at home with ann

I'm often saying that I made a new recipe and Colin gobbled it up.  He is a good eater, which is great for his little growing person, and because I love to cook.  He certainly has his favorites (salmon, smoothies, and don't get between him and a muffin), but he is willing to give most anything a try.  That being said, he did not love these, and I cleaned a fair amount of spinach and artichoke off of the floor.  Jon and I, on the other hand, enjoyed them quite a bit.  More for us.   These were delicious as a vegetarian entree, but could also be made with little crimini mushrooms as an appetizer.  Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms 6 portobello mushroom caps, cleaned and stems and gills removed Olive oil 1 garlic clove, chopped 1 can artichoke hearts, chopped 10 oz. frozen spinach, thawed 2 oz. cream cheese 1/4 cup greek yogurt Parmesan cheese, for topping Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a pan, heat olive oil over medium. ...

Sometimes I spend hours thinking about what to cook.  Usually these hours occur in the middle of the night while I'm up with Colin.  Then I get hungry.  Then I start counting down to breakfast.  And that's how I end up eating an entire batch of vegan banana pancakes .  This post isn't about pancakes, though, it's about a dinner that did not have much planning at all.  Chicken sausage was on sale at the market.  As were baby portobello mushrooms.  Broccoli rabe came from the CSA, we had leftover garlic scapes, and I always have some whole wheat pasta on hand. And thus, this dinner was born.  It didn't hurt that the whole thing came together in the time it took to boil the pasta.  Chicken Sausage, Mushroom and Broccoli Rabe Pasta Serves 6 Ingredients: 12 oz. package pre-cooked chicken sausage, sliced (I used spicy jalapeno) 16 oz. mushrooms, sliced 2 garlic scapes, sliced (or 1-2 cloves garlic, chopped) Olive oil 1/4 teaspoon cr...

Sometimes you need dinner to be simple, healthy, and able to be prepared hours before you eat.  This fit the bill on all counts.  My new love affair with mushrooms continues.  Leftovers are excellent, even eaten standing in front of the fridge holding a fork.  Balsamic Roasted Eggplant and Mushrooms with Quinoa based on Eat Live Run Ingredients: 2 medium eggplants (or one large) 16 ounces mushrooms, sliced (I used crimini) kosher salt 1 cup dry quinoa 1 3/4 cup vegetable broth 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar 2 tsp dijon mustard 1/3 cup warm water 1 clove garlic, grated 2 Tablespoons olive oil 4 green onions, chopped Directions:  Using a vegetable peeler, peel long strips on the eggplant so that it looks striped. Chop eggplant into 1/2 inch cubes and put in a colander in the sink. Sprinkle liberally with kosher salt and let sit for an hour.  This draws out some of the liquid and also takes the bitterness out of the eggplant. Preheat oven to ...

This is the same mushroom millet bowl that I made last month, but I bet a few of you passed it over because the picture was less than awesome.  It's hard to photograph mushrooms and kale at night.  I'm here to tell you to give it a try, though, because we had it again yesterday, and it is delicious!  Also, thanks to the sun staying up later and a slightly earlier dinnertime for me yesterday, I have a better picture now.  I changed the cooking process a tiny bit, so I'll just reshare the recipe with my new notes.  To mix it up even more, try adding diced chicken to the mix.  Mushroom Millet Bowl with Kale original recipe from Oh She Glows 1/2 cup uncooked millet extra virgin olive oil 2 cups chopped sweet onion 3 garlic cloves, minced 16 oz. sliced baby portabella mushrooms 1 tsp minced dried rosemary 2 tbsp nutritional yeast 1.5 tbsp tamari or soy sauce 1/2 tbsp cornstarch 1 1/4 cup vegetable broth 1 bunch fresh chopped kale, stems removed ...

We went to New Hampshire to celebrate my Mom's birthday this past weekend.  The plan was for everyone to help with cleaning up their yard, pruning, weeding, and planting for the summer.  Everyone else worked very hard and I stood around chatting with my sister and held the baby.  I did do some cooking, though.  We had salmon for dinner, and I brought along this Spring Vegetable Quinoa.  I'm not even sure if mushrooms are Spring vegetables.  I have absolutely no idea when mushrooms are in season, but, as you know, I've been on a mushroom kick lately, so in they went. Spring Vegetable Quinoa Ingredients: 2 cups quinoa, rinsed 4 cups vegetable broth (I think you could cut this down to 3 1/2 cups, mine was a little soupier than I wanted.) 3 small shallots, sliced 1 small onion, chopped Olive oil 16 oz. mushrooms, sliced 1 bunch asparagus, sliced into 1-2 inch pieces 1 cup fresh spring peas (or 1 cup frozen peas, thawed) 3 green onions, sli...

Not that long ago I thought I didn't like mushrooms.  It turns out what I don't like are slimy mushrooms.  I think we can trace this back to a trip to England I went on with my parents when I was 15.  We stayed primarily in bed and breakfasts, and every day the proprietors would serve a "full English breakfast," which included, among other things, canned mushrooms.  Canned mushrooms are the ultimate in sliminess.  By the end of the trip I stuck to toast and tea in the morning.  Non-slimy mushrooms, on the other hand, I like quite a bit.  This saucy, hearty bowl reminded me of the mushroom demi glace that you sometimes get at steakhouses.  I bet this would actually be delicious served over steak, but it was great (and vegan) on it's own.  There are a couple ingredients in this recipe you might not be familiar with.  I'd never cooked with millet before.  It's a grain, and high in nutritious elements such as manganese, phosphorus, ...

I had plans to show you the delicious strawberry-banana version of this Banana Bread  that I made this weekend.  Those plans were thwarted when, after baking said bread, I tried to upend it out of the pan to cool and found the middle was still batter and oozed out all over my cutting board.  Some frantic yelling, two sets of hands, and 15 more minutes in the oven, it tasted delicious, but not worthy of photography.   Instead, I'll tell you about our dinner last night.  I saw Rachael Ray make this recipe last week, and modified it a little bit (partly because I can't for the life of me remember everything I need at the market).  Creamy Mushroom Pasta recipe from Rachael Ray Ingredients: 3 Tablespoons olive oil 2 Tablespoons butter 1 pound cremini mushrooms, wiped, stems removed, and thinly slices 2 shallots, chopped 2 cloves garlic, chopped 2 Tablespoons thyme 2 sprigs rosemary, chopped 1 bay leaf salt and pepper 2 Tablespoons tomato paste - I omitted thi...

This weekend marks the one year anniversary of our move to this house.  I can't believe it!  It's certainly been quite a year.  While there are advantages (free reign to decorate how I want, plenty of space, our own yard and wonderful porch) and disadvantages (replacing the water heater, the prospect of paying a mortgage for the next 30 years, the mysterious scratching noise in the attic) to owning a home in the suburbs as opposed to renting an apartment in the city, one of the things that has significantly changed are our weekend activities.  Back in the day, we would go out to eat at one of the many fantastic restaurants a few steps from our apartment.  Now, although the suburbs do have some good dining out options, we usually find ourselves cooking at home. If you've been reading for a while, you know that homemade pizza is one of our favorite weekend dinners.  It's great to cook together - even when one of the cooks is kind of bossy like me....