Mediterranean Strata

Mediterranean Strata
- from Better Homes & Gardens Vegetarian Cookbook

3 c. bread cubes/torn pieces (stale is better)
1 medium red bell pepper
2 T. olive oil
2 medium onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1/2 c. sliced mushrooms (optional, unless you are Jaclyn, then - essential) :)
OR 1/2 c. sliced olives (I've used green and kalamata)
3/4 c. crumbled feta or grated parmesan cheese (or grated swiss = Fake Quiche Lorraine)
6 eggs
2 c. chicken broth (or 1 3/4 c. broth and 1/4 c. white wine)
black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 450. Slice red pepper in half lengthwise and remove seeds. Place on foil-lined baking sheet skin side up and bake for 15 minutes or until skin bubbles. Let cool; peel skin off and coarsely chop.

2. Reduce oven heat to 350. Grease a 10" pie dish with olive oil; place bread pieces in dish.

3. In a medium skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Saute onions 5-10 minutes or until golden. Add garlic and mushrooms (if using); saute 2-5 minutes more. Add red pepper, heat through. Place onion mixture on top of bread pieces; spread out if necessary. Sprinkle cheese evenly over top.

4. In a large-ish bowl, beat eggs. Add chicken broth (and wine if using) and black pepper; stir to combine. Pour egg mixture slowly over top, pressing with the back of a spoon to moisten bread so egg mixture will soak in.

5. Bake 35-45 minutes at 350. Test for doneness with a toothpick. It will be big and puffy but will deflate after a few minutes.

Time and Money

You know how you never have time and money at the same time? It's either one or the other? Well right now I have neither one. I am busy AND poor. :) But.. as I have been recently reminded, it is all a matter of perspective.

And anyway, guess what I do have right now...

1. Great Friends
2. Free Avocados.

Life is good.

(OK this was a total Brad Lenzner post.)

How Washington State are You?

http://www.gotoquiz.com/how_washington_state_are_you

I am 93% Washington State... whatever that means. It was fun though. The only thing that would have made this quiz better is if it showed which ones you got wrong.

Spanakopita

It is easier than it sounds. The only weird thing you have to buy is phyllo dough, in the freezer section by the puff pastry (next to the frozen waffles).

This unbelievably quick and easy recipe for this is stolen from none other than Martha herself. I tried to link to it on her website but it isn't there. So here it is from my memory:

SPANAKOPITA**
3 T. Olive Oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 lb. baby spinach
1 egg
6 oz. feta cheese
3 T. dried dill
3 T. dried parsley (or 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley)
9 sheets phyllo dough
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 350. Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onion and saute about 8 minutes or until soft. Add garlic, saute one minute longer. Gradually add spinach; saute about 5 minutes or until wilted.

2. In large bowl, beat egg and add dill, parsley and feta cheese. Add spinach mixture to bowl and mix well.

3. Butter a cookie sheet. Place one sheet of phyllo on cookie sheet and brush with melted butter. Repeat twice. (Keep damp towel on top of phyllo while you aren't using it - this keeps it from drying out and breaking.) Spread spinach-cheese mixture over phyllo. Top with 3 more sheets of buttered phyllo and roll in the edges to seal. Butter remaining 3 sheets and crumple over the top.

4. Bake for 40 minutes - spanakopita should be a deep golden-brown.

**Upon tasting this, Ken Montgomery almost died and went to heaven.

Vegetable Broth from Scratch

... because you asked.

some carrots, peeled and cut in 2 inch chunks
some celery, cut in 2-3 inch pieces
onion, cut in 1/8s
16 cups water (Use asparagus or artichoke leftover cooking water if you have it handy)
salt and pepper to taste

Throw all ingredients in a large soup pot. Bring to a boil and simmer for a couple hours. Then, freeze 1 cup amounts in plastic bowls/cups so it keeps for longer!

The best way to do this is: if you happen to be cooking asparagus or artichokes or something else that makes green water, pour the water into a big pot and add the cut-up veggies. That was how I did it last time and it worked out great.

Perks:
- yummy broth that's lower in sodium and has no MSG
- good use for ugly veggies from your garden
- you can feel really resourceful and productive and Martha-esque

Award-Winning Texan White Chili

Dear Friends, I apologize for my long silence but I blame it on Facebook. It is just way more addicting and fun than blogging. :( Nevertheless, another recipe has come up in recent weeks that needs to be posted here.

History:
Abigail Lundelius, a Covenant College friend who hails from Texas, gave me this recipe. Her parents created it and it won awards because it is so ridiculously good.

Here it is as I received it from Abigail and I will let you in on my substitutions afterward:

WHITE CHILI
1/2 stick butter
2 lg. onions - chopped
2 T. chopped garlic
2 T. cumin seed
2 c. water
4 cans navy beans
3 cans white hominy (one blended to puree)
2 cans white shoepeg corn
1 can chopped green chilis (opt.)
2 or more jalapenos - minced
5-7 chicken breasts, diced
1/2 c. lime juice
2-3 T. ground cumin
salt to taste*

In a large pot, saute onion in butter until translucent. Add garlic and cumin seed and continue to saute 2 minutes or so, but do not allow to burn. Add water, beans, hominy, shoepeg corn, green chilis, jalapeno peppers and chicken to the pot. Simmer awhile. Add lime juice, ground cumin and any additional water to desired consistency. Salt to taste.*

*You will want to add a LOT of salt if you are having Santosh over for dinner.

OK - my subsitutions:
1) Instead of the 2 c. water, I use 2 c. homemade vegetable broth. It makes it more flavorful and you don't have to add as much salt at the end.

2) If I don't have navy beans, I use white kidney beans or great northern beans.

3) I am pretty sure we don't have white hominy in California, so I just use 5 cans of white corn - and if I can't find white corn, I just use yellow. Who cares?

4) This one is obvious but it must be stated for the record: lemon juice can be used instead of lime. :)

5) Not a substitution, but I just leave the cumin seed out at the beginning. I don't have cumin seed - just ground cumin, so I add a little extra at the end when it calls for ground cumin.

Let me know if you make this and how it turns out. Enjoy!

Ben is a Dad

Congratulations!

Friendly Rivalry

Dude, how do Oregon and Oregon State people co-exist in peace? One wonders.

Greek Vest

This is what I did over Christmas break - studied Greek. Thanks Marie for the vest. It has been helping a lot - seriously. And even though it looks sunny in this picture, it was sort of cold.

That's all.

Easy as Apple Pie

Preface: I should really change my blog title. Because I sort of think Martha Stewart is lame. She has a lot of creative people who work for her, and then she sits around and lives in her five homes and swims in her money bin, oh wait, that was Scrooge McDuck, I got confused.

Anyway, here is an anti-Martha recipe (that is, quick, easy and good). It's Easy Apple Pie from Margarete Dvorak. It's almost more like apple crisp... the sweetness is in the crust, not in the apples.

3-4 Granny Smith apples, thinly sliced (I don't bother to peel)
cinnamon and brown sugar (optional: dash each of nutmeg and cloves)
1 stick butter, softened
1 egg
1 c. flour
3/4 c. white sugar
capful of vanilla flavoring (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 375.

2. Spread half the apples in a pie plate. Sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar (and nutmeg and cloves if using). Repeat with other half apples. (Use enough apples to fill the pie plate up)

3. Mix butter, egg, flour, white sugar and vanilla. Drop dough on top of apples. Do not spread (it will spread as it bakes). Bake 45-50 minutes at 375.

Serving Suggestions:
- Ken enjoys his pie warmed up and topped with a dollop of plain yogurt, just like he likes his apple crisp.
- I like mine covered with slices of brie cheese.

Prague

Welp, we are going to Prague in August for 2 weeks! I just found out my own sister did not know that, and I feel very guilty now, so I will share.

Ken and I are leading a team of 8 high school and college-age people, who all happen to be girls, to the Czech Republic to visit the Farniks who are missionaries there. We're going to do an English camp and a VBS.

Two of the girls who are going were at winter camp: Vicki and Janna. Two other girls I already know: Suzzanne and Kathleen Winslow. All the girls are from various churches in the Southern California presbytery of the OPC (which includes Arizona).

Anyway... exciting times!!!

Mealtime's Bday

I wish I could just make signs all day long.

Winter Camp

These are Tim and Matt from my team. For some reason they were really fascinated with weapons. Our skit was a really bad version of Peter Pan. Tim played Captain Hook. We totally lost but I thought we should have got some points for Tim's mustache.

This is Ken's team, El Templo de los Hijos de la Pilar de something or other... El Templo for short. Their skit was the second funniest and the overall best (in my opinion). They had choreography and an original rap.

L-R: Ken, Kyle, Vicki from Phoenix who is coming with us to Prague (whats up!), Kayla, Mike MEIHAUS, Mark Nelson, Thomas the tank engine, Daniel Gandara from Mexico (he also speaks Japanese!), Erika Shaw, and Daniela Munoz.

You will notice that Thomas is wearing a t-shirt... yeah.... it wasn't too cold.

The Getty Villa

Dude, the Getty Villa was awesome. We went there on Saturday with Ryan and Jess Roberts. We took lots of pictures of marble statues and mosaics but the best part was seeing Jess. So that is the picture I'll post (not sure why I am doing the David Gay smile in this picture... ?)

The second best part was seeing Malibu... I have heard all about it of course and that you can live in a trailer there for like a million bucks. There are lots of big fancy houses like SF style, only it is pretty sunny there all the time, I think. The ocean is right there, just like Half Moon Bay... only sunny!!! Good times.

Here's a picture I took out my car window but it doesn't do it justice, of course. It was balmy yet breezy, like you could just wear shorts all the time.

Dave Elliott's Mom's Pancakes

These are the best pancakes. Dave Elliott was a dude who used to live with my mom and dad, whose mom made the best pancakes. Legend has it that although she passed away, her pancake recipe lives on because it rocks. I made these for Ken this morning for Valentine's day. His favorite way to eat them is topped with plain yogurt, seasonal fruit and real maple syrup.

2 eggs, separated
1 c. buttermilk, plain yogurt, or milk with a little lemon juice added
1 c. flour
1 T. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
some vanilla flavoring (about 1/2 tsp - eyeball it like Rachel Ray)
some almond flavoring (1/4 tsp?) (special for valentine's day)
1-2 T. melted butter

1. Add a pinch of salt to egg whites and beat until stiff but not dry. Set aside.

2. Beat yolks until thick and lemon-colored. Add buttermilk; beat together. Add dry ingredients and beat until smooth. Add flavoring and melted butter; stir to combine. Fold in egg whites.

3. Pour batter by the half-cup (approx) onto a pre-heated griddle, at around 275 degrees (or if your stovetop temperature is actually manageable, unlike mine, a large frying pan over medium heat should work).

Makes about 12 - 4" pancakes.

Birth Control Pill...

Interesting how the three little words "birth control pill" immediately spark not only medical, but fiery political and religious discussions! Kind of reminds me of working at the APC. :)

Pizza Florentine!

If I was really Martha Stewart, I would make my own pizza dough from scratch, grow my own spinach and probably even make my own sausage. But... who has time? So, I thank my friend Trader Joe for his help in supplying ingredients.

olive oil
1 bag TJ's plain pizza dough
tomato sauce
1 bag baby spinach (I used about half)
Basil-Pesto Chicken Turkey sausage (I forget the brand name but it comes fully cooked and is about $5 for a pkg of 5 sausages)
mozzarella cheese
parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 450. Brush about 1 T. (eyeball it like Rachel Ray) onto a pizza pan or baking sheet. Flatten dough and shape into a circle. Spread tomato sauce onto the dough (I used about 1/4 cup)

Rinse and coarsely chop about half the bag of spinach (perhaps about 4 cups?). Pile it on top of the sauce. It will be a tall pile, but it will shrink! Don't worry :)

Chop one sausage and scatter over spinach. Top with mozzarella, then a bit of parmesan. Bake 18-20 minutes; let cool for 3-5.

Serves 4 normal, or 2 famished people
---------
Let me tell you why this pizza is the absolute best. The spinach makes the pizza feel healthy, because you know you are eating lots of greens. Ken said, "should we have salad too?" and I said, "the salad is IN the pizza!" :) One thing I was wondering was if it would be flavorful enough since there is a TON of spinach. But there was enough cheese, super-flavorful sausage and tangy tomato sauce to stand up to the spinach. It was a nice balance.

Baked Ziti with Sausage

Our friends, the Naves, make the best food. Here is one of their specialties: kind of like lasagna, only better (and easier!).

8 oz. ziti or penne pasta
1 ½ cups ricotta cheese } or plain yogurt... it is still so good
1 cup sour cream }
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried basil
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 ½ pounds sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 jar of tomato sauce (14-16 ounces)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

2. Cook pasta and drain. Combine pasta, ricotta, sour cream, thyme, basil, salt, and pepper. Cook sausage and onion, add tomato sauce. Spread half the pasta mixture in bottom of a 2 quart baking dish, top with half the sausage mixture. Repeat layers, and top with mozzarella. Bake until heated through, and cheese is bubbly, about 35-40 minutes. Can be made in advance and frozen.

Basil-Avocado Soup

So, Brian Cochran decided to link the world of WSC blogs together, which was sort of interesting and nice, except that now people actually look at my blog, which makes me feel like I should post something. On second thought, maybe this is good.

So Sunny said she appreciates recipes. Here is an awesome recipe that I just tested on Mary Hawkins. It is a good summer soup. Not so great for today with all that rain... but still good.

BASIL-AVOCADO SOUP
2 c. carrot juice (if you don't have a juicer, just buy Odwalla or NakedJuice at Henry's)
1 lg or 2 small avocadoes, peeled and pitted
10 fresh basil leaves
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
juice of 1 lemon (1-2 Tbsp.)

Place all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth & creamy. I love this soup! If you like cold soups I think you will too! You can also make it thinner by using less avocado and make a lovely creamy orange salad dressing. I am thinking about playing with the seasonings of this and will let you know if I come up with anything else good.

Let me know if you try this and what you think! If you need an avocado, please contact me. :)

News

Moira and Justin got engaged!

The Illmans had a baby!