Monthly Archives: May 2011

Spinach and Potato Breakfast or Dinner Hash

This is meant to be breakfast.

I made it for dinner.

Two versions. One with sausage (for dad) and one without (for mom and me). Because I’m nice like that.

Dad did all the dishes. He can be nice too.

Spinach and Potato Breakfast or Dinner Hash

Adapted from this recipe

makes 2 large or 4 small servings

1 green bell pepper, diced into medium chunks

1 medium yellow onion, diced into medium chunks

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 pounds red potatoes, halved and then quartered (I cut them smaller so they’d roast faster)

2 tablespoons olive oil

6 ounces sausage, cooked and sliced (I used a mysterious Chinese sausage that as laying around in the fridge)

1 heaping teaspoon fennel seeds

salt and pepper to taste

2 to 4 cups baby spinach leaves

2 to 4 eggs, fried to desired doneness

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.  Put aluminum foil on the baking tray and spray with PAM or olive oil cooking spray. Place diced potatoes on a lined baking sheet and spray with PAM, add a sprinkle of sea salt and pepper.  Bake potatoes for 20-30 minutes, or until potatoes are cooked through (fork-pokable). Remove when done and set aside until you’re ready.

While potatoes are baking, heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large saucepan, over medium heat. (If you have raw sausage, cook them now and then remove from the pan).  Add the diced peppers and onions and cook until browned and broken down, about 6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper as it cooks.  Add the minced garlic, and cook for 1 minute. Remove from pan and place in a bowl.

Return the pan you cooked the onions and peppers in to a medium flame.  Add the sliced, cooked sausage  and potatoes.  Pan fry until the sausage and potatoes have crispy bits on them.  Add the fennel seeds.  Stir.   Add the onion and pepper mixture and fold to incorporate.  Remove from the flame and add spinach leaves.  Toss to incorporate and wilt the leaves.

Transfer the hash to a serving dish.  Season with salt and pepper as necessary.  Fry as many eggs and you’d like and serve over hash.

We all really liked this dish. I packed up leftovers and my dad ate them up later in the evening. Score. Even if it meant brainstorming for tomorrow’s lunch.

Grapefruit Honey Yogurt Scones

So today I tried my hand at making scones.

And yeah, at first glance, they kind of look like fried fish or chicken tenders. My brother walked in the kitchen, saw the tray, exclaimed “EWWW SAM MADE FISH?!”, was told they were in fact scones, and then ate two.

They are moist and delicious scones that go beautifully with tea or hold up quite nicely on their own.

If you’ve never mixed sugar and citrus zest, go do it now. So crunchy! So zingy!

And grapefruit sections right in the batter? Yes!

And these are even whole wheat. But you would never notice.

Grapefruit Honey Yogurt Scones

Adapted from Joy the Baker, one of my favorite blogs.

Makes: 12 scones

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold

1 Ruby Red grapefruit, zested and segmented

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.

Zest the grapefruit and combine zest and granulated sugar on a clean cutting board.  Rub together the zest and sugar with the back of a spoon or a plastic bench knife.  The sugar will be tinted a pale orange color and smell of grapefruit.  Measure 2 tablespoons of the grapefruit sugar and whisk into the dry ingredients.  Save the remaining grapefruit sugar for topping the scones just before baking.

Segment the grapefruit next.  Slice off the bottom and top of the grapefruit, exposing the wheel of grapefruit flesh inside.  Use a sharp knife to cut away the peel and pith of the grapefruit, exposing the pink grapefruit flesh.  Slice in between the white skin segments to the center of the fruit, at a slight angle, circling the grapefruit.  Little grapefruit segments should fall from the fruit as you slice.  Set segments aside.

Dice cold butter into small chunks and add to the dry ingredients.  Using your fingers, and working quickly, break the butter down into the flour mixture until butter chunks are the size of oat flakes or small peas.  The butter and flour combined will resemble coarse meal.  Add the honey, and plain yogurt.  Toss together with a fork until all of the dry ingredients are moistened by the yogurt and  honey. Fold in the grapefruit segments (leave behind any juice that is now probably covering your cutting board. The batter is wet enough as it is).

Turn the scone dough out onto a lightly floured surface.  Form into an 8 inch circle, about 1 inch thick.  Use a knife or a bench scraper to cut the dough into 12 scone triangles.  Place on the prepared baking sheet.  Lightly brush the tops of the scones with milk or buttermilk, and sprinkle generously with grapefruit sugar. (A MUST.)

Bake for 15 to 17 minutes, until golden brown on top and firm but soft in the center.  Allow to cool on the pan for 10 minutes before serving.  Serve warm with butter and jam.  These scones are best served the day they’re made.

I didn’t eat butter and jam with mine.

I didn’t regret it.

Butternut Squash Macaroni and Cheese

So, this is my first post.

What recipe to do?

Why not lure you in with some insanely addicting, childhood-memory-inducing, delicious macaroni and cheese?


Oh, and by the way, this one has butternut squash pureed into the sauce.

But you’d never know. The squash actually lends a kind of hard-to-put-your-finger-on sweetness that contrasts the tangy yogurt (oh yeah, there’s Greek yogurt in it too) and salty cheddar.

Plus, it’s baked. With a cheesy crunchy topping. How could get it get any better?

Butternut Squash Macaroni and Cheese

Adapted from this recipe

one package of pre-peeled, pre-cut butternut squash (about 2-3 cups)

8 oz vegetable stock

8 oz milk–I used unsweetened Silk; any kind of milk is fine

pinch nutmeg

pinch cayenne

salt and pepper

1 lb whole wheat rotini (or other pasta)

1 cup thick Greek yogurt

1.5 cups grated sharp cheddar

1 cup pecorino romano

1 cup plain Panko

Preheat oven to 375°F 20 minutes before baking.

Combine prepared squash, stock, and milk in a large saucepan.  Bring to a boil, and then simmer until squash is tender. (Soymilk has a tendency to bubble and boil over. If you cover the pot, watch it!)  Add nutmeg, cayenne, and salt and pepper to taste.  Mash together to form a smooth sauce–I used an immersion blender. Best invention ever.

While the squash cooks, cook the pasta until al dente.

Drain pasta; add it to the squash mixture.  Add yogurt and cheddar, and stir to combine well.

Pour the mixture into the mac & cheese pan of your choice. I made a tiny one for photo taking purposes and a larger one in a Corningware casserole dish. A 9×13 dish would probably be fine for the entire meal in one dish.  Refrigerate until ready to bake.

Just before baking, combine breadcrumbs and pecorino  in a bowl.   Spread evenly over the mac & cheese.  Cover with foil.  Bake for about 35 minutes; remove foil and bake for another 10 – 15 mins until topping is golden.

I served this with some steamed broccoli and unsweetened applesauce. BEST COMBO EVAHHH