Antoinette's Peanut Buttery Chicken with Pasta

Not only did Antoinette teach me that ketchup is a suitable marinade for chicken; it appears peanut butter and soy sauce make a delicious and quick sauce for pasta. I make this at least once a month, and it's one of those recipes you can throw anything on hand into and it'll be just as good.

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts, chopped into bite-sized pieces

1/2 bag of frozen veggies

2 cups spaghetti or any pasta you like

1 Tablespoon peanut butter

1/4 cup soy sauce (or less, you only need it for a little taste)

Juice of 1 lime 

Directions

1. In a small bowl, marinade chicken using whatever spices you like (I always go for salt, pepper, garlic powder and a pinch of oregano).

2. Meanwhile, cook your pasta as usual.

3. Also, meanwhile, thaw the veggies in the microwave.

4. In a separate bowl, mix together the soy sauce, lime juice, and peanut butter until well blended. 

5. In a large saute pan/ casserole pan, cook the chicken until completely cooked through. Add drained pasta, veggies, and peanut butter sauce on low heat until everything's covered.

Pretty easy, huh? :)

Muffin Monday

Case of the Mondays? 

Yup. 

Whatcha gonna do about it?

Make some muffins!

My favorite muffin is blueberry, and I've been looking for a recipe to call my go-to for some time now. Now, if you're not a fan of whole wheat goodness, these may not be the muffins for you, and I'll be the first to admit these aren't those beautiful, cake-like numbers you'll find at Starbucks, but I loved 'em. 

And while I won't call off the quest just yet, these definitely made Monday much better.

Oatmeal Blue-n-Blackberry Applesauce Muffins

Adapted from Annie's Eats

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1 1/4 cup oats

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 individually-sized container unsweetened applesauce (original recipe calls for a cup)

1/2 cup non-fat plain yogurt (original recipe calls for 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk)

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 Tablespoons canola oil

1 large egg, beaten

3/4 cup blueberries (I subbed in some blackberries since I ran out of blue' early)

Directions

1. Preheat over to 375 degrees F.

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine whole wheat flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. 

3. In a smaller bowl, combine applesauce, yogurt, egg, oil, and brown sugar. 

4. Make a well in the dry ingredients, add the wet ingredients, and stir together until they are just combined (don't over-mix or your muffins won't rise well)

5. Add the fruit and gently fold in with a spatula.

6. Add to your muffin pan and bake for 16-18 minutes until a knife inserted comes out clean.

7. Monday Improved!

Challah-Mak Remix, or, What is Sure to Become a Classic

We did it. We told you we would! 
Challah z Makiem

Right before Easter, 'Chefski reminded me of the experiment he'd dreamed up the last time we made challah: What if we created a magical concoction, a heretofore unheard of version of the eggy bread that had some mak' (poppy seeds) in it? 

So I did a little research on how to fill a loaf of challah bread with something tasty. You can imagine my delight when I discovered that we're not the first to want to put something inside this braided bread (I think sometimes it's OK not to reinvent the wheel) :)

I got the idea for the technique from Parsley, Sage, Dessert, and Line Drives. The blogger there has some great pics of how to assemble her version of challah, as well as her own recipe for the dough (I used some frozen dough from last time). The trick is, when you get to the braiding stage, instead of rolling six ropes, flatten out each rope into a rectangular sheet, just like you would if you were making a cinnamon roll (or makowiec, actually). Spread the poppy seed paste (or chocolate, or cinnamon or anything you want to fill your bread with) onto the sheets, roll into logs, and use each log in the same way you would have used a braid rope.

Such a small and simple change. Such an incredible result. This new version's definitely a keeper, and it may just be the only way I make mak' from now on :)

Only the Tastiest Lil' Pigeons You've Ever Had, a.k.a. Stuffed Cabbage

Imagine: blanched leaves of the finest green cabbage wrapped around a delicious melange of ground pork and beef. Next, bake in the oven, doused in an oh-so-special tomato sauce. The result is pure deliciousness, bordering on scrumtrulecense*. 


Such is the magic that is stuffed cabbage, or, in Polish, golabki**, which in English (again!) means "little pigeons." YUM :)

For the sake of full disclosure, I did not get this recipe from Ania or her mum, but my tiny friend did taste and approve of the resulting dish. 'Chefski also approved when I made this in the fall, so I'm thinkin' this recipe's a keeper. 

* That is, utterly scrumtrulescent. 
** Pronounced ~ ga-woom-ki... darned blog won't let me use accent marks today!

Stuffed Cabbage 
Adapted from Tyler Florence's recipe on foodnetwork  

Tomato Sauce

Ingredients
 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, smashed
28 oz can whole peeled tomatoes
2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon sugar
salt and pepper, to taste 


Cabbage Component 
1 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil  
1 yellow onion, chopped 
2 garlic cloves, minced  
2 Tablespoons tomato paste 
Splash dry red wine  
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley   
1 pound ground beef  
1 pound ground pork  
1 large egg  
1 1/2 cups steamed white rice
salt and pepper, to taste  
2 large heads green cabbage, about 3 pounds each

Make the Sauce first: 

Directions
1. Coat a large (3-quart) saucepan with the 2 Tbs olive oil and place over medium heat.
2. Add garlic and saute for about a minute. 
3. Add the can of tomatoes and cook for about 5 minutes. 
4. Add the vinegar and sugar. Lower heat and let simmer, until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and remove from the heat. 
5. Place a large skillet over medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Saute the garlic and onion for 5 minutes, until soft. Add the tomato paste, a splash or red wine, parsley, and 1/2 cup of the tomato sauce you just created. Stir to combine and remove from the heat.

On to the filling:
6. In a large mixing bowl combine your ground meats. Add the egg, cooked rice, and the sauteed onion mix. Toss together with your hands (my favorite part!), and season with salt and pepper. Don't be shy with it either -- this is your last chance to season.

Now the cabbage:
7.  Bring a large pot of water to boil. Remove the large, damaged outer leaves from your cabbage and set aside for later (when you will use those leaves to line your baking dish).
8. Gently pull off the rest of the leaves, doing your best to keep them whole. Once the water has come to a boil, blanch the leaves by boiling them a few at a time for about 5 minutes or until pliable. Run the blanched leaves under cool water to prep them for stuffing-mode.

Now to fill!
10. Use the large leaves you reserved earlier to line the bottom of a casserole pan or baking dish (I used the Pyrex I use to make lasagna). This will prevent the bottom of your rolls from being burned. Let part of the leaves hang off the sides.
11. Holding a cabbage leaf stem-end closest to you, put about 1/2 cup of meat in the center of the cabbage, for the sides in, then roll. Place them in rows, seam-side down, in your casserole pan. 
12. While you're doing this, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
13. Once you're done rolling the cabbage, pour the rest of the tomato sauce mix over the cabbage rolls, and fold the hanging leaves (the ones you used to line the pan/dish) over the rolls to keep the moisture in. 
14. Bake for 1 hour, until it's time to devour.