Chocolate Granola with Coconut and Almonds

March 16, 2012

I was perusing the aisles of a local fancy-schmancy boutique grocery store last week and saw a delicious looking bag of chocolate granola. I was tempted to grab it and put it into my cart because my breakfast consisted of one stale pretzel stick and I’d completely skipped lunch. So I was about as hungry as my dog (he’s ravenous 24/7)  I glanced down at the price tag on the teeny-tiny bag and the $12 price was just a bit off-putting…

I decided to make a batch of my own.

So I ventured over to the bulk section, grabbed some items, and for a whopping $4.13 I had the ingredients for a delicious chocolate granola that’s not overly sweet and is actually sort of good for you.

I like this granola served over non-fat yogurt with a drizzle of honey and any sort of berry that’s in season. My kids like it with milk, chocolate sauce and whipped cream but I somehow managed to convince them that chocolate sauce and whipped cream give you horrible, awful, embarrassing gas.

They’re just fine having it with the milk.

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Chocolate Granola with Coconut and Almonds ~ Big City Kitchen

Ingredients

  • 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
  • 1/8 cup quality cocoa powder
  • 1/2 cup roasted salted almonds, roughly chopped
  • 1/4 cup dry roasted peanuts
  • 1/4 cup flax seeds
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 2 tbs canola oil
  • 1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut

To Make

  1. Preheat oven to 300° degrees
  2. Mix first six ingredients in medium bowl
  3. Heat honey and canola oil in microwave or on stovetop until slightly warmed, then add to oat mixture
  4. Transfer oat and honey mixture onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or silpat and bake for 25 minutes
  5. Cool granola then incorporate coconut, eat right away (I would) or store in an airtight container for one week
  6. Yum

 

 

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Easy Make-Ahead Hors d’oeuvres

March 9, 2012

Crab Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes

Miniature Vegetarian Pizza with Roasted Pepper Tapenade

Hors d’oeuvre.

The word alone just sounds intimidating, doesn’t it? And try spelling it. After years of preparing the “hors d’oeuvre” I usually end up misspelling it. Okay, I always misspell it. Sometimes I switch the “o” with the “u” and inadvertently insert one of these: ☂ and occasionally one of these: ☞. The damn word confuses me.

Then I just Google it. And voilà!

Hors d’oeuvre.

But the hors d’oeuvre doesn’t have to be intimidating or complicated. I’m a sucker for a good hor d’oeuvre, and I’ve been known to make a light meal out of them, so if you invite me to your party just make sure you have plenty. Have some champagne too, I love champagne.

Here I’ll show you two easy, make-ahead hors d’oeuvres that will be a hit at your next cocktail party.

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Crab Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes ~ Big City Kitchen

Yield: 50 tomatoes

Ingredients

  • 50 large red or yellow cherry tomatoes
  • 8 oz. fresh lump crab meat, picked over and drained in a sieve to remove excess water
  • Zest and juice from 1/2 of a large lemon
  • 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
  • 1/8 tsp white pepper
  • 1/8 tsp Old bay seasoning
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise
  • 2 tbs sour cream
  • 1 tbs fresh chives, finely minced
  • 1 tbs fresh dill, finely chopped
  • 3 tbs red bell pepper, finely minced

To Make

  1. Slice 1/4" off the top of each tomato at stem end, then make a small slice on the bottom so tomato can stand without toppling over.
  2. With either a small melon scoop or a demitasse spoon gently scoop out seeds. Invert onto a paper towel to drain excess moisture
  3. To prepare filling, mix crab and other ingredients until just combined, making sure not to smash up your expensive crab meat
  4. Fill each tomato with 1 tsp of crab
  5. Top each tomato with a sprig of dill
  6. Tomatoes can filled, covered and refrigerated a day prior to serving

For the miniature pizzas, you can go ahead and use a freshly made store-bought dough or make your own, which will yield a much tastier hors d’oeuvre.

There’s no real trick to making these delicious pizzas – whatever topping you use will taste pretty amazing. Unless of course you’re one of the few who enjoy the peanut butter/pork rind combo.

My preparation of choice was the indoor grill pan. Roll out pizza dough on floured board and cut with a 2 1/2″ round cookie cutter. Cook on lightly oiled grill over medium heat for about 1 minute per side. Easy, quick and flavorful. If your kitchen is sans grill pan, just place the pizzas on a greased cookie sheet and bake in a 400° oven for roughly 8 minutes, or until cooked through.

The pizzas dough can be cooked, topped, covered tightly in plastic wrap and kept in the fridge for a day or two before reheating in a 350° oven for 6-8 minutes. One 16 oz. ball of dough, will yield about 25-30 pizzas.

I made two variations of the mini pizza:

Pizza no. 1: Red pepper tapenade, caramelized onion with Gruyère cheese. When pizzas were removed from the oven I topped each one with a tiny bit of micro-greens. You can sub watercress.

Pizza no. 2: Basil pesto, oven roasted balsamic & garlic tomatoes with honeyed goat cheese.

Try them. Yum.

 

 

 

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The Week In Photos

March 2, 2012


It was an unusually slow week for cooking around here. I think, okay I know, hot dogs made an appearance on the menu once. Or twice. It’s all good because I’m in the midst of taste testing several all natural, nitrate free local brands. I love hot dogs. Guilty pleasure of mine.

We had house guests during the week – and any excuse to get out and show off San Francisco is always fun for me. Just don’t call it “Frisco.” Really. Don’t.

Aside from the hot dogs piled high with crunchy jalapeño sauerkraut and onions, a quick dinner of grilled salmon with fresh herbs, a bottle of wine, followed by a walk down the hill to the newest addition to our neighborhood, The Ice Cream Bar made for a fun evening. 

 

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French Onion Soup ~ With A Twist

February 29, 2012

The Plague has reared its ugly head around here. Or something very similar to it. My family has taken turns getting sick and I think the drawing below sums up how we’ve been feeling this past week…

There’s just one thing that seems to make everyone feel better. Soup. Not just any soup, it’s got be French onion soup. For me though, the problem with French onion soup is that I always walk away wanting something more. I’m not always satisfied with the onions the bread and the cheese. So I added miniature turkey meatballs.

Instant hit.

If you can, make your own beef broth – it’ll make all the difference here. If you don’t have time, just make sure to use a good quality low sodium beef broth – some of them can be soooo salty.

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French Onion Soup ~ With A Twist

Ingredients

  • Soup:
  • 4 tbs sweet butter
  • 2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
  • 4 large sweet onions, halved and sliced thin
  • 4 tbs chopped thyme
  • 4 tbs good quality brandy
  • 4 cups beef broth
  • Salt and black pepper to taste
  • 6-8 sourdough baguette slices, about 2 inches thick, toasted
  • 1 cup Gruyère cheese, shredded
  • Meatballs:
  • 1/2 pound ground turkey thigh meat
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
  • 1 large garlic clove, crushed
  • 4 chives, chopped
  • 1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
  • 1 tbs milk
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • Olive oil for sautéing

To Make

  1. Meatballs:
  2. In medium bowl combine all ingredients. With small ice cream scoop or a large tablespoon, form into mini meatballs. Sauté with olive oil over medium heat until browned on all sides. Refrigerate until soup is prepared.
  3. Soup:
  4. In large dutch oven over medium-low heat add butter, olive oil and onions. Cook onions until they're a deep golden brown color, about 45 minutes to one hour. Don't rush this step - it's the key part of this soup. Add thyme and brandy, cook until reduced, then add beef broth.
  5. Add meatballs and continue to simmer for 30-35 minutes and season with salt and pepper.
  6. Ladle soup into individual soup crocks (make sure they'll broiler proof!) and top each one with a baguette slice and Gruyère cheese. Place under broiler until brown and bubbly. Enjoy with a nice bottle of red wine...

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The Week In Photos ~ What I Cooked

February 17, 2012

How can it possibly be Friday already?

This past week was crazy – my kitchen is feeling used and taken advantage of. I’ll be scrubbing it first thing tomorrow morning.

I made popcorn with white truffle butter for the kids. It was an utter flop for them and an absolute hit for me. I baked these amazing thumbprint cookies, but If you’re on the lam and don’t want anyone to find out your identity I would suggest you avoid making these. They disappeared rather quickly…

The hit of the week was my french onion soup with miniature turkey meatballs. I’m still thinking about it.

I made a double recipe of pie dough to stick in the freezer, peeled a crap load of beets for a lovely soup with dill and crème fraiche, opened a jar of Mario Batali spaghetti sauce because I was lazy. Yes I know, shame on me – but it was really quite good. But might I suggest a smaller image of Mario himself on the label? It’s a little disturbing.

I also cooked soft boiled eggs and cleaned out my fridge.

And no, I did not eat that adorable dog frolicking on the beach. That’s Mango. He took me for a nice long walk at Crissy Field.

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