Grandma's Kitchen Table

Eating with Ellie: Grilled Tandori Chicken Breasts

       The sixth recipe I made with the Eating with Ellie group is Grilled Tandori Chicken Breasts, is found on page 137 of Ellie Krieger's cookbook Weeknight Wonders, and was Glennis's pick for us this week. 

       Ingredient list:  chicken breast, lemon, salt, garlic, yogurt, ginger, coriander, cumin, turmeric, ground cloves, and cayenne pepper. 

       I realize I could have served a more Indian-oriented plate, but asparagus and butternut squash was what I had on hand and it sounded really good, so I went with that.  Weeknight grilled chicken breasts are always easy and when you jazz them up with an Indian flavored marinade, it sends them into the "something special" category.  We enjoyed this recipe and I would make it again as we liked the seasonings which really did make this special. 

       If you wonder how the others did this week, click here to follow their post links.  You can also find the recipe schedule for the coming weeks there. Next week's recipe was chosen by me, is Chicken Paprikash, and is found on page 150 of Weeknight Wonders.  Please come and join us at any time, just leave the link to your post that week so we know where to find you.  :-)

 

Wonderful Little Gus Back Riding the Range at Marie's

       Well, wonderful little Gus is back at Marie's.  We tried, and we so wanted it to work out, but little Tibetan Spaniels are just so dang good at what they are bred to do...guard you! 

       We love Tibbies, so much so that I wouldn't want another breed of dog.  They are smart and funny and so very loyal.  All that loyalty makes them a little vocal when it comes to anyone or anything that might enter their territory, which seems to encompass pretty much the whole world.  Tibbies, even little ones, have a very deep sharp bark, and while they do not bark for no reason, they feel very adamant when they do have a reason...which means if you are entering an area where a Tibbie is currently residing, you should know there will be a loud announcement of your arrival. 

       When Marie asked me if I wanted to try having a Tibbie in our current living situation (our great adventure living downtown in an apartment five minutes from Mark's office for the next couple of years), I knew I wanted to give it a try as I missed our two Tibbies so much.  Gus is such a wonderful little dog, so cuddly, loving, and sweet...and so good at his job of wanting to alert and protect us.  Those other parts work well in any situation, apartment or house, the last one not so much when there are little noises going to and fro all hours of the day in an apartment (unlike in a situation with a house).  We never notice those little noises in the day and sleep through them in the night.  Not Gus.  Gus has excellent hearing and doesn't sleep through any sort of activity that might be intruding on his territory. 

       Gotta love the Tibbie for that...we loved that, too, at the house as there was no way anyone was going to get anywhere near our house without Pippin & Vash sounding the alarm.  In the apartment, with an emergency room doctor living next door who needs sleep at various times of the day...well, let's just say not everyone finds that charming.  So after five days of giving it a go, it was deemed best that Gus return to Marie's house to romp and ride the range with the free-wheeling dudes and missy there. 

       The dudes and missy were all head over heels delighted to see his return and when we left, Gus, Breezy, and Flame were all out running and playing in Marie and George's back yard, so while there were a few tears at leaving him there, I know I will see him and his buddies and maybe Gus can come and visit now and again!  Or we can change our plans and buy our next house sooner than we had planned. 

Wednesday with Donna Hay: Pasta with Pumpkin and Sage Brown Butter

       My ninety-sixth recipe with the Wednesday with Donna Hay group is Pasta with Pumpkin and Sage Brown Butter, was chosen for the group by Margaret, and is found in Donna Hay's book Off the Shelf, on page 18.

       The ingredient list:   pumpkin, fettuccine, butter, sage leaves, Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper. 

       Absolutely delicious, something I would make again and again for sure.  The pumpkin gets very soft and creamy and the sage brown butter sauce is delicious on its own, but combined with the other ingredients, makes this dish really special.  A big hit here. 

       Wonder what the others thought?  You can find that by clicking here.  Next week is Chaya's choice for the group, Too Easy Blueberry Muffins  found online here.  Join us and leave a link to your post at the website by clicking here, no commitment required.

Tuesdays with Dorie Baking Chez Moi - Pink Grapefruit Tart

      This week's recipe for Tuesdays with Dorie is Pink Grapefruit Tart, found on page 138 of Dorie Greenspan's Baking Chez Moi book.  

       Ingredient list:  butter, light brown sugar, almond flour, egg, gelatin, water, sugar, grapefruit, Compari, and a Sweet Tart Dough pre-baked crust.  (If you will note in my photo I made a 6" tart which used a third of the dough crust, and I made third of the lemon almond cream, and also a third of the grapefruit filling, which was more than plenty to fill the 6" tart.  This size of tart for the two of us is my favorite size and so easy to work with, this pan is one of the most-used pans in my collection without a doubt.) 

       This grapefruit tart was a new and delicious treat for us, both of us are citrus-lovers so this sounded like a wonderful "burst of sunshine" for these cold dreary winter days.  There are many steps, encompassing many hours, most of which are "sit around and wait hours," but nonetheless, one needs to plan ahead to make this (which is why I have been working on and off since early morning on it as I'm not that good at planning ahead at times, especially as we have a new puppy in the house, so this was one of those times, balancing puppy training with creating a fabulous dessert was interesting to say the least). 

        Was it worth all the steps and hours?  Oh yes, definitely worth it in every single bite.  Every Single Bite.  All that creamy grapefruit goodness, not too sweet, not too tart, just right.  Would I make it again?  Yes, I might, just probably might, as now that I have the process down, it seems a lot easier than when I first started planning for it.  You can stretch it over a couple of days and make it easier yet.  

        Check around with the other bakers and see how they did with the recipe this week.  The blogroll can be found here.

        Come and bake with us from Dorie Greenspan's Baking Chez Moi cookbook:  the next assignments are:  Lemon Madeleines on page 212 for March 10th; Crispy-Topped Brown Sugar Bars on page 324 for March 24th; and Rewind (make any recipe you missed) for March 31st. The Tuesdays with Dorie group information for joining the group, recipe selection, and general information can be found here.

Gus Is In The House

       Well, Gus is in the house.  Bouncing.  Jumping.  Running.  And then collapsing in a lump to sleep it all off at a moment's notice.  Puppies are like that...so much exuberance we wonder how one little bundle of fur can have such joy at life. and such interest in every single thing. 

       He seems to be adjusting well...figuring out routines moment by moment.  So much so that when Mark put on his shoes and coat to go to work this morning, Gus was a little put out as it did not include his halter and leash for a walk about.  His routine here the past couple days has been that he and Mark go for walks and watch basketball games.  Weekend guy things.  Staying home with me didn't seem to be all that thrilling.  Until I started to prep some food in the kitchen, then the interest seemed to perk right up.  And he seems to like Tom Petty's music quite a lot. 

       The photos I posted on the first post were ones of Gus in Japan before he came to the United States in November, he was 3 months old at the time and sporting his fluffy puppy look.  These photos today are of Gus now at 6 months old sporing his sun-bleached wind-blown riding-the-plains-cowboy-dude look.  This is pretty much what he will look like from now on, although he will be a little larger than his current 8 pounds, maybe around 12-14 pounds.

         He's very cute and we love him already, so nice to have a Tibbie back in the house.  Speaking of having a Tibbie puppy in the house, this is a nice photo of little Gus peacefully sleeping in his favorite spot on the couch yesterday morning...at the time I decided it would be a great moment to get dressed for the day and make the bed.  When I returned to the living room, it was apparent the timing of my moment of decision had  coincided exactly with the moment that Gus felt he needed a Kleenex. 
Enough said.  I smiled as I remembered Pippin and Vash going through this stage...Gus following in much loved footsteps.  Yep, there's a puppy in the house! 

Meet Gus

       We've been without a pet for a couple years now, and although I indicated that when the freedom that comes with "there will be no replacement pets" occurred, that I would be fine with that pet-less stage, instead I found that I missed the little critters dreadfully.  So, I was sorta kinda thinking maybe when Lindsay's crew produced another litter, I would push myself to the front of the line.  And I still plan on doing that.
        In the meantime, Marie had puppies to train and show and welcomed visits from The Lonely-For-Tibbies Girl (that would be me) stopping by and spoiling all her Tibbies with lavish praise and attention.  As it turns out, one of Marie's darlings sported a bit of a bowed leg issue that wasn't exactly going to wow the judges in Marie's show ring world.  Yuuki (his given name, but I referred to him as The Little Cowboy) was going to need a new range to ride.  Lindsay and I had spoken often about whether I would like a boy Tibbie (we had two of Lindsay's best boys ever, Pippin and Vash, so I am very partial to boys) or a girl Tibbie (Lindsay thinking maybe I would like to try having a little girl puppy as I loved her Tibbie girls so much).  There was never a question about it being a Tibbie either way...Tibetan Spaniels are the way we roll around here.  So I had sorta kinda thought maybe I would get an Uptown Girl this next round and see what girl doggies were like.  All this speculation and dreaming came to an end when Marie's Little Cowboy spoke to my heart with those big Tibbie eyes and my thoughts of an Uptown Girl turned instead to a Downtown Dude.
        The rest I can't explain.  Well, I can, but it's complicated.  Since I was getting the doggie, I figured the guys should have input into the name we chose.  Gus was the favorite choice (and I got to input that he should have a fancier name than just plain Gus as he was, after all, from a noble lineage, an excellent kennel, and of show quality, except for those little bowed legs, so Gus would become Augustus for fancy occasions).  Now Gus is on the smaller side of male Tibbies, so having a big tough guy name like Gus would seem to give him an advantage...like in "you don't mess around with Gus," whether this be fact or fiction. 

       And then, I don't know exactly what happened but somehow Gus got the last name of Huckleberry.  He's no hound dog, or maybe it's because this week is the 130th anniversary of the publishing of Huckleberry Finn, or maybe they just liked the sound of Huckleberry...I don't really understand it, other than something about it being unique and no one else will ever have a dog named Gus Huckleberry.  And they probably won't.  And you can probably understand why without me pointing it out. 

       So, without further ado, Gus Huckleberry, the Downtown Dude, is scheduled to take up residence on Saturday and ride the range here for the rest of his days with his cowboy stance and his suits-him-just-fine name.  This is what happens when you let guys name dogs. 

       A very special thank you to Hiroomi Morishita for his generosity and best wishes to us and for his wonderful little Yuuki.  His kennel in Japan is Yuuki (Gus's) homeland.  We are very thankful to Hiroomi and Marie Firos for their confidence in placing Yuuki (Gus) with us.

Eating with Ellie: Pork Tenderloin with Fennel and Grapes

       The fifth recipe I made with the Eating with Ellie group is Pork Tenderloin with Fennel and Grapes, is found on page 119 of Ellie Krieger's cookbook Weeknight Wonders, and was Gaye's pick for us this week.  You can also find the recipe online here. 

       Ingredient list:  pork tenderloin, fennel seeds, olive oil, fennel bulb, chicken broth, seedless red grapes, lemon, salt, and pepper.
        Another recipe winner for us from this book.  Not only was it quick and easy, the flavors were interesting with the combination of fennel and grapes, who knew those would be so delicious with pork. The fennel was soft and creamy in texture, as were the grapes...somehow they just worked perfectly with the pork tenderloin. 

       Definitely saving this recipe as one to make again soon as we really liked it. I served it with butternut squash for a little color on the plate as on it's own, the recipe is a little one tone in color for how I usually plate food around here. 

       If you wonder how the others did this week, click here to follow their post links.  You can also find the recipe schedule for the coming weeks there. Next week's recipe was chosen by Glennis, is Grilled Tandori Chicken Breasts, and is found on page 137 of Weeknight Wonders.  Please come and join us at any time, just leave the link to your post that week so we know where to find you.  :-)

Wednesday with Donna Hay: White Fish with Pine Nut Brown Butter

       My ninety-fifth recipe with the Wednesday with Donna Hay group is White Fish with Pine Nut Brown Butter, was chosen for the group by me, and is found in Donna Hay's book New Food Fast, on page 30. You can also find the recipe online here.

       The ingredient list: white fish fillets, butter, pine nuts, lemon juice, lemon wedges, and steamed green vegetable. 

       This recipe comes together very quickly and is fabulous in flavor, what more could you want from a recipe?  Since there are so few ingredients, get good ones, nice and fresh. You just can't beat the taste of browned butter, pine nuts, and a lovely fillet of fish splashed with lemon.  I added some cubed steamed butternut squash to the plate for a little color and flavor as well and dinner was on the table in less than ten minutes.  

       Would I make this recipe again?  Definitely, repeatedly, it's going to see some major play time during the upcoming Lenten season. 

       Wonder what the others thought?  You can find that by clicking here.  Next week is Margaret's choice for the group, Pasta with Pumpkin and Sage Brown Butter  found in Donna Hay's Off the Shelf, page 18.  Join us and leave a link to your post at the website by clicking here, no commitment required.

Eating with Ellie: Japanese-style Savory Vegetable Pancakes with Shrimp

       The fourth recipe I made with the Eating with Ellie group is Japanese-style Savory Vegetable Pancakes with Shrimp, is found on page 183 of Ellie Krieger's cookbook Weeknight Wonders, and was Chaya's pick for us this week. 

       Ingredient list:  shrimp, Napa cabbage, scallions, carrot, eggs, flour, soy sauce, sesame oil, salt, canola oil, ketchup, and Worcestershire sauce. 

       We aren't all that familiar with Japanese-style pancakes so this week's recipe was a new deal for us.  The recipe itself is fairly quick, especially after you slice and dice all the veggies and shrimp.  It is then just simply mixed together and plopped on a griddle pan for a bit of toasting up. After a few minutes on each side to cook and warm everything, dinner is ready. 

      I served it plain with it's little sauce and it was okay that way but then with the rest I did what I do best, I made them into  lettuce wraps as you can see in the photo above...it works nicely as a lettuce wrap...I really like lettuce wraps and most everything, I have found with experience, goes nicely in a lettuce wrap.  It was a happy affair. 

       Would I make these again?  Maybe...they were good with the shrimp in them, but I am usually not of a mind to serve a pancake for dinner and it seems a bit of a stretch as breakfast fare.  Maybe it could be a lunch offering for something different or a way to use up leftover ingredients at the end of the week, something along those lines. Definitely, if I make it again, it goes in a lettuce wrap.  At any rate, it was fun to try something new and different.  

       If you wonder how the others did this week, click here to follow their post links.  You can also find the recipe schedule for the coming weeks there. Next week's recipe was chosen by Gaye, is Pork Tenderloin with Fennel and Grapes, and is found on page 119 of Weeknight Wonders.  Please come and join us at any time, just leave the link to your post that week so we know where to find you.  :-)

Wednesday with Donna Hay: Dukkah Roasted Chicken with Couscous and Tahini Yogurt

       My ninety-fourth recipe with the Wednesday with Donna Hay group is Dukkah Roasted Chicken with Couscous and Tahini Yogurt, was chosen by Gaye, and is found in Donna Hay's Magazine in the Dec/Jan 15 issue.

       The ingredient list: lime rind and juice, garlic, dukkah (an Egyptian spice blend), olive oil, salt, pepper, chicken, couscous, coriander, parsley, green onions, tahini, and yogurt.  If you cannot find dukkah at your market, you can  make your own dukkah spice at home, click here.  

       This was a tasty recipe, I discovered I like dukkah, which gave it all a nice warm nutty flavor.  I learned how to take the backbone out of a whole chicken with relative success.  Actually, I used a Cornish hen as I figured with two people that would be quite enough for a meal and a little easier with which to be handling some butchering duties.  I found that it needed another five minutes in the oven to fully cook from what the recipe stated, but other than that, it all worked exactly as she said it would. 

       The couscous is nicely flavored with the herbs, scallions, and seasonings.  If I had realized the couscous would be such a pop of green I would have made carrots to go with it instead of broccoli for a bit more vibrant color on the plate...next time.  Would I make this again?  Yes, I would, and I would use a Cornish hen again as it worked out well.  It was fun to discover a new spice blend and I have some left to try with other dishes. 

       Wonder what the others thought?  You can find that by clicking here.  Next week is my choice for the group, White Fish with Pine Nut Brown Butter  found in Donna Hay's New Food Fast, page 30.  Join us and leave a link to your post at the website by clicking here, no commitment required.

Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking Chez Moi - Marquise au Chocolat

       This week's recipe for Tuesdays with Dorie is Marquise au Cocolat, found on page 357 of Dorie Greenspan's Baking Chez Moi book. 

       Ingredient list:  butter, chocolate, egg yolks, sugar, salt, and cream. 

       Although you can't necessarily tell from the photo, this is a frozen dessert, the little loaf setting up in the freezer and being unmolded to serve.  You can see the marks in the dessert where the plastic wrap lining the mold left its little lines, so next time I would try to get that worked out better for appearances sake but I thought I would share that with you now so if you want to make this, you could figure that all out straight off. 

       Chocolate, I knew it was coming soon with the recipe picks because the TWD group loves its chocolate!  Left to my own devices, chocolate would not be making an appearance here but the guys love it, so once in awhile I will toss some chocolate chips into something and call it a chocolate masterpiece.  (This is why I bake in groups, because the choices aren't always made by me so it give us some variety here in a house where the main cook/baker (that would be me) would just cook/bake the same things over and over riding contentedly into the sunset in that manner.)  The guys are always excited about the chocolate picks.  This one was no exception, Mark ate the whole little loaf you see in the photo all by himself all in one sitting.  (He would not be throwing caution to the wind like that if I had not made such a small amount of the original recipe and he would need to eat it repeatedly until it was gone.)  It's good to make those you love happy with food. 

       Since the boys weren't expected home this week and weekend guests were "on a diet," I decided that I would make a quarter of the recipe and form it in my small little bread loaf pans.  This worked out well as the ingredient measurements were easily divided by four.  The batter gave me three little loaves. 

       The notes in the recipe share different suggestions for serving it, and no doubt if you check around the TWD blogs this week you will find even more, but I opted for some freshly whipped cream on the top as I knew that would be most welcome.  And it was.  Definitely a repeat as this was easy, quick, fun, definitely a hit with the chocolate lover here, and something out of the ordinary at the end of the day.  

       Check around with the other bakers and see how they did with the recipe this week.  The blogroll can be found here.

        Come and bake with us from Dorie Greenspan's Baking Chez Moi cookbook:  the next assignment is:  Pink Grapefruit Tart on page 138 for February 24th. The Tuesdays with Dorie group information for joining the group, recipe selection, and general information can be found here.

Eating with Ellie: Penne with Grape Tomatoes, Spinach, and Toasted Garlic

       The third recipe I made for the Eating with Ellie group is Penne with Grape Tomatoes, Spinach, and Toasted Garlic, is found on page 224 of Ellie Krieger's cookbook Weeknight Wonders, and was Peggy's pick for us this week. You can also find the recipe online here.

       Ingredient list:  garlic, grape tomatoes, olive oil, spinach, Parmesan cheese, whole grain penne pasta, salt, and pepper. 

       Simple, easy, definitely a weeknight wonder.  I had a pork tenderloin to serve with it for dinner, and that paired nicely.  Three things I really liked about this recipe.  First, of course, it is easy, fresh, and delicious.  Second, if you have not toasted those little garlic slices that she calls for in this recipe, you are missing out.  Those little garlic slices are so tasty and add a little crunch and some fun to a recipe.  I think the process of toasting mellows the garlic so it's not like you are eating a slice of garlic, it's more like a tiny garlic flavored chip.  The third thing is that whole grain pasta is delicious (previously I didn't care for the taste of it, but I think they have improved the taste of it over the years). 

       There is no real sauce with this recipe, but oddly enough, I didn't miss it at all.  The process of the tiny bit of oil to toast the garlic slices and briefly cook the tomatoes, and probably a little water from the spinach as it wilts, created a bit of flavored juice that coated the pasta nicely.  Definitely a repeat. 

       If you wonder how the others did this week, click here to follow their post links.  You can also find the recipe schedule for the coming weeks there. Next week's recipe was chosen by Chaya and is Japanese Style Savory Vegetable Pancakes with Shrimp, and is found on page 183 of Weeknight Wonders.  Please come and join us at any time, just leave the link to your post that week so we know where to find you.  :-) 

Wednesday with Donna Hay: Slow Cooked Beef Ragu

       My ninety-third recipe with the Wednesday with Donna Hay group is Slow Cooked Beef Ragu, was chosen by Sarah, and is found in Donna Hay's recipes online here.

       The ingredient list: beef brisket, olive oil, salt, pepper, onion, garlic, carrot, rosemary, red wine, beef stock, water, tomatoes, red wine vinegar, tomato paste, creamy polenta, and parmesan cheese.

       We are deep into winter here, so any sort of slow cooked warm comforting meal is always appreciated, and the extra heat from the cooking devices over a long period of time is always appreciated as well.  In summer I might not be so appreciative.  That said, it would taste wonderful any time of year.  

       The meat business all came together easily and simply with easy-to-find ingredients (these cuts of meat are always on sale this time of year so that was also a good deal for right now). The meat was melt-in-your-mouth tender and nicely flavored by the vegetables and seasonings.  I had never made polenta before so this was an novel experience for me.  The recipe specified "instant polenta" but I could not find that so I went with just regular polenta (which is basically just cornmeal).  I googled a link for making creamy polenta from scratch and used this one here.  It took longer than instant polenta, but I think it worked out fine (and after all, when one cannot locate an ingredient, one has to go with the "next best").

       The flavor of the meat, vegetables, broth over the creamy polenta was good thing...definitely a hit here and yes, I would make it again.   

       Wonder what the others thought?  You can find that by clicking here.  Next week is Gaye's choice, Dukkah Roasted Chicken with Couscous and Tahini Yogurt  found in Donna Hay's Magazine, Dec/Jan 15.  Join us and leave a link to your post at the new website on Wednesdays, no commitment required.