Chef Robin's Tastes to Date: February 2011

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Menu for a hECtIc WeEk!

Dinners for this insanely busy week---following a busy weekend! ...we have my class Monday, Stir-fryin' Baby, followed by a crazy week of kidstuff -concerts, 5th grade wax museum, middle school orientation, muffins with mom.....you name it, it's on my calendar!
Monday: whole wheat rollatini with spinach and mushrooms, garlic bread and Caesar salad w/Grampy!
Tuesday: turkey cheddar dogs, baked beans, chips & cut fruit (Christina's request!)
Wednesday: Mexican chicken gumbo over rice, veggies and "da bomb" dip
Thursday: Mongolian Beef with rice, orange wedges
Friday:pizzzzzas at HOME' for "moobie night":)
Saturday: Gingered chicken & peppers with sticky rice
Sunday: chicken parmesan, baked ziti, Italian bread, salad

Sunday, February 20, 2011

This weeks menu at the Chef's house 2/21-2/27

Monday: Grilled Spanishdusted Mahi Mahi, tropical salsa & curried aioli over basmati rice, Stir fried broccoli

Tuesday: Tuesday Turkey Tacos! (and the fixin's)
Wednesday:Sesame Chicken with green peppers over rice (Caroline's request!)Thursday: My Parents are taking the whole fam up to... the Great Wolf Lodge!!! I am bringing Buffalo Chicken Chili and some other odds and ends :0)

Friday: ...will still be at the lodge...probablly have pizza delivered when we get home!

Saturday: Soup and Salad--Homemade French Onion Soup (per Frederick's request!) Spinach salad with crumbled bacon, cheddar cheese, tomatoes and hard boiled eggs--also a "FredFave! :0)Sunday:Deconstructed Egg roll stir fry- shrimp, chicken, cabbage, onion, carrot, ginger, etc.....tossed with rice noodles-yum!

Holy Snow Batman!!!

Getting another Michigan Blizzard today! Roads are a bit slick, but I got my groceries before it got toooo bad. A good noght for Homemade sheperd's pie, baked butternut squash and buttermilk biscuits...yum. What are YOU doing on this blizzardy day?!

Friday, February 18, 2011

Spanish class tonight!

@ DreamMaker, going to be a fun and delish evening, packed with food and flava'! ;0)

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Spanish Faves class this Friday 2/18/11

Spanish Faves

Marinated Olives

Bright green Castelvetrano olives are combined with slivered garlic, crushed pepper, bay leaves and sherry vinegar

Marinated Goat Cheese with Sherried onions

Tangy goat cheese is marinated in olive oil, fresh lemon and herbs, topped with caramelized sherried onions, served with crostini

Saffron Shrimp

Tender shrimp are wrapped in Serrano ham, then sautéed in olive oil with parsley, garlic and fragrant saffron threads, served with crostini

Spiced Turkey Tenderloin with Mango Salsa & curry Aioli

Lean Turkey tenderloins are crusted in Spanish spices then seared until tender & served with a spicy-sweet mango salsa and drizzled with curried aioli

Chicken & Chorizo Skewers

Tender Mojo marinated chicken and spicy chorizo skewered and grilled, served with a zippy roasted red pepper aioli

Dulce de Leche Empanada with Coffee Ice Cream & Almond Crumble

Mini Empanadas are stuffed with dulce de leche and chocolate and then topped with yummy coffee ice cream & almond crumble….Mmmm…

Wine tasting available...

Monday, February 14, 2011

Menu for this LOVELY week 2/14-2/20

So glad my whole household is feeling better! We were invaded by some sort of flu last week, YECH!
Monday:Orange-gingered crispy tofu with sugar snaps & red peppers, jasmine rice, Spinach salad with edamame, peanut butta' cookies
Tuesday:My "famous" meatloaf (so my kids call it!;0))-I put spinach, roasted peppers, onion & carrot in it, and top it off with High fructose corn syrup FREE ketchup (check yours...I like Simply Heinz) and brown suga' and mustard- they love it! Smashed yukon golds, rolls & green beaners
Wednesday:Grilled Turkey Tenderloin with pineapple-mango salsa, curry aioli, cous cous, some sort of a salad!
Thursday:Lamb stew (in my NEW crock pot, thanks Mama!) over polenta with asiago cheese (the kids love this one, too!)
Friday:Pizza with Maddie...I will be sippin' wine and teaching a Spanish Faves class!
Saturday:Thinking tacos :0)
Sunday: Leftova's
Have an awesomely healthy, loving and productive week!!! :0)

(my hubby and I had our first date 13 years ago tomorrow, whew, we have been together for awhile!LOVE him!)

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

MY UN---MENU for the week!

No menu this week, sorry!!! I have a houseful of sick kids (5, to be exact!) AND I am feeling the ick....SO we are not eating a whole lot of ANYTHING!

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Alright, fellow bliazzardianders, here is your menu!

Monday:Kiddos had chili and corn muffins with Maddie, I was teaching a class!
Tuesday: Turkey burgers on MY FAVE...Pretzel Rolls! LOVE them. Served up with some homemade baked potato wedges, veggies and dip
Wednesday: (most likely a SNOW DAY!) Going to make brownies with kids and let them have brownie sundaes with hot fudge (homemade, thanks Judi for the recipe!) oh....DINNER? A FAMFAVE, Chinese Beef with green beans, over rice, spinach salad with asian sesame soy dressing, mandarin oranges and toasted almonds
Thursday:Hearty White Bean soup with rosemary and sundried tomatoes, Make your own Paninis!
Friday: Homemade pizza with friends, Taylor and Liam are coming over so their parents can paint the town red!
Saturday:Chicken Galliano with Wild rice, broccoli and sauteed mushrooms, yumness!!!
Superbowl Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!!!!! A whole bunch of bad for you food, most likely...we can't always eat right!!! (boring.)
Stay warm, safe, and off the crazy roads the next few days, all!

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)

Buffalo Chicken Chili

My fam loves to eat buffalo wings, so I decided to make that flavor into chili. I end up topping this spicy bowl of yummy stuff with “da’ Bomb!” dip and kettle style potato or tortilla chips, for a yummy salty crunch.

Chef Robin Gourmet Cooking Classes, 2010.
Serves 8

½ C. butter
2 C. finely chopped onion
1 C. finely chopped celery
1 C. finely chopped carrot
4 cooked chicken breasts cut into small chunks
4 C. chicken broth
1 C. Frank’s Red Hot sauce
1-29oz. can tomato puree
1 can light red kidney beans

In a large soup pot, melt butter. Add chopped onion, celery & carrot. Saute until vegetables are soft. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a simmer, for 30 minutes. Serve piping hot, topped with the dip n’ chips. Yum, it’s got a nice kick!

"Da Bomb Dip"

Organic Kaleriffic Salad

From Chef Robin

Serves 4-6

½ C thinly sliced red onion

1 T raw apple cider vinegar

2 C boiling water

2 packages organic baby kale

2 C fresh porteenie mushrooms,

cleaned & thinly sliced

¼ C. extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon sea salt

¼ C wild blueberry balsamic vinegar

For garnish: ¼ C toasted pine nuts &

1 C. fresh or 1/3 C. dried organic

blueberries

Place the sliced red onion in a small

bowl with apple cider vinegar and

boiling water. Allow to soak 10-15

minutes. Rinse & squeeze out excess

moisture. Place kale & criminis in a

large bowl. Drizzle with oil and

sprinkle with salt. Massage the

mixture with your hands until the

kale turns a deep green and wilts

slightly. Add onions and balsamic

vinegar to kale mixture. Toss, adjust

seasoning to your taste and serve

garnished with some toasted pine

nuts & blueberries.

Kale provides you with 868% RDA of Vitamin K, 261% of Vitamin A, 170% of

Vitamin C, 33% of Manganese, as well as 12% of Calcium, Copper & Vitamin B6

HEALTHY SNACKS FOR KIDS

Kids need healthy snacks to fuel their energetic days and growing bodies. Here are some healthy, kid pleasing snacks that will make their engines rev all day long!:

Pretzel rods dipped in melted dark chocolate and rolled in crushed nuts or unsweetened coconut- salty, sweet and full of antioxidants and healthy monounsaturated fats!

Lowfat cheese cut into squares paired with whole wheat crackers- let them build a tower with this fiber, whole grain & calcium packed snack!

Homemade Veggie Ranch Dip: mix together 1 Cup canola mayonnaise or "Veganaise", 1/2 Cup Greek yogurt, 1 clove fresh garlic, smashed, 1 Tbsp. each fresh parsley, chives & dill (or 1 tsp. each, dried), 2 T buttermilk, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and sea salt & pepper to taste. Use yummy carrot sticks, sugar snap peas, fresh green beans and other veggies to dip like crazy!

Fruity sensations-give the kids slices of apples, wedges of oranges, halved grapes and berries, sliced mangoes, you name it, and let them go to town creating edible art!

Green eggs & Ham: put a drop of green food coloring in some Vanilla Greek yogurt, mix together and top with a canned apricot or peach half. Pair with a mini whole wheat tortilla slathered with cream cheese, raspberry preserves and a slice of your fave deli ham- kids love this "Seussical" treat!

Trail mix- who can resist trail mix? Make it healthy with unsalted nuts and seeds, air popped popcorn,whole grain mini crackers (like cheddar fish) and alphabet pretzels- add in some dried cranberries or blueberries for antioxidants and yummy semi-sweet chocolate chips for a little monounsaturated fat too!

Whole Grain Mini Pizzas- whole wheat English muffins or bagels split & topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese and veggies-perfect made in a toaster oven!

Bean & Cheese Quesadillas- serve them up with vegetarian re-fried beans and 2% milk cheese. Serve with your fave salsa- and add in some chunks of avocado and corn, YUM!

Creme Brulee

A classic French Bistro dish, this dessert has an amazingly short list of ingredients, and with a bit of careful cooking, you can have this decadent treat at home! Chef Robin Gourmet Cooking Series, 2010. Makes 8- 6 oz servings

1 Qt. heavy cream

1 vanilla bean

½ C. sugar or vanilla sugar

6 egg yolks

Brown sugar

Preheat oven to 300. Place cream in a heavy saucepan. Split vanilla bean down the middle and scrape seeds out. Place beans & pod into cream. Heat until just boiling, then cover & set aside to steep for 15minutes. Meanwhile, Whisk egg yolks & sugar together. Strain cream into egg yolk mixture. Mix well. Pour custard into ramekins, then place them in 9 x 13 pans. Pour boiling hot water into the pan going half way up the ramekins. Bake for 40 minutes, or until custard is set, but quivering when jiggled. Remove from oven and cool to room temp. Cover & refrigerate for up to 2 days. A few hours before serving, sprinkle cold custard with brown sugar and place under a low broiler. Broil for about 2 minutes, or until sugar liquefies…watch like a hawk! Sugar BURNS very quickly! Return to fridge, then serve garnished with fresh berries and a refreshing sprig of mint.

French Onion Soup

A Yummy Bistro fave made from the humble & affordable onion! This delish pot of savory broth is fun to serve to company! Makes 8-10 servings.

Chef Robin Gourmet Cooking Series

4 medium sized sweet onions, peeled & sliced fine

2 cloves garlic, pressed or chopped

4 T. butter

1 t. salt

½ t. dried thyme

1 t. sugar

½ C. sherry or brandy

8 C. beef broth

Pepper, to taste

Croutons

Gruyere cheese, grated

Smoked provolone slices

In a large soup pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add onions and allow to S_L_O_W_L_Y caramelize. (hint…leave them be!!!) Don’t stir the onions for a good 10 minutes. This allows them to melt down into velvety sweet strands of yumminess! Stir a few times over a period of 30 minutes, until the onions are nicely browned. (you can add a splash of water if they start to stick to the bottom of the pan) Add garlic, salt, thyme, sugar & pepper, stir to combine. Add sherry and allow to cook for 5 minutes, and then add broth. Bring soup to a boil, then turn down to a simmer & allow to do so for 30 minutes.

Turn broiler to hi heat. Fill 6 to 8 oz. bowls with soup, leaving about a ¼ inch rim on the top. Top with a handful of croutons, a few tablespoons of gruyere and a slice of provolone. Place bowls on a pan and place under broiler for 1 minute, or until golden and bubbly. Serve.

Pumpkin Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

These yummy lil’ cakes are moist, chocolatey and topped with the cream cheese frosting they are sooo good! Chef Robin Gourmet Cooking Series, 2010.

Makes 24 standard cupcakes

4 eggs

1 C. oil

2 C. sugar

2 t. vanilla

I small can pumpkin

(14.5-15 ounce, or half of a 29 ounce can)

2 C. flour

2 t. baking powder

1 t. baking soda

1 t. salt

3 t. pumpkin pie spice

2 C. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Whisk together eggs, oil , sugar, vanilla & pumpkin n a large bowl. In a separate bowl mix together all dry ingredients, including chocolate chips, add to wet ingredients. Bake in lined muffin tins for 25- 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Place on a cooling rack, until cool to the touch. Meanwhile, make frosting:

¾ C. softened butter

8 oz. softened cream cheese

24 oz. powdered sugar

2 t. vanilla

Garnish

½ C. chocolate chips

Cream together butter & cream cheese, add powdered sugar, little by little, then add vanilla, beat until smooth in texture. Grate chocolate chips in a handheld cheese grater, set aside. Frost cool cupcakes, and “dip” the tops of the cupcakes in the grated chocolate as garnish. Keep cupcakes refrigerated, yummy good!

Weller-Black Wine Celebration