Perfect Corn Muffins

Posted by on January 8, 2013 7 Comments

Perfect Corn Muffins from 2 Sisters 2 Cities

My sisters will probably laugh at this post about corn muffins given my record with making them.  Back about five years ago,  my sisters were visiting me in Boston and I made a batch of cornbread to go with whatever dinner we were having.  I decided to make a batch from scratch and apparently used corn starch instead of corn meal.  Let’s just say the consistency was really, really bad.  They have not let me live down the cornbread debacle, but I think the joke is sorta on them considering they actually ate the corn starch corn bread!

Making Corn Muffins

I’ve now found a sure fire recipe for corn muffins and I even use the right ingredients now!  I have another recipe that I am planning on sharing tomorrow that goes perfectly with these muffins.

Corn Muffins from 2 Sisters 2 Cities

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Perfect Corn Muffins
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Ingredients
  • 1 and ¼ cups yellow cornmeal
  • 1 and ¼ cups all-purpose flour
  • ⅓ cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 and ½ cups milk
  • ¾ cup unsalted butter (1 and ½ sticks), melted and allowed to slightly cool

Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. Prep muffin pan with 12 baking cups.
  3. In a large bowl, mix together the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, milk, and butter. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and stir in the liquid. Stir until combined, but try not to overmix the batter (it may still be slightly lumpy.)
  4. Fill the 12 muffins cups about ¾th full. Bake for 18-20 minutes until lightly golden and a toothpicks comes out clean when inserted into the center of a muffin.

Source: Recipe from The Magnolia Bakery Cookbook

Have you ever made a cooking blunder that your family won’t let you live down?  I would love to hear your story!

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Garlic Rice Pilaf

Posted by on October 12, 2012 3 Comments

I wanted to share with you the best recipe for rice ever.  Not that I have too many recipes for rice…  I usually just cook plain white, basmati, or jasmine rice and throw in some fresh herbs or scallions.  When I make rice pilaf, I always made the box mix.  However, after making this garlic rice pilaf recipe, it will be very hard to return to the pilaf box mix.

Even the cow likes this recipe!

It’s kind of a lot of steps, considering that’s it rice.  It takes a long time to make as well.  I would not go starting this recipe at 7pm and hope to eat at a reasonable hour.  If I have the time to make it, I make a double-batch of the garlic rice pilaf so we can reheat it as a side dish throughout the week.  It especially makes a great side dish for chicken recipes.  Anyway, if you are a pilaf lover, I really think you should consider making this recipe.  You won’t be sorry!

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Garlic Rice Pilaf
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Recipe type: Side Dish
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Serves: 4
 

Ingredients
  • 2 tbsp. butter
  • 3 cloves garlic, pressed
  • 1 cup long-grain white rice
  • 2½ cups chicken broth, divided
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • ½ tsp. pepper

Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 375° F. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and rice to the pan and cook until both are golden brown, usually about 3-4 minutes. Stir in 1 cup of the chicken broth, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil. Pour the rice mixture into the casserole dish, cover, and bake for 25 minutes. Stir in the remaining 1½ cups chicken broth and bake, covered, for another 45 minutes.

Source: Slightly adapted from Annie’s Eats

Do you eat rice as a side dish with dinner?  What is your usual way to prepare it?

 

 

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Caprese Salad- The Taste of Summer

Posted by on August 20, 2012 1 Comment

For the past couple of weeks, I have had a huge overflowing vase of fresh basil and a large basket of heirloom tomatoes on my kitchen counter.  This point of summer is culinary heaven!  One of my favorite ways to use up all those tomatoes and basil is to make a caprese salad.  It’s very simple to pull together and in my opinion, it is the perfect taste of summer.  My favorite way to prepare it is to get as many different color heirloom tomatoes as possible on the plate.

One of the things besides beautiful tomatoes that really makes caprese salad work is good-quality balsamic vinegar and extra-virgin olive oil.  Two brands that I have really liked is the Kirkland Signature Balsamic Vinegar of Modena (available at Costco) and the Paesano Extra-Virgin Olive Oil (available at Whole Foods.) While there are certainly higher quality balsamic vinegars and olive oils out there, I think both types I listed are a very good value for their quality.

One day, I would  love to make homemade fresh mozzarella as well, but I may have to move that one to next summer’s bucket list.  Here’s to the last few weeks of summer!

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Caprese Salad
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Recipe type: Appetizer or Side Dish
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Serves: 4
 

The quintessential dish of summer!
Ingredients
  • 4-8 heirloom tomatoes (depending on size)
  • 1 fresh mozzarella ball, brought to room temperature
  • Balsamic vinegar (good-quality)
  • Extra-virgin olive oil (good-quality)
  • 4-6 basil leaves, cut chiffonade-style
  • Kosher salt
  • Freshly ground pepper

Instructions
  1. Wash and cut the tomatoes into thin slices. Arrange the tomatoes on a decorative serving platter. Slice the mozzarella ball into 6-8 large slices or into many small pieces depending on your preference. Drizzle on the balsamic vinegar and extra-virgin olive oil (I generally prefer a 1:2 ratio of vinegar to olive oil.) Sprinkle cut basil leaves on top and season with salt and pepper.

 

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Greek Pasta Salad

Posted by on June 21, 2012 Leave a Comment

Greek Pasta Salad from 2 Sisters 2 Cities

It’s now officially summer! And it has come in with a bang in the Boston area- 98 degrees yesterday and it may hit 100 later today.  With such heat, we usually opt to grill outside as much as possible.  For Father’s Day on Sunday, I pulled together this simple Greek Pasta Salad with some ingredients I already had on hand.  I loved how it came together and it was the perfect accompaniment to our grilled steak tips, sausages, and zucchini.

I recommend making this Greek Pasta Salad early in the day while it’s cooler out and the flavors get a chance to meld together.  I also don’t add the tomatoes until I’m ready to serve the pasta salad as tomatoes lose a lot of their flavor if they are refrigerated.  If you don’t feel like dicing up olives or roasting a red pepper, be sure to check your supermarket antipasto bar- an olive tapenade or pre-made roasted red peppers will work in a pinch!

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Greek Pasta Salad
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Recipe type: Side dish
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Serves: 12
 

The perfect pasta salad for a hot day
Ingredients
  • 16 oz box fusilli pasta
  • 1 red pepper, washed, trimmed, and cut in half
  • ½ cup olive oil (or more to taste)
  • ⅓ cup lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons snipped fresh basil or 2 tsp. dried basil, crushed
  • 2 tablespoons snipped fresh oregano or 2 tsp. dried oregano, crushed
  • 1 tablespoon anchovy paste
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed or minced
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • ½ cup kalamata olives, diced
  • ½ small red onion, diced
  • 1 cup feta cheese
  • 2 plum tomatoes, chopped

Instructions
  1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain in a colander and rinse with cold water until cool.
  2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place red pepper halves on a baking sheet covered with foil. Bake for about 15 minutes until peel starts to blacken. Take baking sheet out of the oven and wrap pepper tightly with the aluminum foil it was baking on. Once it has cooled, remove peel and dice red pepper into small pieces.
  3. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, basil, oregano, anchovy paste, garlic, salt, and pepper.
  4. In a large bowl toss together the cooked pasta, red pepper, olives, red onion, feta, and dressing. Cover and chill in refrigerator for as least 2 hours or up to 24 hours. To serve, add diced tomatoes; toss. Makes 12 to 16 side-dish servings.

What is your favorite dish to prepare when the temperatures are soaring?

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Domino Weeknight Dinner Party

Posted by on April 29, 2012 3 Comments

Years ago, I had clipped an article from the now defunct Domino magazine detailing how to throw a weeknight dinner party.  Last night, I finally decided to use the menu from the article for a small dinner party we were having.  Granted, it was a weekend night, but it worked out for the best as I was a little short on time yesterday with a few other commitments we had during the day.  The article has a full timeline of how Nathan Turner goes from work at 5:00 pm to dinner on the table by 8:00 pm.  I find some of the details a little far-fetched considering he does not have any groceries, wine,  or flowers when he gets out of work, and still finds time to buy all this, re-arrange the flowers into a more aesthetically pleasing look, set the table, and oh yeah, prep and cook all the food.  However, it is a fairly simple menu to pull together for guests and I was pleased with the results.

The Menu:

Appetizers: Mixed olives, a cheese plate featuring 1 hard, 1 soft, and 1 semisoft cheese (I went with a brie, a Danish blue cheese, and an Irish cheddar), roasted red peppers, crackers, and  5-minute artisan bread

Dinner: Pesto-Crusted Rack of Lamb (recipe below), Potato and Leek Mini Gratins, and Roasted Tomato & Mixed Greens Salad

Dessert: Strawberry Rhubarb Slab  Pie - This was not on the original menu from the article, but I saw it in a recent cooking magazine and thought it looked really good (and it was!)  Stop back later this week on Fresh Produce Tuesday for the recipe…we are featuring Rhubarb recipes this week.

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Pesto-Crusted Rack of Lamb
Recipe type: Entree
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
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Serves: 4
 

Ingredients
  • 2 racks of lamb, frenched and cut into individual chops
  • ½ cup pesto (you can buy store-bought or make your own)
  • 1 cup bread crumbs
  • cooking spray

Instructions
  1. Before the dinner party, spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Brush a small amount of pesto on each individual lamb chop. Pour the bread crumbs in a bowl and roll each chop in the bread crumbs. Cover with aluminum foil and put in the fridge.
  2. About 10 minutes before dinner, turn the broiler on high. Cook the chops under the broiler until a nice crust forms (about 4 minutes a side).

For the potato and leek mini gratins, just cut the white part of 2 leeks and 4-5 small, peeled potatoes into thin slices.  Pour a small amount of olive oil in each cup of a muffin tray and add a small amount of shredded gruyere cheese.  Add a layer of potato, then a layer of leeks, and more gruyere cheese.  Repeat these 3 ingredients until the cups are full.  Pour 2-3 tablespoons milk over each mini gratin.  Cover with foil and place in fridge until ready to make.  Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes, removing the foil halfway through.

To make the roasted tomato and mixed green salad, start by putting 1 pound of cherry tomatoes on a baking sheet and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper.  Roast for 25 minutes at 375 degrees.  On a separate baking sheet, roast 1/4 cup of pine nuts for a few minutes until lightly toasted.  Once tomatoes are done, take the juices from the tomatoes and pour into a small bowl to make the dressing.  Put the tomatoes aside to cool.  Add 1 tablespoon white balsamic vinegar, 3 tablespoons good quality extra virgin olive oil, and a pinch of sugar and salt to the tomato juices in the bowl.  Whisk together.  Place mixed greens in a large salad bowl.  Right before dinner is served, add the roasted tomatoes, pine nuts, feta cheese, and dressing and mix the salad together.

Source: Adapted from Domino magazine, October 2008

What do you like to serve for an easy dinner party?

 

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Hearty Winter Vegetable Side Dishes

Posted by on January 23, 2012 Leave a Comment
On Sunday evening, my husband likes to cook a meal for us when he can.  He usually likes to cook up some type of red meat with a few vegetable side dishes.  These sides are very good with most any red meat dish, including beef, lamb, veal or even pork. We chose lamb chops (which we will give you a good recipe for at the end of this post).
Onion Roasted Potatoes
Take 6 yellow or yukon gold potatoes, and an onion. Cut the potatoes into eighths, and chop the onion. Place these ingredients into a large zip lock bag with a quarter of a cup of olive oil. Cover with salt and pepper. From here, these can be roasted in the oven or even put on the grill (we did the latter to save time). Put them on medium heat on the grill for 40 minutes, stirring regularly. Double this time if in oven.
Roasted Green Beans
For red meat dishes, we prefer asparagus, but as a northern hemisphere vegetable, they are out of season. Green beans, however, grown anywhere and are readily available. For these, you need olive oil and butter. Put 30-40 green beans in a 1/8th of a cup of olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter. Grill for 25 minutes, or put in the oven for 30. Take 10 minutes off these times of you like them crunchy.
Garlic Roasted Shiitake Mushrooms
Get about 30 Shiitake mushrooms and a six to eight cloves of garlic. Chop the garlic cloves in half, and cut the stems off the shitake mushrooms. Cover in about an eighth of a cup of olive oil, and roast for 25-30 minutes on the grill or in the oven. These are particularly good with a red meat main course.
These are three dishes which are great with red meat. You can do any type of meat with these, but we chose lamb chops, which are quite tasty. The recipe we used was to brush the chops in an olive oil mix filled with thyme and rosemary. Quite delicious after being grilled for 10 minutes a side. Grab a full-bodied cabernet and enjoy!
-m
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Winter Warmer Recipe: Tropical Fruit Salad

Posted by on January 6, 2011 Leave a Comment

Since we are in midst of winter with no end in sight, I decided to make a tropical fruit salad today.  This recipe is super easy, but will help beat out some of the winter doldrums!

Tropical Fruit Salad

Ingredients:
-3 kiwis
-1 mango
-2 oranges
-1 tablespoon honey

Peel and slice up the fruit.

Put the fruit in a bowl and stir in the honey.

Sit back and enjoy your tropical fruit salad.  Close your eyes and picture yourself on a warm island somewhere!  (And tune out all meteorologists who keep talking about two upcoming snow storms.)

-m

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An Alternative Guacamole Recipe

Posted by on February 23, 2010 Leave a Comment

For the Super Bowl, I also made Guacamole (as did our Mom…I guess it’s a family trend).  Sister K has a very good recipe that she has made for me before (for recipe, click here.)  I was searching around for a new variation and I found this one by Alton Brown on the Food Network website.

Ingredients
-3 Haas avocados, halved, seeded and peeled
-1 lime, juiced (I was out of limes and half a lemon worked just fine in this recipe)
-1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
-1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 medium onion, diced (I prefer red onion for this recipe)
2 Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro (omit if serving for a crowd…a lot of people do not like cilantro)
1 clove garlic, minced

Directions

In a large bowl place the scooped avocado pulp and lime juice, toss to coat. Drain, and reserve the lime juice, after all of the avocados have been coated. Using a potato masher add the salt, cumin, and cayenne and mash. Then, fold in the onions, tomatoes, cilantro, and garlic. Add 1 tablespoon of the reserved lime juice. Let sit at room temperature for 1 hour and then serve.

A good trick I learned somewhere is to stick the avocado pits into the guacamole while it is sitting out.  Remove them before serving.  In addition to the lime/lemon juice, this prevents the guacamole from browning.

-Sister M

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Not Your Average Rice Cake…

Posted by on February 21, 2010 Leave a Comment

I finally got around to making a special Valentine’s Day dinner, albeit about a week late (last Sunday, neither one of us felt like going grocery shopping and we just ended up getting Indian take-out).  For starters, I made hummus, toasted pita chips, and warm olives with za’atar.  For the actual dinner, I used Ana Sortun’s cookbook Spice (chef of Oleana…my hands down favorite restaurant in Boston and her husband runs the best farmer’s market stand, Siena Farms, in Copley Square during the summer months).  I made the Seared Salmon with Egyptian Garlic and Coriander Sauce, Rice Cake, and Sister K’s Roasted Asparagus.  The salmon was very good…it browned very nicely in this recipe.  I made way too much of the tomato sauce as I forgot to halve the recipe.  I did get to practice my new cooking skill of peeling tomatoes that I learned in my French cooking class.  Basically, you cut off the top, cut an x from top to bottom of the tomato and place in boiling water for 1 minute.  Put in an ice bath afterwards and the peel practically falls off.  The rice cake were delicious…scoops of rice that get a great crusty top when you cook them and then bake them.  Here is the recipe slightly abridged for time for quantity (check out the cookbook for the full recipe):

Rice Cakes:

Ingredients
-1 cup basmati rice
-2 eggs
-1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
-1/2 tsp salt
-1 tblsp canola oil
-1 tsp butter

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil over high heat.  Add rice and reduce the heat to medium.  Simmer for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Drain the rice and allow to cool for 20 minutes.  Preheat over to 350 degrees.  In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs with the yogurt until smooth.  Stir in rice and season with salt.

Heat a medium ovenproof saute pan over high heat and add oil and butter.  Once the butter is brown, scoop the rice in 1/2 cup measuring container and drop into pan (should make 4-6 scoops).  Cook over medium heat until the bottoms brown (around 6-10 minutes).  Place this pan in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.  The bottoms should have a nice crust and the tops should still be soft.  Serve with the crust side up.

I thought this made a great side dish and was not very difficult to make.  I am definitely going to make this one again.

-Sister M

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