Caribbean Dream Pie

The weather in Seattle today has been dreary; lots of rainy and strong winds and gloomy skies. A perfect day to transport yourself to a warm, tropical place with Caribbean Dream Pie.

I started by making a crust with graham crackers, pecans, coconut flakes, and butter. Then I assembled the pie filling by slicing mango and bananas. Then I combined sweetened condensed milk, lime juice, and lime rind, and whisked this until it was thick. After the crust baked in the oven and cooled, I layered the fruit and poured the lime mixture on top. There was a little extra crumb crust, so this was sprinkled over the whole thing.


After letting the pie chill for about an hour, it was time to give it a taste. All in all, the pie was a little too sweet for me. I loved the lime flavor though!

Macaroni and Cheese Lite

I had a bone to pick with Macaroni and Cheese Lite... I made the original Moosewood recipe for "Whole Wheat Macaroni: Russian Style" some time ago on Vashon Island. It was a lot of fun to assemble, and was even cast in a starring role on my blog page (see the banner at the top of ahappytaste. blogspot.com... it's from the production line of WWM:RS). But the recipe itself was... well... gross. The red onion was practically raw, there were too many veggies, too much cottage cheese, in general: a mess. So when I saw that Macaroni and Cheese Lite was the updated version of this failed first attempt, I furrowed my overly plucked brow in concern. I knew that if I wanted to conquer this cookbook, I'd have to at least give it a try.

Butcha know what!? The new recipe was pretty good. I made a half recipe (something I am starting to realize I should do for all of these Moosewood attempts... often it is just too much food!) and baked it with extra cheese, a signature Alli Wright move. Instead of cabbage I used a little cauliflower and some peas. I omitted the caraway seeds. I cooked the veggies a bit longer than directed to sufficiently soften them and prevent any potential raw onion bits. This dish reminds me of tuna noodle casserole without the fish. It was quite tasty and filling!

Sri Wasano's Infamous Indonesian Rice Salad

Sri Wasano's Infamous Indonesian Rice Salad is a highly addictive situation with many fascinating components. I'm not feeling particularly descriptive tonight, so here's whutchoo put in this salad:

brown rice
fresh pineapple
green onion
celery
red bell pepper
water chestnuts (I almost left these out. I think they are disgusting, but I am trying to be a big girl with a big girl palate.)
fresh mung bean sprouts (I know I just said I'm tryin' to be a real adult, but it's one step at a time, K? I straight up left these out... anything with the word "mung" in it should surely be kept at a distance from the mouth)
raisins (Plumped these in a glass of very warm water for about 30 minutes, a trick I learned from a total stud)
toasted peanuts
toasted sesame seeds

All of this gets combined in a mild, oil based sauce with orange juice and garlic and spicy spice. It marinates in the fridge, or until you can't bear it any longer and must have a taste. So you do, and it's delightful, and both you and Charlie are surprised by the contribution, taste and texture wise, that water chestnuts have made, and think they might not be so bad after all, but hey, who knows, it could just be all the basketball you've been watching.

Eggplant Parmesan

Eggplant Parmesan is a hearty helping of eggplant and just a liiiiiittle bit of parmesan. Perhaps the name should be "Eggplant Mozzarella" instead; there was about a pound of mozzarella in the dish.

I started by cutting eggplant into half inch slices:

Then I soaked the eggplant slices in milk and breaded them with homemade breadcrumbs and herbs. I think that homemade breadcrumbs are the superior choice! They are so easy to make too! I have included my amazingly simple recipe for making them at the bottom of this post.

The completed dish was quite tasty. I layered the breaded eggplant with Italian Tomato Sauce and thinly sliced pieces of mozzarella cheese. I sprinkled the top with a little bit of parmesan and baked the dish for about 30 minutes. Eggplant Parmesan is very similar in texture and taste to lasagna! It was a great dish, especially when paired with roasted garlic on a slice of sourdough bread. Yum!

Homemade Breadcrumbs

You Will Need:
Fresh or frozen bread (I use an inexpensive brand of sliced white bread)
Cookie sheet
Food processor

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
2. Lay sliced bread out on cookie sheet. Usually you can fit about 6 to 8 slices on a sheet.
3. Bake the bread in the low temperature oven for 15 minutes. Turn the slices about halfway through so that they dry properly.
4. Remove from oven and allow the bread to cool, about 5 minutes.
5. Tear the dried bread into smaller pieces and place in your food processor. You can fill it all the way and whirl until the bread reaches your desired crumbliness! For this recipe, I made finely ground breadcrumbs.
6. Bask in the glory that is homemade breadcrumbs. Tender, lovely, and extra special, because they're homemade!

Lasagne with Italian Tomato Sauce

Oh my goodness... Lasagne with Italian Tomato Sauce... you were above and beyond my expectations. When I first read though this recipe... I thought the lasagne sounded bland and uninteresting. It is layers of tomato sauce, lasagne noodles, mozzarella, and ricotta. Pretty basic. But what shined as the star component and brought the dish together was the amazing red sauce.

We started the sauce by cooking onion, red and yellow bell peppers, and herbs. Once this was cooked down, we added canned tomatoes, honey, minced garlic, and parsley. After letting this simmer for over an hour, we were ready to assemble the lasagne. We baked it for about an hour and it came out beautifully!

I also roasted some elephant garlic to have with our dinner. Once it is roasted, the garlic is dark, almost purple, and incredibly soft. We spread the roasted garlic on French bread with a little butter. I could eat roasted elephant garlic plain... it is so delicious! I have included the recipe at the end of this post.

Another beautiful dinner!

Roasted Elephant Garlic

You Will Need:
Elephant Garlic (look in the produce section, typically found with garlic, shallots, and onion)
Olive Oil
Knife
Foil
A small, oven safe ramekin

1. Set the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Peel off the outermost layer of skin from the garlic. Leave some of the peel on.
3. Cut about a quarter of an inch off the top of the garlic.
3. Place whole garlic head in oven safe ramekin. Drizzle with olive oil.
4. Wrap the ramekin in foil and place in the oven for 30 to 45 minutes. The garlic will the soft when done. Remove and let cool for a few minutes.
5. Marvel at how delicious your whole house smells. Pretend you are in Italy.
6. Ease the garlic out of the skin with a fork and eat!

Refritos and Tostadas

I made Refritos (refried beans) with Tostadas for Carson and Michelle's First Spring BBQ!

I soaked pinto beans overnight and cooked them for about an hour until they were soft. Then I cooked onion, garlic, cumin, and salt together in a kettle. I added green pepper and black pepper and finally, the cooked beans. I used a potato masher to mix the refritos together.

The Tostadas were simple; store bought corn tortillas fried on Carson's griddle. Perhaps the best drawing in The New Moosewood Cookbook; Mollie's "How To Eat A Tostada" illustration:
There was freshly diced pico de gallo, homemade guacamole, carne asada right off the grill, and a gorgeous tower of spring colored Rice Krispie Treats:

All washed down with delicious vodka and champagne JELL-O shots. Spring is here!


P. S. Thank you to vegefoodie for the tostada illustration. XOXO

Zucchini Crusted Pizza and Lowfat Ranch Dressing

Zucchini Crusted Pizza
First, I shredded up lots of delicious zucchini:

Then I added cheese, eggs, and flour and baked it into a lovely crust:

Lastly, I topped the crust with fresh tomato slices, olives, mozzarella cheese, and fresh basil:

And there you have it folks, Zucchini Crusted Pizza. One of my favorite Mooosewood recipes so far. I also made some Lowfat Ranch Dressing for carrot dipping (and pizza dipping, if you like to get real freaky):

The dressing was made from buttermilk, a touch of sour cream, dried onion, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper. So much better than any bottled version you'd find in the grocery store!

Rice Pudding

Rice Pudding made with brown rice and soy milk. The rice pudding doesn't look too appetizing, but tasted quite delicious with cinnamon, agave nectar, and vanilla. Unfortunately, it burned the bottom of the pan... took some intense scrubbing to get it out!

Focaccia

Focaccia with rosemary and olive oil... yum!

Tart and Tangy Baked Beans and Chappatis

Tart and Tangy Baked Beans are delicious and filling. These were called "Cheese Beans" in the original Moosewood cookbook but the cheese was optional in this version. A super delicious blend of beans, tomato, apple slices, and spices. The beans soaked overnight, cooked on the stove for an hour and a half, and baked in the oven for another hour. Definitely a recipe worth making when you have a lot of time at home.

Chappatis are whole wheat tortillas. Super simple to roll out and bake. Texture wise, these were a little tough but the flavor was salty and delicious.

Swiss Cheese and Mushroom Quiche

I cheated a little when I made Swiss Cheese and Mushroom Quiche this evening by using a frozen pastry crust. But by doing so, it made the dinner pretty quick!

The quiche had a base layer of Swiss cheese, then a warm mushroom and onion mixture, with a custard on top. I sprinkled paprika over the whole pie and baked for about an hour. There was a little too much filling for the pie crust, so I also made a small souffle!

Raw Vegetable Salad with Very Green Dressing

Mollie Katzen writes that "most vegetables can be eaten raw if cut properly... chewing is light and delightful and not a cumbersome chore. Visually, Raw Vegetable Salad can be beautiful, like edible confetti." This makes my heart sing. As someone who has a love/hate relationship with salad, I found that sticking to her instructions and cutting the vegetables smaller than I normally would made the salad much more enjoyable.

I made Very Green Dressing for the salad. It is an oil free dressing with many fresh herbs and a touch of buttermilk. The ingredients were whipped up in the food processor and spooned over the salad. While the dressing was a tad bitter, it was still tasty. I even dipped a little whole wheat pita bread in the dressing. Mmm!

Bittersweet Chocolate Custard

Bittersweet Chocolate Custard... a great idea in theory. This batch separated once it baked, making for a super rich, edible top layer, and a weird, wet, slimy, eggy not so edible layer on the bottom. Darn! Better luck next time.

Ricotta Gnocchi with Mondo Bizarro Sauce

Ricotta Gnocchi with Mondo Bizarro Sauce... that name is ridiculous, so let's just call it MB sauce. Traditionally, gnocchi is made with potato, but this recipe traded that out for ricotta. It made for a slightly bumpier texture of gnocchi. The MB sauce was similar to pesto, but had spinach and fresh tomato in it too. Overall, the dish was a little bland but thankfully shaky cheese and salt came to our rescue.

Thai Salad and Whole Wheat Pitas

Last night Dianna and I made Thai Salad and Whole Wheat Pitas. It was a really good meal: filling, but not rich! The salad components were: romaine lettuce, carrot, bell pepper, cucumber, tomato, potato, hard boiled egg, tofu, fresh basil, and a lemon wedge. I had never had cooked potato in a green salad before and I really liked it! The dressing was peanut butter based with a little salt, honey, garlic, and spices in it. While it was a little too runny, it flavored the salad well.

The pitas ended up being a little crispier that anticipated, but totally delicious. Pita bread is one of those things I never really thought to make from scratch. But it was so stinkin' easy to do (yeast, water, honey, salt, flour) that I will make them myself instead of buying them at the grocery store from now on!

Additionally, check out these adorable Norwegian napkins we used with dinner. Dianna translated for us: "Welcome to our home." Perfect!

Vegetable Chowder and Carrot Mushroom Loaf

Vegetable Chowder and Carrot Mushroom Loaf: A satiating match made right here, in the kitchen. The chowder was made up of of potato, celery, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, corn, and onion. The carrot mushroom loaf is shredded carrot and mushroom, mixed with cheese, breadcrumbs, and herbs. The concoction is baked until golden brown on top. Yum!