot one was much wetter out of the pressure cooker.
Anyway, below is the latest iteration of the recipe. This is what I did for the carrots which were better. The only changes for the beets were I forgot the ginger, did 1 tbsp baking_soda_and obviously half beets.
The texture was still a bit of mush which I do not think I am going to be able to avoid without taking too much time. I do not mind it being mushy, but it is less authentic.
Carrot Pudding
Put the milk and the smart balance in the pressure cooker. Grate the carrots. Mix all the dry ingredients separately then add them to the carrots. Stir and then pressure cook on setting 2 for 15 minutes (that timing starts when the regulator starts venting).
Release the pressure quickly (just with the gauge). Then cook on medium to reduce until it is the desired consistency
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2902, 2012-12-14_201354
Roasted Broccoli Soup and Spicy Shrimp with Garlic (Gambas al Ajillo) -- back to top
I made this with Meredith at her house. We followed the recipes below. For the soup, we stayed pretty true to it except roasted the brocoli for 20 minutes. We also used a cheddar-gouda. The leek was very large that added extra flavoring. I am not sure if you could really taste the cheese. I would definitely make it again, but I'd try to reduce the cheese. We also used a yukon gold potato.
The shrimp was only loosely based on the recipe. We used more butter (instead of oil) than we regularly cook with but still not too much. We used the shrimp from frozen so we had to let it cook and dry out a bit more. We cooked the pepper (which we used a different kind, I just don't recall what kind), the garlic (used 10 cloves), and the crushed red pepper separately since the shrimp was going. We added it all together, added some sriracha, the paprika (we used hot smoked) and the parsley. It was very good. A bit spicy but not in a bad way. Lots of flavor and for one of the first times, I could really taste the garlic. We didn't have the banana ketchup.
We forgot the lemon on both recipes
Gambas al Ajillo (Spicy Shrimp and Garlic) (from Burnt Limpia)
Local Copy -- password is the name of my dog, all lower case
Roasted Broccoli & Cheddar Soup (from The Kitchn)
Local Copy -- password is the name of my dog, all lower case
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2905, 2012-12-16_203032
Salsa Seitan and Steamed Broccoli -- back to top
I just threw this together. I sautéd onions then added a thing of seitan. I then added Pace Hot Salsa. I let it cook down and then added a bunch of low fat mexican cheese. I actually added way too much. I'll cut down on that next time. (to save calories and it wasn't needed)
I steamed broccoli (faster than roasting) and added some sprinkle cheese, and some white cheddar popcorn cheese stuff.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2910, 2012-12-17_204818
I made taquitos using the pretty standard method. I pressure cooked chicken (there was a lot), with lots of onions, peppers, garlic, and spices. I did the standard stuff with adding the water from pressure cooking to the chicken. I also used some hot pace. I put sriracha in the water which I think gave the chicken a bit more flavor. I did the laughing cow thing too.
I do not know if it was that I do not usually use these smaller tortillas (not sure which ones I used to use), but this made 10 of them. Each tortilla has lots of fiber and only 45 calories.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2913, 2012-12-19_201350
Tilapia and Beets -- back to top
Somehow I forgot to take a picture. I made tilapia in the oven with a sauce from Trader Joes (garlic and eggplant). I have always had issues cooking tilapia from frozen in the oven since it takes longer than I expect and I have to microwave it. So I defrosted it in the microwave first.
It was pretty good and pretty easy
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2918, 2012-12-20_123152
Butternut Squash and Carrot Soup -- back to top
Again, no photo since I ended up putting it in the fridge and ate it the next day. I basically put butternut squash and carrots in the pressure cooker with water, soup base, crushed red pepper, cayenne pepper, nutmeg and pumpkin pie spice. I did it in the pressure cooker to speed it up. It was pretty good. A bit spicy but good
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2920, 2012-12-22_124130
Garlic and Pepper Pasta and Curry Roasted Cauliflower -- back to top
I made some strange type of pasta with garlic and peppers. I used a lot of garlic (with this tip), and I sautéd onions and poblano peppers. I added the pasta and a small can of chicken. It was okay. Despite a huge amount of garlic and even using oil with it, yet it was still not very garlicky I am not sure what I am doing wrong.
I also made the roasted cauliflower from here. It was very good, but I think I let it go a bit too long. I had to not eat a bunch of the little bits, but that is not a big deal. I'll definitely do it again, but I'll cook it less.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2926, 2012-12-22_221644
French Onion Soup and Moussaka -- back to top
My mom was visiting and we decided to cook. We started with french onion soup. We used the cast iron dutch oven and really, really caramelized the onions. I do not know what else we did differently, but it was probably the best french onion soup I have done before. About half and half chicken and beef base (maybe 6-8 cups) and a cup of white wine. We put slices of bread in and melted the provolone in the broiler.
The moussaka was the standard. It took a long time to cook down, but I am not sure it was more or less than the usual. I think I overcooked the béchamel since it was too thick. Based on my mom's comments, I should try to see if there are alternative more flavorful, yet healthy, ways to do the béchamel. It isn't a crucial part of the recipe, but I want it to be better.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2930, 2012-12-25_220844
Carrot Cake Pancakes and Bacon -- back to top
I made carrot cake pancakes from the usual recipe. This time, I actually used walnuts which I had skipped in the past. I do not know what caused it, but it was super thick. Even before the carrots. With the carrots, it was still pretty dense. I tried to let it cook for a long time to make sure it was cooked through. Still, it ended up being a bit raw inside
I also made bacon in the oven. I used the "trick" where you use a cooling rack in the pan so that the bacon grease falls off while it is cooking. There was extra bacon so I cooked that in a pan as well but without the rack. Both came out very flat and well cooked, but the one without the rack was actually better. I guess because it kept frying in its own oil as opposed to it dripping down. I'll keep that in mind for next time and probably skip the rack.
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2932, 2012-12-26_220928
Make your own pizza -- back to top
We did make your own pizza but we basically assembled our own pizza more than make it. We purchased dough, sauce and all the stuff. We bought a thing of dough to make one large and it came as 1 lbs 12 oz. we split it into three and made smaller pizzas. This was a nice size but we could have tried to stretch it thinner since it rose a lot in the oven.
I liked how thin the sauce was. Again, we didn't make it but I have a better idea of what I want my sauce to be like. I have seen recipes for uncooked pizza sauce that is based on just crushed tomatoes. I'll look into it.
In no specific order, the toppings we had were
The pizzas: Meredith's (top), Justin's (middle right). Mom's (bottom)
Original Wordpress ID and Date: 2940, 2012-12-31_113503