Russ' Salmon on the Plank

Sumner and John have had Russ and me over for dinner several times and we finally reciprocated and had them over tonight. Kilkee, their sweet puppy, came with them and she and Cash had a wonderful time playing outside. By the end of the night they were happy, tired pups!

Since the weather has been so nice we decided to grill part of the meal. We decided to have Russ do salmon on a cedar plank on the Egg. He has done plank salmon before and it has turned out very yummy. The planks soak in water all day and then a rub is applied to the salmon a couple hours before grilling. The salmon turned our really well tonight except that it was a little bit saltier than we would have wanted. Next time Russ plans to make a few minor adjustments to the seasonings to make it even better.

We served with it fresh corn on the cob, homemade blueberry muffins, and asparagus. I made the blueberry muffin batter earlier this morning and then baked them this afternoon. I have been on a quest to find the "perfect" blueberry muffin recipe for a few months now and this has been our favorite one so far. It is a whole wheat blueberry muffin from my new cookbook, King Arthur's Whole Grain Baking. They are a dense muffin from being whole wheat, but have great flavor and texture. Next time I will make a couple changes by adding more blueberries and taking them out of the oven a couple minutes sooner.

The asparagus is a repeater for us. It is a Cooking Light recipe from September 2001 that is quick, easy, and very tasty. It is called Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Browned Butter . We typically grill our asparagus after marinating it in Italian dressing, however, when we don't grill it this is our preferred recipe.

All in all it was a wonderful Spring dinner with good company! Russ rates the meal a 7 (only because he is being hard on himself with the salmon).

Chef Howie's Plank Salmon, "Planking Secrets"

For the dry rub:

2 tsp lemon pepper
1 tsp granulated garlic
1 tsp dried tarragon
1 tsp dried basil
1 Tbsp paprika
1 Tbsp kosher salt
2 tsp light brown sugar

For the salmon:

1 cedar plank, soaked overnight or at least 1 hour
four 6 oz pieces of fresh salmon fillet about 2 inches thick, skin removed (we use one large piece of salmon instead of individual portions)
2 lemons, cut into 8 wedges

Combine the ingredients for the dry rub in a small bowl.

Place the fillets on wax paper. Sprinkle both sides of the fish evenly with 2 Tbsp of the dry rub, pressing the seasoning into the fish. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 2 hours and up to 12 hours.

Preheat the grill on medium-high for 5 to 10 minutes or until the chamber temperature rises above 500F. Rinse the plank and place it on the cooking grate. Cover the grill and heat the plank for 4 to 5 minutes, or until it starts to throw off a bit of smoke and crackles lightly. Reduce the heat to medium.

Place the salmon on the plank and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until the fish has an internal temperature of 135F. (This temperature is my standard doneness measure for fish. Chef Howie prefers his salmon rarer and removes it from the heat at 120F.) Transfer the salmon pieces to plates and serve garnished with lemon wedges.

Sour Cream Muffins (King Arthur Whole Grain Baking)

2 cups white whole wheat flour
1/2 unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream (we used reduced fat)
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen berries or diced stone fruits (such as peaches or plums) of your choice
Coarse sugar for sprinkling (we used regular)

Lightly grease muffin tin, or line with papers and coat the papers with non-stick spray. Whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Cream together the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy and almost white in color. Scrape down the bowl to make sure all the butter is incorporated, then turn the mixer back on and add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla and sour cream, and mix until incorporated. Add the dry ingredients, mixing on a low speed just until the batter is smooth. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl once more, to be sure everything is evenly combined. Gently fold in the fruit and refrigerate at least one hour.

Preheat the oven to 400F. Scoop the batter by the 1/4-cupful into the prepared pan and sprinkle with sugar or other topping. Bake the muffins until a cake tester is inserted in the center and comes out clean, 22 to 26 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn them out onto a rack to finish cooling. (My notes: I baked them for 22 minutes and think they could have come out a minute or so sooner. Next time I'll check them at 20 minutes to see how they are doing.)

Quick and Easy Weeknight Meal

One of my new favorite food magazines is Fine Cooking. I just discovered it last year and Sweet Cash (with a little help from Russ) gave me a subscription to it for Christmas. I got my latest issue just recently and the front cover immediately caught my eye. It is a Hot Garlicky Shrimp with Asparagus and Lemon dish served over pasta. So, I put it on the menu for tonight and it will be my first recipe out of this issue.

It was fairly quick to prepare as there are not that many ingredients only a couple require chopping. I got all the peeled, deveined shrimp that Tria had left and then the rest Russ peeled and deveined for me. In the magazine they serve it with linguine, but I served it with spaghetti because we already had some. I should have timed how long it took me to prepare and cook the meal as it was pretty quick. Another aspect I liked about it is that it is a meal in its self and I didn't need to prepare anything additional to go with it. It had a wonderful fresh, light flavor to it with just enough heat from the red pepper flakes. This is definitely a meal that will be repeated in our house. While I loved the asparagus with it I think you could easily mix up the vegetable(s) you use in it if you want some variety.

All in all this was a wonderful weeknight meal that will most likely show up again at our house sometime this summer. Russ rates this recipe a 9.

Hot Garlicky Shrimp with Asparagus and Lemon
Fine Cooking, April / May 2007

Serves three.

1 lb. shrimp (21 to 25 per lb.), peeled, deveined, rinsed, and patted dry
¾ tsp. kosher salt; more as needed
Freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon
6 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
4 medium cloves garlic, thinly sliced
¾ lb. asparagus, bottoms snapped off, halved lengthwise if thick, and cut into 2-inch lengths (2 cups)
1/8 to ¼ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
2/3 cup low-salt chicken broth
½ tsp. cornstarch

Sprinkle the shrimp with a scant ¼ tsp. salt and a few generous grinds of black pepper. Using a peeler, gently shave the zest in strips from the lemon, taking care not to get any of the bitter white pith. Squeeze the lemon to get 1 Tbs. juice.

Put a 12 inch skillet (not non-stick) over medium-high heat for 1 ½ minutes. Add 2 Tbs. of the oil and once it’s shimmering hot, add the shrimp in a single layer. Cook undisturbed until the shrimp browns nicely, about 2 minutes. Flip the shrimp and brown the second side, about 1 ½ minutes. Transfer to a large plate. The shrimp should be a little undercooked.

Reduce the heat to medium, add the remaining 4 Tbs. oil and the garlic and cook, tossing until the garlic starts to sizzle steadily, about 30 seconds. Add the asparagus, lemon zest, and red pepper flakes, sprinkle with ½ tsp. salt and cook, tossing often, until the garlic is golden brown and the asparagus looks blistery in places, 2 to 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth, cover, with the lid ajar, and cook until the asparagus is just tender, 1 to 2 minutes.

In a small dish, whisk together the cornstarch with 1 Tbs. water, stir into the asparagus mixture, and bring to a boil. Stir in the shrimp, reduce the heat to low, and cook, tossing, until the shrimp is opaque throughout (cut one in half to check), 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the 1 Tbs. lemon juice and then add salt, pepper, and additional lemon juice to taste. Serve immediately. (Serve over hot al dente linguine.)

All American Night

Tonight we had my parents and Dr. James (a close family friend) over for dinner. Dr. James is an incredible cook who treats my family to the best Christmas Eve dinner every year. His cooking is amazing and usually involves gourmet recipes. So, what do Russ and I serve my parents and him.... hamburgers!

We decided to go casual and since the weather has been so nice we wanted to grill out. We decided to do burgers with goat cheese, a salad, and Ina Garten's baked fries. Russ did the burgers and they were wonderful (like always!). We added a little goat cheese (from the local farmer's market) in the middle and it really made a nice twist on the burger. For the salad I did chopped romaine with sliced pears, toasted pecans, crumbled feta, and a homemade balsamic dressing (my mother-in-law's recipe). As for the fries... I have tried baked fries in the past and have only thought they turned out okay. Everyone always eats them, but they just don't have the texture that I am wanting. Since I am a BC fan I thought I would give her recipe a try. It is the best I have had, but it still didn't quite turn out as I had hoped. I think with a few minor changes though that I could get the baked fries I am wanting. Next time I will spray the pan with Pam prior to baking and I will lightly brush the oil on the fries and then toss them with the other ingredients. The recipe has you toss them with olive oil, kosher salt, fresh cracked black pepper, minced garlic and fresh rosemary. The rosemary really did add good flavor and I hoping that next time with the technical changes that they will turn out even better.

Unfortunately we forgot to take pictures of the meal tonight, but we did get one of Cash playing with (aka destroying) his new hamburger toy. Russ rates tonight's All American meal a 9.

Baked 'Chips'*
(Ina Garten, "Barefoot Contessa Family Style")

4 large baking potatoes, unpeeled
4 tablespoons good olive oil
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
¾ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon minced fresh garlic
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves
Yield: 6 servings

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Scrub the potatoes, cut them in half lengthwise, then cut each half in thirds lengthwise. You'll have 6 long wedges from each potato. Place the potatoes on a sheet pan with the olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic and rosemary. With clean hands, toss all the ingredients together, making sure the potatoes are covered with oil. Spread the potatoes in a single layer with one cut side down.
Bake the potatoes for 30 to 35 minutes, turning to the other cut side after 20 minutes. Bake until they are lightly browned, crisp outside and tender inside. Sprinkle with salt and serve immediately.

*She calls them chips instead of fries as they are a part of her recipe for Fish and Chips.

Tex Mex in Telluride

So... it has been a while since my last post, but for a very good reason.... Russ and I were on vacation with his family! We went to Telluride, Colorado for a week to ski, relax, and eat! This was my first time ever to ski and despite a tough first few days I picked it up fairly well by the end of the week. I have come to realize that being an Olympic skier is never going to be in the cards for me. However, I think I may end up a slow, but steady skier after all.


So back to a topic that I am a little more familiar with and that doesn't make my legs sore... cooking. We ate out at several wonderful restaurants while we were in Telluride, but the "kids" also took turns cooking one night. On Russ and my night I really wanted to make a tortilla soup recipe that was new to us this winter. Russ was concerned that soup wasn't going to be filling enough, so we compromised and decided to do a cup of the tortilla soup and taco bar.


The tortilla soup recipe is fairly simple, but super yummy! This recipe is better than others to me because it has you saute chopped corn tortillas at the very beginning along with onion, cilantro, and garlic. The pieces of tortilla then stay in the soup the entire time it simmers and by the end are broken down and add a real heartiness to the texture. This texture along with its great flavor really makes this soup a winner for me.

For the taco bar we did ground beef with taco seasoning, flour tortillas, and lots of toppings. When I first started cooking for Russ I realized that some of his favorite recipes are the super simple ones and ground beef with package taco seasoning is definitely one of those. I have been tempted to try more elaborate tacos (such as pulled beef or marinated chicken), but it is hard to beat the quick and easy version since Russ loves it the best. I still may try new taco recipes in the future, but I imagine we'll still have the Russ' version too.

The only down side to our meal that I saw was that we served it a little later than we had hoped. However, this is one of the great things about being on vacation that it doesn't matter that much because you can sleep in the next day, take a nap or both. From the rest of the family's reviews of the meal I think it was a success despite it late serving.

Russ rates the tortilla soup a 8 and the taco bar a 8. We rate the vacation a 10 though!














Here is the recipe for anyone who wants it:

Tortilla Soup ("Stop and Smell the Rosemary")

6 tablespoons vegetable oil (I used a little less than 3)
8 corn tortillas chopped
6 garlic cloves minced
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 medium onion
chopped 1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (14 oz) petite diced tomatoes, undrained
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
3 bay leaves
6 cups chicken stock (I used reduced sodium)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add tortillas, garlic, cilantro, and onion. Saute 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in tomatoes. Bring to a boil and add cumin, chili powder, bay leaves, and chicken stock. Return to a boil. Reduce heat. Add salt and cayenne. Simmer 30 minutes. Remove bay leaves and stir in chicken. Reheat. Garnish with monterey jack, avocado, sour cream, and tortilla strips. (I cut some of the leftover corn tortillas into strips and bake them. I then salt them when they are done and serve them with the soup.) Serves 6 (1.5 cup servings)

The Mason's Come for Dinner

For those of you who read yesterday's entry I know you are just dying with suspense as to who was coming to dinner tonight. I will finally end the suspense for you and say that we had Russ' grandparents, The Mason's, over for dinner. They are so sweet and tons of fun to have over. They are also wonderful to cook for as they love everything we serve and always clean their plates!

In planning for tonight I tried to think of something that would different than what they are served at Somerby. I decided on one of my Mother's recipes called a Chicken Vegetable Braid. She got the recipe several years ago from a Pampered Chef home show and I love it because it is yummy, makes a great presentation, and the filling can be made in advance.

The inside is filled with diced chicken. cheese, dill seasoning, a little mayonnaise, and chopped veggies including broccoli, red and green peppers. You then use two rolls of Pillsbury's low-fat crescent rolls for the outside (the braid). You pop the containers and lay them flat on a baking sheet. You then make slits on each side leaving room in the center for the filling. Once you spoon the filling in the center you then take a slit from each side and pull them together and twist. It sounds somewhat complicated from my directions (only because it is hard to put into writing), but it is actually very easy. It makes for a great presentation after it is baked! I thought that tonight's turned out well except that I think I should have baked it a little longer as the center was not as hot as I would have liked. There were no complaints from anyone though, so I guess it turned out pretty well. Since it is a fairly hearty dish I just served it with a simple salad.

We hope to have them over again soon and plan to cook out next time since Russ has not had an opportunity to cook for them on his new Egg (grill). Russ rates this dish a 8.


Chicken and Vegetable Braid

(Mom from Pampered Chef)

1 cup broccoli, diced
2 cups chicken, cooked and cubed
1/2 cup green pepper, diced
1/3 cup red pepper, diced
4 oz cheddar cheese, shredded
2 tsp. dill mix
½ cup mayonnaise (I use reduced fat)
¼ tsp. salt
2 packages crescent rolls (I use reduced fat)

Preheat oven to 375 F.
Mix everything except the crescent rolls together in a bowl (this can be done the night before if you want). Then roll out the rolls and cut slices. Put the mixture in the middle and then wrap the slices cris crossing at the top (to form the braid). Bake at 375 F for 25 minutes.

Comfort Food: Meat Loaf Night

Tonight's dinner was a repeater for us. Not many recipes make "repeater" status for us. In general I like to keep trying to find a recipe that is better than the last. I have tried other meat loaf recipes, however, none have topped this one so far.

Russ and I decided to put meat loaf on the menu for this week after watching Bobby Flay have a meat loaf throw down on the food network the other night. I am a big fan of the food network and have been trying to catch Bobby Flay's throw downs in preparation for my own throw down with Scott. That's right, I am taking my brother-in-law on! I am not sure who we will have pick the throw down dish or judge the dishes, so go ahead and throw your name in the hat if you are interested in campaigning for one these prized positions.

Back to tonight's dinner... this is a Cooking Light recipe from 2005 for Chipotle Meat Loaf. When I first made this I had not cooked with chipotle peppers in adobo sauce before and now I have come to love their smokiness. Neither Russ nor I liked meat loaf growing up, but we have since found an appreciation and taste for it. It really is a comfort food and consequently I always feel like it needs to be served with mashed potatoes. This meat loaf is a different take on the traditional one though. It uses ground turkey instead of beef and uses very little tomato sauce. It also is loaded with lots of fresh and dried spices including cilantro, parsley, cumin etc. It also as I mentioned before has a chipotle pepper and adobo sauce in it. This is definitely the key ingredient that makes me like this recipe over others I have tried. It is also a moist, flavorful meat loaf. Russ rates the meat loaf a 9. Which for those keeping count is currently the highest rating on the blog!

It was a little bit of a sad night here though as we used the last of the bottle of Mrs. Hassinger's homemade ketchup. If you have never tried her ketchup before you are missing out as it has a fantastic flavor and texture to it. The few times we have made meat loaf we have topped it with her sauce and tonight was no exception. I am not sure what we'll use next time as just regular ketchup would be a big disappointment. I guess you'll just have to stay tuned to find out what we top our next meatloaf with.... As if that is not enough suspense already, we have special guests come over for dinner tomorrow night and we'll be serving a dish that is as pretty as it is tasty!

An Alfredo Craving

Typically on Sunday I start our menu planning for the week. Russ may argue that I start thinking about it further in advance, but nothing gets finalized until Sunday. Usually Russ doesn't make lots of requests because he isn't sure what he'll be wanting four days from now, however, this time he did have a request. Russ has been craving Fettuccine Alfredo recently, so to satisfy his craving we put Cooking Light’s Fettuccine Alfredo on the menu for tonight. This is an older CL recipe that was republished in the January 2007 issue. I have made Cooking Light’s alfredo sauce before and we both really like it. We think it is a great lightened version, however, it doesn’t have the rich creaminess of the fuller fat alfredo sauce.

Tonight I followed the recipe as is with one major change to the recipe. Despite my certainty that we had some fettuccine in the pantry when I went to get out the ingredients I realized we have every type of pasta except fettuccine. We ended up using a mix of linguine and spaghetti instead. The alfredo sauce comes together quickly and uses a cup of grated parmesan cheese that adds lots of flavor and depth to the sauce. Once the pasta is done we tossed it with the sauce. Russ grilled chicken that had marinated for about an hour and a half in Italian dressing and we topped the pasta with slices of it. We served it with two veggies, black-eyed peas and broccoli. The only draw back to tonight’s meal was the timing. I underestimated the time the pasta would take to cook and the broccoli ended up a little over cooked. In the end though it was a pretty yummy meal that hopefully satisfied Russ’ alfredo craving! Russ rates the pasta a 7.

I also want to give some props to Cash who is always very helpful in the kitchen. He tends to hang out in the kitchen while I cook and loves to lick the floor under my feet to get up anything that may have dropped or spilled. He also tries to help on the blogging front, however, he is asleep under my chair right now. What a sweet baby!

Tequila!!!

That's right, TEQUILA! When I bought the condo from Jess, she threw in a few bonus items including a bottle of tequila with about a cup left in it. That was about four years ago and I am just now getting around to using it.

Tonight we made Ina Garten's Tequila Lime Chicken. In the past two years I have managed to buy all of Ina Garten’s cookbooks. I really like her style and flavor of cooking and overall we have had great success with her recipes. While some of her dishes are too rich with heavy cream for our weeknight dinners; she does offer plenty of lighter options including tonight's dish. The chicken marinates in a spicy, citrus marinade for 24 hours and is then grilled. Russ is becoming quite the grillmaster on his new Egg and he did not disappoint with his work on tonight's chicken. It was moist and very flavorful. Russ felt like we could have cut back some on the lime juice in the marinade next time as there was a little bit of a tartness to it. I would not cut back on the marinating time though as I think that was key to its being flavorful throughout. Russ’ rating for the chicken is a 7.

Simple Tilapia Piccata

Tonight I made the Tilapia Piccata with Orzo out of the new March 2007 Cooking Light. It is the first recipe we have tried out of the March issue. Not that many recipes caught my eye in this issue, however, this piccata was one I definitely wanted to try. It got put on the menu tonight since we had all the ingredients on hand except for the fish. It was a great way to use up our remaining grape tomatoes and last lemon before they went bad. I have made Giada's Chicken Piccata before and Russ and I both liked it, however, it had lots of butter in it and was very rich. It also left a bad taste in my mouth (not literally) as I burned my hand while making it.

This piccata recipe was much lighter than Giada's and while not as rich tasting it certainly had lots of flavor. It is a light and fresh tasting recipe that was very quick and easy to prepare. I followed the recipe as written with the exception of cutting back slightly on orzo since it was just for the two of us. I did make the full amount of sauce since we sometimes find CL recipes to be a little short on the sauce, however, in this case we could have done without double the sauce as it was so flavorful. Russ and I both really enjoyed it and thought the sauce went especially well with the simple orzo. As a bonus I didn't burn myself this time. All in all a good meal that Russ rates an 8.