Black Bean and Mango Quinoa Salad

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I improvised a little for a luncheon get-together last week, and came up with a new salad that is wonderfully colorful and seemed nutritionally loaded

A bright salad for spring and summer!

(as far as my knowledge of nutrition goes:). It’s also vegetarian and vegan.  I based it off of a recipe from epicurious, although the end result is quite a bit different. So, this is for Sara particularly, but if something doesn’t seem right, let me know! This is how I remember it going . . .

Black Bean and Mango Quinoa Salad

  • 1 cup quinoa (about 6 ounces)
  • 1/4 c. canola oil
  • 2 T. white wine vinegar
  • 1/2 t. cumin
  • 1/2 t. dijon mustard
  • 1/2 t. salt (or more, to taste)
  • 1 c. black beans, cooked and drained (or from a can)
  • 1 c. chopped peeled mango
  • 1 medium tomato, cored and chopped into 1/4″ cubes
  • 1 sweet pepper (orange or yellow look particularly great), seeded, deveined, and chopped
  • 3 green onions, chopped
  • 1 large handful of cilantro, stems removed, roughly chopped

Cook quinoa in medium pot of boiling salted water over medium heat until tender but still firm to bite, stirring occasionally, about 12 minutes. Drain well; cool. Transfer to medium bowl. [My quinoa gets really clumpy when I cook it this way, so instead, I boil it for 10 minutes, then I put it in a fine mesh steamer, and steam it for 10 minutes more. It turns out light and fluffy this way. I also always rinse it 3xs before cooking it, which was the excellent advice of my friend Maryann. Rinsing it ensures the quinoa’s not bitter.]

Meanwhile, whisk oil and next 4 ingredients in small bowl to blend. Season dressing to taste with more salt (if desired) and pepper.

Add chopped mango, black beans, tomato,  green onions, pepper, 1/2 the cilantro and 1/4 cup dressing to quinoa; toss to coat. Garnish with remaining cilantro and drizzle with remaining dressing; serve. Stores well for 2 days in an airtight container, refrigerated.

Serves 4-6.

No-Knead Pizza Dough

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Plain cheese--but what a crust!

Plain cheese–but what a crust!

This is the pizza dough I’ve been looking for, for a long, long time. It is simple, and delicious, and I even felt brave enough to slide the dough onto the

pizza stone, from an upside down baking sheet, and let it broil away (but the first time, I cooked it on sheets, and that worked well, too). I loved the crust, and it held up well. I made it for Peter’s 4th birthday last week, and looked around after the party, only to see there weren’t any leftovers. So, I made it again last Friday. Awesome. I’m loving this dough. As Bon Appetit promised, it is chewy, bubbly, crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside. And, it couldn’t be easier to make. It comes from the March 2012 Bon Appetit magazine. Just one word: go on the sparse side with the toppings. If you’re more interested in thick toppings, try to deep-dish pizza crust instead. It works wonders for that.

No-Knead Pizza Dough

  • 7 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (1000 grams) plus more for shaping dough (can substitute up to 2 1/2 c. with whole wheat flour)
  • 4 teaspoons fine sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast

1. Whisk flour, salt, and yeast in a medium bowl. While stirring with a wooden spoon, gradually add 3 cups water; stir until well incorporated. Mix dough

Topped with chorizo, peppers, and goat cheese

gently with your hands to bring it together and form into a rough ball. Transfer to a large clean bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let dough rise at room temperature (about 72°F) in a draft- free area until surface is covered with tiny bubbles and dough has more than doubled in size, about 18 hours (time will vary depending on the temperature in the room).

2. Transfer dough to a floured work surface. Gently shape into a rough rectangle. Divide into 6 equal portions. Working with 1 portion at a time, gather 4 corners to center to create 4 folds. Turn seam side down and mold gently into a ball. Dust dough with flour; set aside on work surface or a floured baking sheet. Repeat with remaining portions.

3. Let dough rest, covered with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel, until soft and pliable, about 1 hour. DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Wrap each dough ball separately in plastic wrap and chill. Unwrap and let rest at room temperature on a lightly floured work surface, covered with plastic wrap, for 2-3 hours before shaping.

To make the pizzas:
During the last hour of dough’s resting, prepare oven: If using a pizza stone, arrange a rack in upper third of oven and place stone on rack; preheat oven to its hottest setting, 500°F-550°F, for 1 hour. If using a baking sheet, arrange a rack in middle of oven and preheat to its hottest setting, 500°F-550°F. (You do not need to preheat the baking sheet.)

Working with 1 dough ball at a time, dust dough generously with flour and place on a floured work surface. Gently shape dough into a 10″-12″ disk.

If using a pizza stone:
When ready to bake, increase oven heat to broil. Sprinkle a pizza peel or rimless (or inverted rimmed) baking sheet lightly with flour. Place dough disk on prepared peel and top with desired toppings.

Using small, quick back-and-forth movements, slide pizza from peel onto hot pizza stone. Broil pizza, rotating halfway, until bottom of crust is crisp and top is blistered, 5-7 minutes.

Using peel, transfer to a work surface to slice. Repeat, allowing pizza stone to reheat under broiler for 5 minutes between pizzas.

If using a baking sheet:
Arrange dough disk on baking sheet; top with desired toppings. Bake pizza until bottom of crust is crisp and top is blistered, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a work surface to slice. Repeat with remaining pizzas.

Chocolate Dump-It Cake

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Such a homely name for such a wonderful cake! I tried this cake the other night when everyone was asking for a dessert, and I wanted something I could make

Not the greatest picture, but hopefully it gives you an idea of how dense and moist this great chocolate cake is.

fast. I’m so happy with it! What a wonderful, simple cake. The author, Amanda Hesser, adapted this recipe from her mother, and published it in The Essential New York Times Cookbook. For her family, it was the birthday cake. She calls it “bouncy” and “moist;” I don’t know that I’ve ever heard a cake called bouncy before, but you know, it actually fits! The recipe calls for a frosting, but our family devoured the whole thing before I made the frosting–this is one cake that doesn’t require frosting at all (just a dusting of powdered sugar would be fine), although I can’t wait to try it, too!

Chocolate Dump-It Cake

2 c. sugar
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1/2 c. unsalted butter (1 stick), plus more for greasing the pan
1 c. water
2 c. all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the pan
2 t. baking soda
1 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
1 c. milk (whole is best)
1 t. cider vinegar [gives the cake such a beautiful hue!]
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla extract

For the Frosting
1 1/2 cups Nestle semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups sour cream, at room temperature

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees, and place a baking sheet on the lowest rack, to catch any drips when the cake bakes. Put the sugar, unsweetened chocolate, butter and 1 cup of water in a saucepan. Place over medium heat and stir occasionally until all of the ingredients are melted and blended. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly, 15 to 20 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a small bowl, stir together the milk and vinegar (it’s okay if it curdles). Grease and flour a 9-inch tube or bundt pan. (If you prefer, you can grease it, line it with parchment and then grease and flour it. This is not necessary, but parchment does make getting the cake out easier.)

3. When the chocolate in the pan has cooled a bit, whisk in the milk mixture and eggs. In several additions and without overmixing, whisk in the dry ingredients. When the mixture is smooth, add the vanilla and whisk once or twice, to blend. “Dump” the batter into the tube pan and bake on the middle rack until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30-35 minutes. Let the cake cool for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool on a rack. (This can be tricky, so if someone is around, enlist them to help. Place a ring of wax paper on top of the cake so you have something to grab onto when turning it out–it may break in half.) Let cool completely.

4. Meanwhile, for the frosting, melt the chocolate chips in a double boiler, then let cool to room temperature. It is very important that the chocolate and sour cream be the same temperature, otherwise the icing will be lumpy or grainy. (Test it by stirring a little of the sour cream and chocolate together in a bowl; if it mixes smoothly, it’s ready.) Stir in the sour cream, 1/ 4 cup at a time, until the mixture is smooth. Taste some! It’s good.

5. When the cake is cool, you may frost it as is or cut it in half so that you have two layers (when I do this, I use 2 cups chocolate chips and 2 cups sour cream). My mother uses any leftover icing to make flowers on top. She dabs small rosettes, or buttons, on top, then uses toasted almond slices as the petals, pushing them in around the base of the rosette.

Makes 10 servings. (My mother kept it in the fridge, and it is sublime even when cold.)

Suzan’s Aebelskivers

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This recipe is another morning staple at our home.  A few years ago, Aunt Suzan gave us an aebelskiver pan with her Danish grandfather’s recipe. her family makes

These are stuffed with banana, but you can't tell! You can tell where I've pricked them with the skewer when I flipped them, though.

this recipe at Christmas, but after my kids tasted them the first time, they decided we should have them regularly. My Lucy prefers the aebelskivers (which is a spherical Danish pancake) stuffed with a few chocolate chips, and Henry and I like them best with a slice of banana in the middle. I’ve tried placing jam and jelly in the middle, which is great, but a little messier. I know these pans are available online and Williams-Sonoma has them (usually, I think). There’s also many variations–you can be creative–but another one I’ve loved included placing a sage leaf in the pan first (so it was baked onto the surface of the pancake), and then stuffing them with goat cheese. Beautiful.

Aunt Suzan’s Grandpa Ruel’s Aebelskivers

3 eggs
3 c. buttermilk
6 T. melted butter (for taste) or oil (for convenience–and a little crisper, I believe)
3 c. level flour (or 2 c. all-purpose +1 c. whole wheat)
1 t. salt
2 T. sugar
1 1/2 t. baking soda (I usually cut this down by 1/4 t.)
1 t. baking powder (and I cut this one down by 1/4 t. too)
1 t. vanilla

Preheat the aebelskiver pan on medium-high heat.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt, powder, and soda well with a whisk. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla. Make a well in the dry ingredients, and add the wet ones, whisking until just combined. (Grandpa Ruel separated the egg whites, beat them until frothy, and folded them in after mixing the wet and the dry ingredients together. I always omit this step, because of the morning rush, but it’s worth it for the lightness in texture, if you have time!)

Spray the aebelskiver pan with a cooking spray or wipe with oil. When the pan is hot, place about 2 T. batter into each hole. When the pancake has started to firm up on the sides, insert a filling, if desired (chocolate chips, banana slice, jam). Push the filling into the center of the pancake with a skewer tip. Once the pancake releases air bubbles to the surface, about 2 minutes, flip the pancake using the tip of a skewer or a knitting needle or chopstick, so it can cook on the other side for another 2 minutes. Decrease the pan heat, if necessary, to prevent scorching. Continue to bake the rest of the batter. Serve with powdered sugar, syrup, jam, or Nutella, etc.

Makes about 40 aebelskivers.

I didn't fill the whole pan because this was the end of the batter. You can get a good sense for what the pan is--a cast-iron skillet with spherical grooves for the pancake.

The Flour Bakery’s Granola Bars

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flour-granola-bar
I got a new cookbook with this recipe, and since I’ve been in granola-bar mode, I thought I’d give it a whirl. I’m totally impressed with the result. The ingredients sound like a health food shop on their own, but incredibly, their sum is so, so delicious, and no one flavor overwhelms the taste at all. In fact, my kids inhaled these like any other cookie/bar I’ve made, so I am really happy. I thought for sure they’d turn their noses up at the seeds, but they didn’t. It’s a treat, but has lots of good stuff, too; a happy medium, and perfect for a lunch box.

The recipe’s a little on the cumbersome side, in terms of time, but definitely worth trying. You need a couple of hours (not consistent work, of course), and you probably can’t count on them for the same day unless you start cooking early in the day. The author says the bar tastes better after 2-3 days, but at our house, I don’t think they’ll last that long. Incidentally, the Flour Bakery is located in (just outside?) Boston.

Granola Bars with Cranberry Jam and Seeds

1 c. dried apples
1 c. dried cranberries
1 c. dried apricots
1/2 c. granulated sugar
2 c. water

1 c. walnut halves [I prefer pecans]
1 3/4 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 c. old-fashioned (not quick) oats
2/3 c. packed light brown sugar
2/3 c. sweetened shredded coconut
1 t. kosher salt
1/4 t. ground cinnamon
1 c. unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into 8 pieces
6 T. honey
3 T. flaxseeds
3 T. sunflower seeds
3 T. millet

TO MAKE JAM
In a medium saucepan, combine the apples, cranberries, apricots, granulated sugar, and water and bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from the heat and let sit for about 1 hour. Transfer to a food processor and pulse 8-10 times or until a chunky jam forms. (The jam can be made and refrigerated for 5 days or frozen for up to a month.)

TO MAKE BARS
Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 350. Spread the nuts on a baking sheet and toast for about 10 minutes, or until fragrant. Transfer to a plate and let cool, but leave the oven on at 350.

Line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper. In a food processor, combine the nuts, flour, oats, sugar, coconut, salt, cinnamon, and butter, and pulse about 15 times or until the mixture is combined. Turn the mixture out into a bowl and drizzle the honey on top. Work in the honey until the mixture comes together, then spread 2/3 of the mixture in the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until light brown. Work the millet, flaxseeds, and sunflower seeds into the remaining 1/3 oat mixture. Cover it with plastic and refrigerate.

After the crust has baked, remove it from the oven and spread the jam evenly on top. Then, crumble the seed/oat mixture on top, breaking it with your fingers. Return the pan to the oven to bake for an additional 50-60 minutes. Let cool on a rack for 2-3 hours before cutting.

The bars can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for a week.

The recipe yield says 12, but those would be huge! We’re going to get about 20 or more out of it.

Coconut-Lime Chicken Noodle Soup

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This recipe, from Martha’s March 2012 Everyday Food, is so easy and so lovely. I can’t find it on Martha’s site yet (?!!), so I’m typing it up. The ingredients

A very white soup--the cilantro helps!

came together quickly, and the taste has the Thai sweet, salty, and sour combo. Really, really good. I served this soup with little chicken sandwiches with cucumber, sriracha sauce, hoisin sauce, and shredded green onions. Kind-of a mix of cuisines, but a fun dinner. And, if it matters for you, this soup is gluten-free.

Coconut-Lime Chicken Noodle Soup

6 oz. dried flat rice noodles
3 1/2 c. chicken broth
2-inch piece peeled fresh ginger, cut into 1/4″ rounds
1 can (13.5 oz.) unsweetened coconut milk
3/4 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast, thinly sliced
6 T. lime juice (about 3 limes)
3 T. fish sauce
2 t. light brown sugar
1 jalapeno, thinly sliced
3/4 c. packed fresh cilantro leaves

1. Soak rice noodles according to package instructions. Drain.

2. In a large pot, bring broth and ginger to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and simmer 10 minutes.

3. Add coconut milk to broth and return to a simmer. Add chicken and simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 3 minutes. Stir in lime juice, fish sauce, brown sugar, jalapeno, and 1/2 c. cilantro; cook one minute. Stir in noodles and serve immediately, topped with 1/4 c. remaining cilantro.

Serves 4

Homemade Brown Sugar & Cinnamon Pastry Tarts

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This recipe is a knock-off of Martha’s for a homemade Pop Tart. I love Pop Tarts, but they don’t taste

I haven't added the frosting yet, here . . . probably I will in the morning

that great to me anymore (preservatives? not sure), but I still want to eat one quite regularly. This recipe isn’t really a quick fix-it like the box version, but a really fun treat for a special occasion. I made them today with some friends, then we cut them into hearts for a Valentines breakfast. Martha’s recipe has a cinnamon-brown sugar filling, but we did jams as well, and they look great! Incidentally, make sure to note that you add 5 t. water to the filling, not 5 T., like I did today. Makes a big difference 🙂 This recipe comes from Everyday Food, September 2010.

Homemade Brown Sugar & Cinnamon Pastry Tarts (or Pastry Hearts)

3 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for working
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten, plus 1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
1/4 cup whole milk
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/4 cup light-brown sugar
1 tablespoon plus 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a large bowl, whisk together flour and salt. In another large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and granulated sugar on high, scraping down bowl as needed, until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add whole egg and beat to combine. Beat in half the flour mixture, then milk and remaining flour mixture. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and gently knead to combine. Divide dough in half. Lightly flour a large piece of parchment paper and roll out 1 dough piece to a 9-by-12-inch rectangle. Repeat with remaining dough and another piece parchment. Refrigerate until firm, 30 minutes.

In a food processor, pulse almonds until coarsely chopped. Add 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar, brown sugar, 1 tablespoon cinnamon, and 5 teaspoons water; pulse until combined. Remove 1 dough sheet from refrigerator and cut into twelve 2-by-4 1/2-inch rectangles. Spread half with 1 heaping teaspoon almond mixture each, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Brush edges with yolk; top with remaining dough pieces. With the tines of a fork, crimp edges firmly. Brush tops with yolk. Repeat with remaining dough.

Chill pastries on two rimmed baking sheets until firm, 30 minutes (or up to 1 day). Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Bake until edges are golden, 20 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Let cool completely on sheets on wire racks.

In a bowl, whisk together 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and 5 teaspoons water. With an offset spatula or table knife, spread glaze over pockets. Let set 5 minutes.

Morning Crepes with Blueberry Sauce

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I’m trying to catalog the recipes I use most as a means of organizing myself, so I’m typing up all my go-to recipes, and hopefully someone else will enjoy them as well. I make this recipe about once a week for breakfast, and serve them with Nutella, maple syrup, jam, powdered sugar and lemon juice, homemade blueberry sauce, or lemon curd and sour cream (my favorite). The batter mixes quickly, but then takes about 20 minutes to cook. If you don’t have nonstick skillets, simply spray your skillets with cooking spray or a place a dab of butter in each to prevent sticking, about every 5 crepes or so. This recipe was adapted from The Best International Recipe.

Our Favorite Crepes

Heat two nonstick skillets over medium-high heat while preparing the ingredients.

Combine in a blender:
2 1/8 c. warm water
1/2 c. powdered milk (or 1 1/2 c. warm milk and 1/2 c. + 2 T. water and omit warm water above)
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour (you can substitute 1/2 c. of it for wheat flour, it desired)
3 T. sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 t. vanilla
1/4  t. salt (can do up to 1/2 t. salt, if desired)
5 T. butter, melted (I melt this in one of the skillets as I assemble the other ingredients)

Blend until the mixture is perfectly smooth. Pour approximately 2 T. of batter in each hot skillet, swirling to make sure it evenly coats the bottom of the pan. Cook for about 30 seconds, or until the edges have browned. Using a flat spatula, loosen the sides of the crepes, and then tip onto a plate. Repeat. If crepes are browning too quickly, turn down the heat. (One of my skillets cooks the crepes well at medium-high heat, while the other does better with medium heat!?!)

Quick Homemade Blueberry Sauce

1/3 c. water
2 c. frozen blueberries
2 T. sugar or agave
1 t. cornstarch
squeeze of lemon juice (optional)

Bring water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Once boiling, add the blueberries and the sugar. Once the mixture boils, turn down the heat to a simmer, and cook another 5 minutes, until the mixture is saucy. In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and 1 t. water, and mix well to combine completely. Add the cornstarch to the blueberries and stir until combined and thickened. Remove from heat, squeeze in the lemon juice, if using, and serve. [If you do this before you start cooking the crepes, it’s ready to serve at the same time the crepes are done.]

Homemade Graham Crackers

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Every new year, it seems I renew my resolve in general to make more, and consume less, especially when it comes to boxed items at the grocery store. This year, I’m also trying to make my sugar intake meaningful rather than inevitable, so making most of what we eat is a big part of that. Anywhoo, this is a great recipe, whether you think of it as a healthy cookie or a sweet snack; I think the last batch lasted an hour before they disappeared. This recipe comes from America’s Test Kitchen’s 2009 Annual.

One more note: you can make these into cinnamon grahams by adding another 1/4 t. cinnamon to the recipe, and then sprinkling cinnamon (1 t.) and sugar (1/4 c.) on top of the crackers right before baking. Oh, and graham flour can be found at health food stores like Sunflower Market as a Bob’s Red Mill product. You can also use wheat flour, but it’s not exactly the same thing, so it will taste a bit different.

Homemade Graham Crackers

1¾ cup graham flour
½ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces and chilled
5 tablespoons cold water
2 tablespoons light molasses
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Adjust oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. With a pastry blender, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 3 tablespoons of the water, the molasses and vanilla and stir until the dough comes together. If the dough seems dry, add the remaining 2 tablespoons water a little at a time. You may need to use your hands to get the dough to meld into a large ball. (Alternatively, process the dry ingredients in a food processor for 3 seconds, then add the butter and process for 15 seconds, until it resembles coarse meal. Add water, molasses, and vanilla and process till the dough comes together, 20 seconds more.)

Divide the dough into two pieces. Roll each piece out between two pieces of parchment paper to a rectangle that is 1/8 inch thick and measures about 16 inches by 8 inches. Remove the top sheet and trim the dough with a knife into a tidy 15 inch-by-7½ inch rectangle, then score it into 18 2½-inch squares. Prick each square several times with a fork. [I find it works better to score them before baking, but then to do it again after they bake. They actually break easily this way.]

Slide each piece of dough and parchment paper onto separate baking sheets. Bake until the crackers are golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes, switching and rotating the baking sheets halfway through baking. Let the crackers cool completely on the baking sheets, then break them apart along the scored lines and serve.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days.

Makes 36 graham crackers.