Justin & Meredith Winokur's Kitchen Cooking Notebook
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posts/2021/06
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Peruvian Chicken (and Tofu) -- back to top
I made Peruvian Chicken. It was the spice mix from 2021-03-20 except no added salt1. I also 2.5x that since I was doing two chickens and some tofu (see below). Of course, that is based on Peruvian-Style Roast Chicken & Spicy Jalapeño Sauce [The Food Lab]. I used that sauce recipe with lactose-free sour cream. I also kind of winged it with amount of garlic and cilantro (both increased).
I dry-brined the day before and added the spices all of two hours before cooking
It came out really good as usual! I really like this recipe. And the sauce was very well received.
I also tried to make Peruvian Tofu for Emily. I spread the rub on it. It was not easy since it really should be wetter for tofu. I also meant to add salt since I didn't do it in the rub. I thought they tastes bland but Emily liked it a lot. And again, good with the sauce.
Emily also roasted Japanese Sweet Potatoes.
Too salty on 2021-04-11, though that may also have been the kind of salt. I wasn't taking the risk. ↩
Baked Feta Chickpea Pasta -- back to top
Meredith made Baked Feta Pasta [Tiktok] using chick-pea pasta.
Butternut Squash and Parmesan Dip -- back to top
Meredith made Butternut Squash and Parmesan Dip from The Kitchn (LOCAL). She followed the gist of the recipe but used two frozen packs of squash from Costco which was way easier. She also used half-and-half to give it some more creaminess.
We really liked it. It had a nice flavor but was also (relatively) healthy! We will make that again and maybe even adapt it for some other recipes or meals.
Tomato-Feta dip -- back to top
Meredith made Tomato-Feta dip from RealSimple (LOCAL). It is inspired by the baked feta dishes.
She followed the recipe except she also broiled the feta to give it more color, flavor, and be easier to blend.
We really liked it. We just had it on some naan but will serve it with some crackers and other stuff as more of a meal another time
Orange Chicken with Broccoli -- back to top
We debated whether to even post this meal since it is basically store-bought Trader Joes Orange Chicken, but we doctored it up a bit. I stir-fried a 12 oz bag of broccoli with some green-onion white-parts added towards the end. After setting that aside, I cooked the chicken on the stove and finally combined it all.
Next time, I would do the chicken in the oven. It may be slightly faster but will be easier and use less oil.
It was good. Caloric but not horrible for 3-5 servings. And while I would have liked more broccoli, it was a good amount so as to not absorb all of the sauce.
Meredith made quinoa to serve with it.
"Momma Starbucks Breakfast" -- back to top
Caroline loves the sausage, egg, and cheese on an english muffin from Starbucks. She calls it Starbucks Breakfast and asks for it a lot.
Since it is pretty pricey, Meredith bought a small egg pan and has been making her own. It is just a round beaten egg with cheese (usually colby jack) and a Morningstar Farms Breakfast Sausage on a buttered english muffin. Meredith says that buttering it is one of the keys to getting Caroline to like it. And it is all a whole lot cheaper!
Pesto Chicken Salad -- back to top
Meredith made a healthier pesto chicken salad. It was Costco Rotisserie Chicken Breast (we had frozen from a while ago). She then used a little bit of mayo, greek yogurt, and Kirkland pesto.
It was very good and healthier with the greek yogurt
Meredith made tiramisu for Friday Night Potluck. She used her normal recipe which she finally let me copy it. The recipe is from Cibo 360 for tiramisu and zabaione (LOCAL translated, and PDFs)
Unfortunately, she didn't let me copy it sooner and it likely changed. She followed, or even went a little light, the amount of marsala but it was too much. The older version of the recipe had you do about half an egg-shell's worth per egg. She would go back to that too.
Also, as noted on that recipe, she uses butter biscuits (or Petit-Beurre) instead of lady-fingers. This is because when she was in Italy for study abroad, she asked a local friend for the best tiramisu. Instead of pointing her to it, she gave Meredith an ingredient list, included butter biscuits but not lady fingers, and made her some. It was really good so now that is Meredith's major change now too.
It was well received and we liked it. Just less marsala next time.
Emily had sent this idea to Meredith. It is like pesto eggs but using crispy chili sauce (this is was the Trader Joes one).
Meredith didn't like it as much. The chili or garlic burned a bit and was bitter. But it was fun to try something new
Apple Pie Smoothie -- back to top
Meredith made an Apple Pie Smoothie with the recipe from Liz Moody via Instagram (LOCAL)
Her notes:
A few minor changes: added a scoop of collagen protein, did 1/2 the hemp seeds, and about half the nut butter (I used cashew).
It was really good! Really did taste like apple pie!
English Jacket Potatoes -- back to top
Meredith made English Jacket Potatoes from Cup of Jo (LOCAL). They are basically just baked potatoes but done in a way to make the skin really crispy (which worked well!).
We served them with sour cream, greek yogurt, canned chili, and green onion.
Also just a very easy meal!
Meredith made Liege Waffles as part of another project. She decided to try the recipe from Spoon Fork Bacon (LOCAL)
Changes to liege waffles: 3/4 cup AP flour, 1/2 cup whole wheat. Granulated sugar instead of brown (didn’t want to open a new bag for such a tiny amount). Also, it took about 4 min per waffle. I did them 1 at a time instead of trying to fit 1/3 cup of batter into each quarter.
I wasn’t thrilled working with the batter. It was super sticky, and extremely easily deflated. The end result wasn’t as chewy as I’d like in a liege waffle. I thought I could have kneaded it a bit longer with the mixer, but the recipe may also need a little work.
Spinach Frittata and Truffle-Tots -- back to top
Meredith made the a spinach frittata from The Kitchn (LOCAL) and we made truffle-tots.
For the frittata, she used regular (previous diced) onions instead of shallots. I also think she skipped the broiler step.
For the tots, Meredith baked them for about 40+ minutes. We then tossed them with black truffle oil and parmesean cheese. I do not know if it was the oil (being black truffle? or in general) or if it was something else but they were not as good as we had hoped. They just didn't have the strong truffle flavor we'd expect. I'd try it again with a different oil though.
Liege Waffle French Toast Casserole -- back to top
This was for the Friday Potlucks. Meredith made Liege Waffle French Toast Casserole (where "French Toast Casserole" basically means bread pudding but sounds fancier).
The waffles were a mix from yesterday and from New Years (which were frozen).
She used this Food52 recipe for inspiration but really, just used it for the basis. Her notes:
It was certainly good but not as decadent or amazing as we expected. I think if we were going to go through the effort to make waffles just for this, I would just have the waffles instead.
Spinach-Ricotta Calzone and Butternut Squash Dip -- back to top
Meredith made Butternut Squash and Parmesan Dip which we served with Stacy's Pita Chips and some fresh french bread from a local bakery.
And Meredith made a Spinach-Ricotta Calzone. She used the King Arthur Flour (LOCAL) filling but we just used Trader Joes herb crust. We had bought the crust a long time ago and froze it. We defrosted it last week and it sat in the fridge until we used it.
We're not sure if it didn't like all of that but it didn't puff very much. Still, the filling was very good
Spinach Ricotta Stuffed Peppers and Crab -- back to top
Meredith made stuffed peppers from Lil Luna (LOCAL)
Her notes: Skipped the tomato stuff. Also, subbed mozzarella for parm because we were just about out. Sprinkled the parm we had left on top of the peppers before baking. Probably went light on the ricotta, too.
And Dungeness crab from Costco steamed for a few minutes
Chocolate Nougat Candy Bars -- back to top
Meredith made Chocolate Nougat Candy Bars [Liz Moody] from Healthier Together by Liz Moody
Zucchini Breakfast Strata -- back to top
Meredith made Zucchini Breakfast Casserole [The Kitchn] following the recipe. She prepped it early and baked it for dinner. Except it too forever to be done. Meredith eventually turned up the heat and it still took a long time. I think next time, we will use the thermometer to help decide when it is done.
It was good. Needed a tad more salt but just barely.
She skipped the bacon (and maybe did something different with the cheese?)
Miso Cod and Green Beans -- back to top
Meredith made miso code using the Aloha Kitchen recipe Ginger Misoyaki Butterfish [Aloha Kitchen]. Other than the fish, I think she followed the general recipe (halved). The fish marinated for a few days.
When cooking it under the broiler, the marinade burned and bubbled a lot as you can see. But it came off nice and cleanly!
It was good though a bit overcooked.
And Meredith made her favorite green beans for the first time this season!
Cinnamon Pecans -- back to top
As one of the things (see also Cheese Kugel) to bring to Tony and Kacie's house, I made my mom's Cinnamon Pecans. My only changes were to add a 1/4 tsp of salt, go heaping on the Cinnamon, and add 1/4 tsp of almond extract as well.
They were good and well received. I may play with some other recipes for this too. Maybe ones that make it a bit more candy coated. Or stick with this since it was pretty easy!
My other thing (see also Cinnamon Pecans) for "Comfort Food Week" at Tony and Kacie's house was Cheese Kugel – Dolores from Israel's recipe. I really made near-zero changes to the recipe. I made it Thursday morning and froze it as directed.
It was good and well received. Probably not the kind of thing I would make often but fun to do. And fit the theme well!
Hamburger Helper -- back to top
Meredith made One Pot Hamburger Helper from The Defined Dish (LOCAL). I don't think she made any changes and did include the cheese.
It was good. Caroline was suspect but the rest of us enjoyed it. And very easy cleanup!
And more "Wiggle Beans" (aka green beans)