this is what happens in between the feasting... 

panini: a humdinger of a sandwich. I recommend this one: pesto, provolone, and tomatoes. Tie it all up with fat slice of scantily buttered cinnamon swirl. I love the Great Harvest Bread Company. 

look! emilio got baked in a brick oven, and look how beautiful it turned out. that was happens when you're in the hands of an expert. and the heat is unevenly distributed in my oven. I think i ought to rotate it halfway through... 

Inspired by Ms. Sherise Lee's latest yummy post (sorry, i'm lazy about links, but i do believe you can track her from my xanga.), I turned my hand to making jiaozi (or "woa-tip"). My own version of a vegetarian filling (with what i have on hand...): boy choy, shiitake mushrooms, garlic, sesame seed oil, salt, pepper. too bad i forgot the onions, and there was no ginger. Still, it was a highly successful adventure. (even w/ my dinky little camera phone. God bless technology. or just my little phone.) 

number one. 

a couple of hours later, a motherlode (hey, i'm a novice, I don't go that fast. plus, it takes time to roll out all those skins individually. i'm putting a little bit of love into each piece!) 

off the plate, onto the pan 

Finale 

leftover filling + leftover rice = fried rice w/ dumplings. 

Rosemary Focaccia...except that it blew up like a ginormous pita...gotta remedy that. 

and of course, the indefatiguable recipe of Banana Bread from King Arthur. a stupendous turnout per usual...with a sprinkling of walnuts 

Saturday Brunch Entry: the Dutch Pancake Cafe at the Gray Fox Inn (Stowe, VT)

Voted by NY Times, as the most decadent breakfast ever. and this item on the menu was the Vegetable Fantasy. can you even see the plate at all? it had basil pesto, artichoke hearts, black olives, tomatoes, and cheese. 

And thank goodness for A who was my eating buddy, so that we could dine on the savory and the sweet. This is the Apple Raisin Dutch Pancake.
I don't think I'm tempted to eat anything else for the rest of the day. 

corn muffins...well, this was the last one left.
an excellent recipe I found from www.allrecipes.com (search for excellent and healthy cornbread) if you can't be bothered, see the recipe below...

1 cup of flour (some recommend whole wheat)
1 cup of cornmeal
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup of yogurt (i used half plain and the other half was vanilla)

Bake for 20-25 minutes at...400? I forgot... but if you don't grease it super well, use liners. Don't over mix! I did it like so:
make sure the dry is thoroughly mixed together.
dump in eggs and yogurt, just mix til pleasantly blended.
o yeah, i also added 1/2 cup of corn, panfried w/ red pepper flakes and some garlic.

This was a stellar receipe. I'd repeat it in a heartbeat. 

Spinach, Ricotta, Mozzerella Calzones 

1 batch of Sourdough Pizza Dough
1/2 cup of ricotta cheese (i used fat free)
10 oz of spinach (this is what the recipe called for, I didn't measure)
1/4 cup of mozzerella
salt & pepper
organo and basil

Roll out the dough into a rectangle, cut it diagonally into two triangle.
Put down a layer of ricotta cheese, top with spinach, and then mozzerella.
Season to taste.

Cover and nip the edges together. Slice the top, so that the steam can escape.
Bake at 450 for about 20-25 minutes. When it looks all toasty brown, it's ready. try it with some marinara sauce. 

sourdough pizza crust + brick oven baking = yummy for the tummy 

Challah French Toast w/ Berries 

Batter:
4 eggs
1 cup of milk
1 Tbsp Sugar
1 or 2 pinches of salt
1 tsp vanilla

Technique:
1. soak the challah (cut into 1" slices) for about 1-2 minutes each.
2. use canola oil for the pan-frying bit.
3. then stick it into the oven (350) for about 5 minutes or until the middle puffs up. best if the outside isn't super cooked.
4. if you use frozen berries, just defrost in the microwave and dump atop, juices and all.
5. top w/ some powdered sugar and Vermont maple syrup, or even possibly ice cream.

One Oatmeal coming right up...

a handful or two Old Fashioned oats
milk
raisins or cranberries
vanilla
honey or maple syrup or brown sugar
nutmeg
cinnamon

1. boil about a 1/2 cup of water
2. dump in a handful when it's a rolling boil.
3. dump in raisins or cranberries
4. squeeze in about 1-2 seconds worth of maple syrup. if it's honey, make it a good drizzle. If it's brown sugar, a scant spoonful.
5. a dash of vanilla. just make it a quick turn of the wrist
6. add a pinch of nutmeg and then several generous shakes of cinnamon

dump into a bowl and then sprinkle some granola or grapenuts on top and you're good to go...

Corncakes and Zucchini Dinner

This was my first attempt at corn cakes, which basically turn out to be corn pancakes. I think I should've been much braver in spicing up this dish. The zucchini is rapidly becoming a vegetable I enjoy cooking with, especially frying.

At any rate, this is how I made the corn cake: (this is the recipe, i halved, except that i forgot to halve the baking powder...oops)

1/2 cup of flour
1/2 tsp baking powder (this is correct)
1/8 tsp salt (just sprinkle some)
1/8 tsp paprika
1 egg
1/4 cup of milk
1 cup of corn (i used fresh and panfried it w/ coarse red pepper flakes, then added some chopped garlic)
1/4 cup of coriander, parsley, spring onion (i only had spring onions, 1 stalk)

and then just fry it up. it makes a thick batter.
it went well w/ the salsa. it was rather bready.
i think i will try adding all the other interesting things i saw on a recipe on epicurious.com...
like bell peppers, cheese... and MORE PEPPER.

and the zucchini, you ask...
i just popped them in the oven at 325, doused w/ oil and salt.
then i broiled them a little bit at the end. it was tasty. if i had garlic powder, i think a generous sprinkle would be fun. 

ok, i think i've fallen in love w/ the panini. SO tasty. we have a george foreman grill that might substitute, but instead of ordering pancakes or french toast for this morning's brunch, i got this. black bean, tomato, cheddar cheese, w/ guacamole and a salad! 

TOFU! when i opened up the package, i just ate a slice it smelled so good, but it was tasty in the soup as well 

doesn't this look tasty... it was ALMOST exciting. it was broiled eggplant w/ miso dressing, fried zucchini, and rice w/ soybeans. 

Labor Day Weekend adventures

i stay up late chitchatting and read "the man who ate everything." even more ingenious is that I managed to hook up the DVD player and watch "finding neverland"
we try brunch at Opus. These are beer battered pancakes. I'm sorely disappointed, though they look lovely. and that little potato pie slice, s'ok. i'm not gettin' THAT again. next time, I'm going with my instinct: CHOCOLATE TOWER FRENCH TOAST.
i make vegetarian chili. i love this mix from the co-op. pan frying the corn also helps, i believe. i'm a BIG fan of pan frying corn after making this GORGEOUS corn salad.
Finally, i make friends w/ a pet snake that my classmate's little brother picked up in their background. yes, this is how Vermonters find pets. if you looked at my backyard at home, you might find some ants, if you're lucky. he had no name, so i took the liberty of naming him, Lenny.

 

honestly, how can anyone NOT miss California... 

back to vermont. eating my strange ad hoc meals. all pretty tasty. cilantro garnish makes everything look better though. i remember the upper right quadrant. a saute of potatoes, red peppers, eggplant, onions and garlic. season to taste. throw in some beans, and i suppose that you'd have a square meal.