Kitchen Notes-Chickpea Soup

It wasn't on my menu, but I felt like soup today and I saw this chickpea soup and thought it sounded like a simple but good one. It was pretty good, the chickpea taste is something I need to get use to, but I like the soup and ate a big bowl of it.

Almond Flour Bread

Today I got more almond flour and so I tried my hand at bread with one of Elana's recipes. It's in her book. I've found several other recipes for bread using almond flour but the recipes are all different so I want to try them in the next weeks and see which I like better. We've noticed that Elana uses oil in her recipes and no dairy as far as I can tell. The others I've looked at use yogurt. In the recipe I tried today there was quite a bit of almond butter and only a little almond flour. Almond butter really is the same just ground longer. I'm still amazed that these things rise at all. This one had a lot of arrowroot in it. I realize I'm learning a lot about how different ingredients can be used in baked products. Vinegar is another thing I noticed in some of the recipes.

Menu 3/29 to 4/4

Monday-left overs

Tuesday-meal from the freezer

Wednesday-Asparagus and Cashew Chicken Stir-fry

Thursday-Skewered Eggplant, Red Pepper and Goat Cheese Rolls
Pasta Salad

Friday-same as Wens.

Saturday-Mexican Layer Dip
Burgers

Sunday-Easter (don't know yet)

Dessert-Icebox Banana Cheesecake
Shortbread (when I get more almond flour, on order)

Kitchen Notes-Chicken Pot Pie

Yesterday I made the Chicken Pot Pie see menu for link. I did not follow her directions, but sauteed the ingredients and added a little broth, made a slurry and added that to thicken.

Today I made Chocolate Chip Scones, delish.

New Kitchen Habit-Cleaning the Stove Top

I'm terrible about cleaning my stove top. I can never get it totally clean. It has burnt on bits that I'm not strong enough to get off and scratches where I have resorted to SOS. This post from Apartment Therapy gave me some ideas on cleaning it. The comments had some good ideas too. So the new habit I want to try and do is to not just give it a swipe once in a while, but clean it thoroughly ever day and better yet would be ever time I use it, but I'll start with daily with a quick wipe as I use it during the day. I'm hoping if I really work on cleaning it every day that eventually those burnt on stains will start to come off. Any suggestion?

Linda

KItchen Notes- French Onion Soup & Coconut Flour Cake

My gd was over today and we made the French Onion Soup. It turned out really well. I think what I like about the recipe is that it had 3 kinds of onions in it (leek, yellow and shallot) plus lots of garlic. We put the Gruyere cheese and a big hunk of sour dough bread on top.

The cake ended up being underdone and so I can't say if I like it or not. The texture is a little weird and so I will have to try another recipe and see what I think.

Menu 3/22-3/28

Mon. Left Overs

Tues. French Onion Soup
Green Salad

Wens. Chicken Pot Pie Crust made with almond flour.
Green Salad

Thurs. Zucchini Custard Bake
Fried Sole

Fri. same as Tues.

Sat. same as Wens.

Sun. same as Thurs.

Desserts- Coconut Flour Grapefruit Pound Cake except I'm using orange
Mixed Fruit (Rasp., Blueberries and Kiwi with Yogurt and Mint)

Kitchen Notes-Veggie Broth

Last night I took my scraps from the freezer. I had way more than I needed, so I only used part of them. As per my dd's instructions I put them in my slow cooker on low and filled with water. They cooked all night. This morning I cooled it and strained the broth and put it in plastic containers and into my freezer. I don't think I'll make anymore until I use this bunch because my freezer is pretty full. It smelled kind of strong, so I'm not sure if I'm going to like it. I kept a little out in my frig. to try later.

Today I clean my frig. so that tomorrow when I do my menu I'll know what I have that has to be used up. As usual I have left overs to use up. My corn beef and veggies was delicious. I'll enjoy that for a few more days.

My dd and gd came over and they loved the Cherry Scones and the Tomato and Red Pepper Soup I made early in the week.

I missed not having a menu this week, so I know I want to do one even if I don't think I'll be cooking that much, because things can change. I don't have to actually but the food until I know I'm going to use it, if I'm not feeling well.

Linda

Kitchen Notes-Cherry Scones and Corn Beef

I made Cherry Scones today with almond flour. The only change I made was I used dried Bing Cherries I got at Trader Joe's. I was afraid the tart would be too tart. They were delicious.

I'm making corn beef with carrots, Brussels sprouts and potato for dinner. I always use the sprouts instead of cabbage or kraut. I like to steam my veggies separately from the beef. I don't like them to get too mushy. I put butter, salt and pepper on them. I love having left over corn beef for hash.

I had the pork chops again last night and they tasted better than the first night. I do ordinarily eat kraut, but have been wanting to try some for a while. I sort of like it, but I think I have to get use to it. A little goes a long way. The chops were very tender cooked this way. I have half a bag of kraut left over. I'm either going to freeze it or try the chicken recipe next week. The link was on this weeks links.

Kitchen Notes-Pork Chops and Sauerkraut

Can't say too much about it, because I didn't eat much of it. I was in a veggie mood and ate a plate of veggies first while I was waiting for the pork chops to get done. I ate a little just to see how I liked it and it was ok, but I wasn't over the moon about it either. I don't think I would make this recipe again. Here's how you make it brown your 1" thick pork chops and then put them in an oven proof pan. Mix your kraut with an apple (I used 2 pork chops and 1/2 bag of kraut) 1/8 c. brown sugar (I used agava and molasses). The recipe called for some nutmeg, raisins and walnuts. I left all those out. Pill this mixture over chops and bake at 350 for 1 hr. I'll be having the left overs tonight, maybe it will taste better to me.

Kitchen Notes-Pear Crisp

Last night I made the pear crisp link here. I changed it from apple to pear. This was another almond flour recipe and I wasn't as crazy about this one. It was OK, maybe I'd like it better with the apples. I've found her recipes to be a little under sweetened some times. It could be that my pears weren't tasty enough. The topping wasn't as crisp as I'd like.

Tonight I'm making Pork Chops with Sauerkraut. The recipe is on the sauerkraut bag so I will let you know how it turns out.

Red Pepper and Tomato Soup

This has always been one of my favorite soups, but I've never tried making it myself. I found the recipe I used in a book I got from the library. It was recommended to me because it has almond flour recipes in it, but I found that it has some interesting sounding recipes. The title is "Recipes for the Specific Carbohydrate Diet" by Raman Prasad. I'm not doing the diet, but just using some of their recipes. I found a recipe on line that is similar here. Mine used less chicken broth and it didn't have the garlic. It was simple to make and you can eat it cold or hot. I cooked mine down until it was nice and rich and I think it would be good with a little dab of sour cream.
Linda

Links

I'm not doing a menu this week because of tummy troubles, but here is a few links of what I will make if I'm up to it.

Stuffed Chicken Cutlets with Ham, Cheese and Sauerkraut

Squash and Zucchini Cakes

Cherry Scones (with almond flour)

Apple Crisp (I was going to use pears, made with almond flour)

Kitchen Notes-Orange Chocolate Torte

I'm having left overs for dinner, but I did make this Double Chocolate Orange Torte from Elana's Pantry. It was easy and yummy.

Kitchen Notes Goat Cheese Tart

I finally made the Goat Cheese Tart, link for recipe on menu. I've had to rearrange my menu which usually happens because life intervenes. It was very good. The crust was made from the almond flour. It's the first time I've made an almond flour crust and I'm seeing that you need to roll it very thin or it tends to be a little heavy. It does have a nice flavor though. This is a recipe I will keep and make again. I love goat cheese, but you could also use feta or fresh mozzarella. The onion and tomatoes were both precooked so if you substituted other veggies I would precook them. It only bakes a short time after you put it together and the tart is precooked also.

I steamed some veggies that have been hanging in the frig and I didn't want them to go bad before I use them. Also I can use them in salads.

Linda

Kitchen Notes-Vegetable Soup

My gd was over yesterday and helped me chop veggies for the soup. It had 1 onion, 1 leek, 2 cups each of celery, carrot, mushrooms and zucchini, so It was a lot to chop. It turned out pretty good, but it was very light. Some rice or beans would be a good addition for body or potatoes if you can eat them. I used dried herbs, bay, oregano and thyme, but I think fresh herbs would really be good.

I wrote a post today on Foxtales about French Soup.

Linda

Menu 3-8-10

Monday-Caramelized Onion, Tomato, Goat Cheese Tart
Salad with Asparagus and Snow Peas

Tuesday-Vegetable Soup
Scones

Wednesday-same as Monday

Thursday-same as Tuesday

Friday-Shepherd's Pie with Whipped Cauliflower instead of potatoes
salad (grapefruit and avocado)

Saturday-Spaghetti Squash and Chard Gratin
some kind of sausage grilled

Desserts-Melting Apple Custard

Kitchen Notes

I made the Spicy Bronzed Chicken last night and the Jicama and Grapefruit Salad. The chicken was pretty good. I grilled on my indoor grill. I thought the salad was ok, but probably wouldn't make it again. It sounds better than it is.

Yesterday I made the Macadamia Clusters and the Sesame Truffles. The Truffles are just too sweet. The Clusters are good, but very messy, you have to keep them in the freezer and they still start to melt as you eat them. I guess it's the agava that won't harden.

I'm starting to want lighter foods and think when I plan my menu tomorrow I will look for more vegetarian and lighters meals, maybe more salads and raw veggies.

Almond Flour

I did a post this morning on Foxtales about my adventures into baking with almond flour. There are several recipe links in the post including the blueberry muffins in the photo.

Skewered Shrimp and Quinoa Salad

Links to recipes on menu.

I didn't cook Wens. because I wasn't feeling well, but last night I made the shrimp and quinoa. I used snow peas with my shrimp instead of the persimmon in the original recipe. She suggested using veggies as a substitute.

For the quinoa instead of making a warm dish, I used precooked quinoa I had in my frig and made a salad out of it by adding tomato, cucumber, scallions and goat cheese. I didn't want to buy all those herbs and so just got parsley. I think I'll revisit this recipe when I have herbs in the garden, right now all my herbs are asleep.

Everything tasted good.

Stock Pot

I wanted to work another good habit in the kitchen, see hand washing and prep work. I wanted to remember to keep all the scraps when I prep veggies, but I keep forgetting and so I was thinking about what I could set up to remind myself. I would like something prettier, but may not need this once the habit is established. I also have another one of these, but a little bigger in my freezer. I will use the kitchen counter one to collect that days scraps and then put them in the freezer one. Once it is full then I will make stock. I'm not sure if I want to do the same thing for bones and meat scraps, I'll have to think about that one. I do often cook up the carcass of my chicken when I roast a whole one.

Edit-I realized that when I put the veggies in the freezer they should probably be in a freezer bag. I'm not sure if they would get freezer burn because the plastic container wouldn't have air in it. Also my dd said she doesn't add lettuce because it gets slimy.

Kitchen Notes Prep Work- Day 30 Salad With Warm Goat Cheese

This is the last day of my 30 days of prep work. That doesn't mean I'm going to stop doing it but I'm going to stop reporting it here. I will continue to write kitchen notes about what I'm cooking and my weekly menu on Monday.



Today I am having baby back ribs. I had them in the freezer and also some sauce that I had made and stocked in my freezer.



This morning I made my salad. I had several veggies prepped and ready to go and this made putting the salad together quicker and easier. I just cut up my lettuce and veggies into a salad bowl, cover it with saran and put it in the frig. The dressing is added just before serving. I'm making my own dressing, just a lemon vinaigrette and I added scallions, radishes and cucumbers to greens.



I prepped my goat cheese rounds and so they are ready to be sauteed. I love goat cheese this way. It seems to have a milder flavor, but I love goat cheese any way. It's not on the menu, but I'm also going to make some goat cheese dip to use with the crackers I made. I also want to make a goat cheese tart, but I'm not sure if I'll have time. It may be a substitute for one of the other dishes. I have a large log of goat cheese and it doesn't last too long, so I need to plan how I'm going to use it. I get mine at Costco and it's a lot cheaper there, but you have to get a larger amount.



Recipe link for salad on Monday's menu.

Weekly Menu-3-1-10

Monday-
Oven Baked Baby Back Ribs with Barbecue Sauce
Salad with Warm Goat Cheese


Tuesday-
same as Monday


Wensday-
Garlic and Rosemary Roasted Shrimp Skewers with Veggies
Herbed Quinoa



Thursday-
Chicken with Spicy Bronzed Rub
Citrus Jicama Salad



Friday-
Meat Balls (frozen from last week)
Penne with Swiss Chard and Leeks in a Walnut Cream Sauce



Saturday-
same as Thursday



Sunday-
same as Friday



Desserts and Snacks-
Macadamia Caramel Clusters
Sesame Truffles
Herbed Goat Cheese Dip
Almond Flour Pound Cake (link on last weeks menu)