lizzycooks

Cold Lemon Balm Tea

Lemon balm is good for you. Cut off about a cup of lemon balm and put it in a medium bowl, boil some water, pour it over the lemon balm, and let steep for 30 minutes. Pour liquid in pitcher & refrigerate. Add lemon balm leaf to garnish.

Lettuce Wraps with Spicy Chicken & Peanut Butter

It always feels wonderful to eat homegrown vegetables. I grew the buttercrunch lettuce for these wraps which is a good lettuce to use for wraps, and you can experiment with different lettuce types. There is a recipe on this blog for a lettuce wrap and I used it and another one I found to come up with this version. Peanut butter in the sauce? Yes, please! The ingredient amounts are an estimate. I only measured the sesame oil because a little goes a long way, am I right? And the chili sauce--go more if you like it hot but the called for 2 teaspoons gives it a medium spice and will make your nose run.

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 lb. ground chicken

1/3 red onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 water chestnuts, chopped

1/2 tablespoon ginger, minced (I keep some in the freezer)

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons peanut butter

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons chili sauce

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

2 tablespoons cilantro for topping

1 green onion for topping

Heat a frying pan over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. Let the oil heat up and cook the chicken, onions, garlic, water chestnuts, ginger, and salt. Turn the heat to low and add the remaining 5 ingredients, one by one, stirring after each is added. Cook on low for 15 minutes and then serve on top of lettuce, add toppings, and -- wrap it up because it will be messy!

Fresh Blueberry-Strawberry Trifle

Fresh summer fruit--the best. Homemade whipped cream feels like a cloud in your mouth and this trifle is bursting with the sweet fruit of summer. The pound cake adds texture and soaks up the yummy juices from the mascerated strawberries and blueberries. Other types of berries can be used if it suits your fancy. Click here for my whipped cream recipe.

2 cups fresh blueberries

2 cups fresh strawberries, tops cut off & sliced thinly lengthwise

1/4-1/2 cup sugar

2 slices pound cake, cut into cubes

Mix the fruit and sugar. Stir, and refrigerate for at least a couple of hours until juice is created. Add pound cake to a martini glass and layer with fruit and whipped cream. Cheers!

Dad's Simpler Foccacia

This is a recipe from my dad's collection and it's easy and quick--for bread that is. It is a yeast bread that only takes about 4 hours from start to finish. I added fresh homegrown Greek oregano, and you can use other herbs too, such as rosemary, thyme, or chives.

3 ½ - 4 cups bread flour
2 teaspoon instant yeast
1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons fresh oregano

1 ½ cups water
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon honey

Place dry ingredients into mixer bowl and stir with paddle until well mixed. Add liquid ingredients and mix until it makes a moist ball. Remove paddle and replace with dough hook. Mix for 8 minutes. If mixture is too moist, add a little flour. Place in a bowl coated with cooking spray and cover with a towel or plastic wrap. Let rise at room temperature for 1 ½ hours.

Shape and press the dough onto a 10” x 15” baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Use your fingers to make dimples in the dough about 2 inches apart. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise for one hour.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place baking sheet in the middle of the oven and reduce heat to 400 degrees. Bake for about 25 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool one hour before slicing.

The Best Pot Sticker Sauce

Here is a recipe from my dad's file for jao-tze/pot sticker sauce.

¼ cup dark soy sauce
¼ cup white vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
2 tablespoons minced garlic
½ teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons hot oil (optional)

Whisk all ingredients together and serve with pot stickers.

Limoncello Champagne Cocktails

This recipe is from my Dad's files and it has become my favorite cocktail of late. Delicious and refreshing. You could use sparkling wine if you can't get champagne. For a fancy sugared rim, rub the rims of the glasses with a slice of lemon and then dip into sugar. Cheers!

8 strips of lemon peel (3" x ½")
8 tablespoons Limoncello
4 teaspoons lemon juice
1 bottle brut champagne

Roll up the lemon peel strips and place each in a champagne flute. Add 1 tablespoon Limoncello and ½ tsp lemon juice to each glass. Divide the champagne evenly among the glasses and serve.

Stuffed Poblano Peppers with Panko Bread Crumbs

Penzey's Spices is one of my favorite companies and I recently ordered a package of their dried (red) ancho peppers. They are dried poblano peppers. The anchos were rehydrated in a bowl of boiling water, rinsed, seeded, and dried off to prep them for this recipe. The peppers are slightly spicy and have a hint of cumin. After baking, the peppers turn sweeter and have crispy edges. The texture is similar to a sun-dried tomato. Of course, the cheese is delicious and the Panko bread crumbs are the best--nice and brown and crunchy.

4 rehydrated, dried ancho chili peppers

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Cumin, chili powder, & garlic powder to taste

Panko bread crumbs for topping

Preheat oven to 400.

Add cumin, chili powder, and garlic powder to the shredded cheese and mix.

Carefully slice the peppers on one side to make an opening for the stuffing.

Stuff each pepper with cheese mixture and put a toothpick through the peppers to hold them together. Sprinkle the tops of the stuffed peppers with Panko bread crumbs to cover.

Bake at 400 for 20 minutes. Remove toothpicks and serve.

Before and after photos:

Pimento Mac and Cheese with a Minor Kick

This is the second time in my life I've made mac and cheese. I tried this recipe out for the first time today after someone shared it with me. I made a few changes and came up with this one using lower fat dairy. Next time I make this I'll add more pimentos and jalapenos. Classic comfort food that serves about 8 peeps depending on hunger meter.

16 oz elbow macaroni

2 tablespoons butter

3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

6 tablespoons butter
1 small yellow onion, chopped
3 large cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons pickled jalapeno, chopped

1 teaspoon paprika

1/2 cup flour

Frank's Hot Sauce--how many shakes can ya take?

*s/p to taste

4 cups 2% milk

4 oz jar chopped pimentos, drained

8 oz low-fat cream cheese

2 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

*s/p to taste

Cook the macaroni per package instructions then drain under cold water, and drain again.

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in small pan over medium heat. Add bread crumbs. Stir and brown for 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and set over there and don't burn anything.

In a large dutch oven or large pot melt 6 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add onions, garlic, and jalapeno. Cook for about 5 minutes. Add flour, paprika, and hot sauce. *s/p to taste

Reduce heat to low and slowly whisk in the milk. This mixture will thicken quite a bit. Simmer for about 7 minutes while whisking. Add pimentos, cream cheese, and cheddar cheese. Stir together well. *s/p to taste

Add pasta to cheese mixture and stir until well blended. Add to greased 13x9 glass pan. Sprinkle panko bread crumbs over the dish and bake at 350 for 25 minutes. The mac and cheese should be brown and bubbly on top when it's finished. Remove from oven and let sit for a few minutes before serving.

*s/p to taste: I always use kosher salt and Penzey's tellicherry ground black pepper in my cooking.

Thick Homemade Whipped Cream (Where Have You Been All My Life?)

It's great to finally have time to cook. Most days now, I want to create something in the kitchen. I made fresh whipped cream for the first time yesterday and will never go back to store bought. I don't use whipped cream often but when I do it'll be this recipe from now on. Whipped up another batch today just to see the magic happen again. Amazing how the heavy cream transforms into a slightly sweet, luscious, thick, cloud pillow. This whipped cream belongs on everything! I'm going to try some in my coffee tomorrow morning. I don't even want to look at the nutrition label. You can freeze it too, while it's still in the carton or after it's been whipped.

1 cup cold, heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon Penzey's Mexican vanilla

With an electric hand mixer, blend the ingredients for 5-6 minutes on medium-high. The whipping cream transform from a creamy texture to a thicker, clotted texture. That's when it's time to stop mixing or you'll end up with butter.

The small photo is this thick whipped cream atop chocolate pudding. An excellent combo.

Creamy Cocoa Cheesecake

For a time, this cheesecake was my go to "fancy" dessert. I haven't made it in years until today, and was inspired by a photo I saw of a peanut butter and chocolate cheesecake. I will have to make it another time because today is all about cream cheese, sour cream, and cocoa. I'd forgotten about the sweet sour cream topping on this creamy cocoa cheesecake. Adds a nice touch. The original recipe is from my 1981 Philadelphia Cream Cheese Cookbook. I changed up the original and used the following ingredients.

Preheat the oven to 375.

Crust:

1 1/4 cup crushed graham cracker crumbs

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons sugar

Mix the graham cracker crumbs, butter, and sugar in a small bowl. Press firmly onto the bottom of a springform pan.

Filling:

1 8 oz package low-fat cream cheese

1 8 oz package regular cream cheese

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup cocoa powder (I use Hershey's)

1 teaspoon Penzey's Mexican vanilla

2 eggs

In a large bowl, blend all ingredients well with electric mixer. Pour into crust.

Bake for 30 minutes and remove from oven.

Topping:

1 cup low-fat sour cream

2 tablespoons sugar