Last homecooked meal of the week...

... leek & goat cheese quiche, and silky butternut squash soup.

As for the rest of the weekend - we're eating all the leftovers in the fridge ;o)

Spicy-smoky slow-cooker turkey chili

We haven't been particularly healthy in our eating habits for the past week or so, but we started off the new year pretty well. The same week that I made turkey burgers, I used the rest of the ground turkey in the fridge to make a spicy-smoky turkey chili in the slow-cooker. I adapted a non-slow-cooker recipe to get the following:

Spicy-Smoky Slow-Cooker Turkey Chili

(Makes 4 really big servings)

·         2 Tbsp olive oil

·         1 onion, chopped

·         5 cloves garlic, minced

·         1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

·         1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

·         1 habanero peper, seeded and chopped

·         2 lb ground turkey

·         2 Tbsp chili powder

·         2 tsp chipotle red pepper flakes

·         1 Tbsp smoked Spanish paprika

·         1 Tbsp ground cumin

·         2 tsp dried oregano

·         1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

·         1 (1oz) envelope instant hot chocolate mix

·         1 tsp kosher salt

·         1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

·         1 tsp liquid smoke

·         1 (14.5oz) can diced tomatoes with green chili peppers, drained

·         1 (14.5oz) can diced tomatoes with japaneo peppers, drained

·         1 (8oz) can low-sodium tomato sauce

·         1 (15oz) can black beans, drained

·         ½ C “normal” beer (like an amber)

·         ½ C frozen shoepeg corn

·         1 Tbsp hot pepper sauce

1.       Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and peppers, and cook, stirring, until the onion becomes translucent. Remove to a bowl.

2.       Add ground turkey, then cover and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the meat is no longer pink. Add the cooked vegetables and combine.

3.       Add chili powder, red pepper flakes, smoked paprika, cumin, oregano, black pepper, hot cocoa mix, and salt; stir.

4.       Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and beans. Add the beer and frozen corn, and combine.

5.       Move mixture to slow cooker, cover, and set on low for 6-8 hours.

6.       Stir in hot pepper sauce, if desired, cover and let sit for a few minutes, then serve. Feel free to garnish with any or all of the following: diced fresh tomatoes, sour cream, shredded cheese, sliced jalapenos, etc.

A loaf of bread and a batch of cinnamon rolls... from scratch

We had our first major brush with winter weather this week - a typical DC mix of snow, ice, and rain, creating a big, ugly, slushy, frozen mess. The kiddos were, of course, very thrilled to have three full days off from school. In honor of snow day #1, I decided to make some bread from scratch, entirely by hand, foregoing the bread machine and even the Kitchenaid.


I adapted a couple of recipes from my files to make a big, beautiful loaf of white sandwich bread and a cake pan full of yummy cinnamon rolls. One batch of bread dough will yield either two loaves of bread, two 9" cake pans of cinnamon rolls, or one of each.

White Bread and/or Cinnamon Rolls

(Makes two loaves, 18 cinnamon rolls, or one loaf and 9 cinnamon rolls)

·         2 C warm water (110 degrees F)

·         1/3 C white sugar

·         1½ Tbsp active dry yeast

·         1½ tsp salt

·         ¼ C extra-virgin olive oil

·         5 C bread flour

Cinnamon Roll Filling

·         1/3 C dark brown sugar

·         1/3 C white sugar

·         2 tsp cinnamon

·         1/8 tsp salt

·         < 1/8 tsp ground cloves

·         2+ Tbsp melted butter

1.       In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in the warm water, then stir in the yeast. Allow to proof until a creamy foam develops – about 30 minutes or so – the longer the yeast is allowed to proof, the lighter & foamier it gets, the lighter the texture of the bread will be.

2.       Mix salt and olive oil into the yeast, then mix in the flour, one cup at a time. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth.

3.       Place dough in a well-oiled bowl, and turn to coat evenly. Cover with a damp cloth and allow to rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour. (I set the oven to “warm” and set the bowl on top of the stove to aid the rising process.)

4.       Punch dough down, knead for a few minutes, and divide in half.

5.       At this point, you may

a.        shape each half into a loaf and place into well-oiled 9”x5” loaf pans. OR

b.       roll out each half into an approximately 12”x9” rectangle, with the long side facing you. For each rectangle: Brush with melted butter, sprinkle evenly with half the cinnamon roll filling, then roll tightly, pinching the seam to seal it. Using a serrated knife, slice into approximately 1 ½” slices. Gently pat into shape, and place into 9” cake pan brushed generously with melted butter. OR

c.        make one loaf and one pan of cinnamon rolls, as described above.

6.       Allow to rise for 30 minutes or so, until dough has risen to 1” above loaf pan or to top of cake pan.

7.       If baking bread: Bake in preheated 350 F oven for approximately 30 minutes, until loaf sounds hollow when tapped. If baking cinnamon rolls: Cover cake pan with aluminum foil, bake in preheated 350 F oven for about 12 minutes, remove foil, and bake an additional 12-18 minutes, or until tops are golden brown.

Juicy turkey burgers

 In the "eat healthy, be healthy" spirit of the new year, I opted to make turkey burgers rather than beef burgers for my very first home-cooked meal of 2011. It turned out quite well; G pronounced it to be the best turkey burgers he's ever eaten. I'm not sure how often he's chosen turkey burgers over the regular kind, but I'll take that as the compliment it was meant to be.

I started with the Cook's Illustrated recipe for Quicker Turkey Burgers, which calls for store-bought lean ground turkey combined with a bit of ricotta for moisture, and modified it to add a little more flavor. Here's my version:

Jieun's smoky-spicy turkey burgers
Serves 2.

1/2 lb 93% lean ground turkey
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 C ricotta cheese
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp smoked Spanish paprika
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (I used smoky dried chipotle pepper flakes)

Combine all ingredients and divide into two portions. Lightly toss mixture from one hand to the other to form a ball, then lightly flatten into a 1-inch-thick patty.

Heat a large, heavy skillet over medium heat until very hot, 3-4 minutes. Swirl about 1 Tbsp vegetable oil to coat the bottom of the skillet.

Add turkey burger patties and cook, without moving, until bottom side is dark brown and crusted, 3-4 minutes. Flip over and cook the other side for an additional 3-4 minutes, until lightly browned but not yet crusted. Reduce heat to low, position cover over the pan, slightly ajar to allow steam to escape, and continue to cook an additional 8-10 minutes, flipping burger patties occasionally to promote even, deep browning. Cook until thermometer inserted into the center of the patty through the side registers 160 degrees.

Serve with toppings of choice. (I served with redleaf lettuce, tomato, red onion, cilantro, jalapenos, and avocado.)

Our albums have landed...

... and they're beautiful!
I'm thrilled that our photographer, Cassidy DuHon, and I clicked from our very first meeting, because his work is simply phenomenal. I'm pretty confident G will love the albums too - and I hope our parents think they're nice, too!

Chicken soup and pumpkin bread (take 2)

The past 72 hours have taught me that I am not meant to be a nurse. The possibility of nursing school had (briefly) crossed my mind at some point, but now I know - that's definitely not the profession (vocation?) for me. I'm neither patient nor nurturing enough - I opt for the "tough love" approach way too often.

G has been having trouble breathing, and thus sleeping and snoring, for, well, years. At least as long as I have known him. Last year, he finally went to consult an ENT about what was causing these difficulties, and the resulting inside-view images showed that he had a severely deviated septum that was severely impairing his ability to get sufficient air.

Our engagement and wedding put on hold any plans for correcting the deviated septum, and G finally got the septoplasty done this past Thursday. The hospital experience was grueling in and of itself - we got there early, as instructed, by around 6am and weren't released until past 3pm. And that's when things got challenging. No need to go into any of the less-pleasant details, but let's just say I kept busy changing the gauze pad under G's nose (to catch any umm drainage) frequently and feeding the ailing invalid (whose appetite clearly hadn't suffered one bit) frequently. After just day one, I was already tired and cranky... At least G's feeling better now, and his nose doesn't seem to be dripping quite as much stuff!

In other news, I'm waiting rather impatiently for the second experimental batch of my pumpkin bread to come out of the oven so that (a) we can devour our crockpot chicken soup, and (b) we can try the pumpkin bread to see what adjustments (if any) need to be made to the recipe. In the meantime, here's what I did this time around:


Pumpkin Bread  (makes two 8" loaves)

1 C (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 C white sugar
1 C dark brown sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 C all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp allspice
1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp clove
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 (15oz) can solid pack pumpkin
1/8 C (approx) unsweetened applesauce

Sugar & Spice Blend
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 Tbsp white sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine sugar & spice blend ingredients. Butter two 8" loaf pans, then sprinkle sugar & spice blend evenly on bottom and sides, about 1 Tbsp each pan.
3. Cream butter and sugars together, then add eggs one at a time while mixing. Add vanilla extract and mix in.
4. Combine all dry ingredients together, then gently stir into butter mixture until just combined.
5. Stir in canned pumpkin and applesauce.
Optional: Feel free to add some chocolate chips and/or chopped nuts. I folded in about 1 to 1 1/2 cup(s) of Ghirardelli 60% cacao bittersweet chocolate baking chips, put about half the batter in one baking pan, then added about 1/2 cup of chopped toasted pecans to the rest of the batter before transferring it to the second pan.
6. Distribute batter evenly between prepared loaf pans. Sprinkle sugar & spice mixture on top.
7. Bake approximately 50 min to 1 hr, until cake tests done.

Another "Cook's Illustrated" success

One successful recipe after another causes me to agree with my husband - Cook's Illustrated IS pretty darn awesome! Tonight, I made a couple of roasted veggie dishes to go with some leftover Cook's Illustrated Hungarian beef stew. The roasted carrots in particular were superb - you know they're good when carrot-disliking G loves 'em - and easy to make!

I sized down the recipe for just the two of us, see below, but the base recipe is from Cook's.

Roasted Carrots for Two
Serves 2. Adapted from Cook's Illustrated. 

3/4 lb carrots, peeled, halved crosswise, and cut lengthwise if necessary to create even pieces *
1 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1. Move oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, combine carrots with butter, salt, and pepper; toss to coat. Transfer to a foil-lined jelly roll pan and spread in a single layer.
2. Cover baking sheet tightly with foil and cook in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove foil and continue to cook for 30-35 minutes longer, stirring a couple of times. Transfer to a serving platter, season with salt and pepper if necessary, and serve.

* Note on cutting carrots:
1. If carrot diameter is < 1/2 inch, then cut crosswise only.
2. If carrot diameter is between 1/2 and 1 inch, then cut crosswise, and cut thicker piece lengthwise in half.
3. If carrot diameter is > 1 inch, then cut crosswise, and quarter thicker piece lengthwise (halve thinner piece if appropriate).

Tourtiere experiment #2

Having spent the morning feeling a bit down about the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, I decided to revive the holiday spirit by making tourtiere - in a nod to G's French-Canadian roots - and my special cranberry sauce - in a nod to all that is good about Thanksgiving (in my opinion).

Unfortunately, there was a small mishap while making the cranberry sauce. I had a good cry on G's shoulder, G went to work cleaning the oven, and... We had meat stuffing rather than a pie pastry-clad tourtiere. It was good though. I think I've nailed the recipe for the tourtiere filling! So without further ado...

Tourtiere (Jieun’s experimental recipe #2)

2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1” pieces

¾+ cup beef broth, divided into ¼+ cup and ½ cup

1 lb ground beef

½ lb ground pork

½ onion, chopped

¼ tsp clove

< ¼ tsp cinnamon (I used about 3/4 of the ¼ tsp spoon)

1 tsp Bell’s seasoning (yellow box with turkey)

1 bay leaf

Salt & pepper to taste

Double pie crust

1. Cook potatoes in saucepan with enough water to just cover, until tender. Mash the cubed potato with ¼ + up to an additional 1/8 cup of the beef broth. Set aside.
2. Cook the beef, pork, onion, remaining ½ cup of beef broth, clove, cinnamon, Bell’s seasoning, bay leaf, and salt & pepper to taste over medium-low heat. Then reduce heat to low and simmer until liquid is reduced to about 2 tablespoons.
3. Add mashed potatoes and mix.
4. Place bottom crust in 9” ungreased clear glass pie plate and trim. Add meat filling, and top with second crust. Fold top crust over the edges of the bottom crust, and flute the edges. Cut steam vents into the top of the top crust.
5. Cook 15 minutes in preheated 400 F oven, then place foil around outer edges. Replace pie in oven and bake another 15-30 minutes, until crust is golden brown.

Surviving my first layer cake - and dinner party

Until last Friday, I had never baked a layer cake. I had made plenty of cupcakes, bundt cakes, sheet cakes, and pound cakes, but never a layer cake. So, two weekends ago, I decided my college friends' impending visit would provide me a convenient set of guinea pigs for my first layer cake attempt. Unfortunately, that weekend comprised a series of minor kitchen debacles, including a couple related to The Cake.

I was initially a little upset by the very minor issue of a single cracked layer - minor because it would have had a very simple fix. I could have just made that my bottom layer and shellacked it with plenty of cream cheese frosting. I say could have, because I didn't have a chance to give that solution a try. As I went to flip one layer of cake from the cooling rack to a plate, I dropped the plate, cake and all. *sigh* So instead of a red velvet layer cake, we had a red velvet non-layer cake. It was still a quite yummy single layer of cake.

This past weekend, G and I hosted our first non-family dinner party. In honor of the occasion, I decided it was time for red velvet layer cake, take 2. This time, the experiment - very carefully conducted - was a success. Unfortunately, the dinner party itself, while not a failure, could have been better. One of our guests is a vegetarian. Featured prominently on the carefully-crafted (but apparently not very well thought out) menu: beef stew. Oh dear... At least there was a trio of vegetarian side dishes (mashed sweet potatoes, caramelized pan-roasted brussels sprouts, apple-pear-fennel-arugula salad) that she could enjoy!

And now, it's time to face down Thanksgiving. Note that I say "face down" rather than a more positive word like "anticipate." Ordinarily, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, hands down. I just love the season, the food, the family time, the feast... Everything about it. Unfortunately, this year, some behind-the-scenes drama, misunderstanding, miscommunication, etc. have somewhat soured the Thankgiving experience for me. I'm just going to make a pie or two - at the risk of their being redundant, since I wasn't asked to bring them or anything else - and make the best of it, and enjoy the day as much as possible. Besides, there's always next year...

An autumny coleslaw

Tonight, I made a(nother) Cook's Illustrated recipe - Hungarian Beef Stew, aka goulash. And it was yet another Cook's Illustrated recipe keeper. I opted to pair this rich beefy dish with some coleslaw - with an autumn flavor. My husband, who has quite vocally expressed his life-long dislike of coleslaw and of cabbage, loved it. Here's the recipe.

J's Autumn Coleslaw
(serves 4+)

3 C cabbage, shredded (about 1/4 of a large head or 1/2 of a small head)
1/4 C onion, finely chopped (about 1/2 medium onion)
1/4 C green bell pepper, finely chopped (about 1/4 large pepper)
1 large apple, cut into matchsticks (I used a Fuji apple)
1/4 C dried cranberries (aka craisins)
3 Tbsp lemon juice (juice of 1 lemon)
1/4 C mayonnaise
1/8 - 1/4 C sour cream
1/2 Tbsp honey
1/2 tsp coarse-grain mustard (I used Grey Poupon Harvest Coarse Ground Mustard)
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 - 3/4 tsp celery seed
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

Combine the cabbage, onion, and green bell pepper.
Combine the apple and dried cranberries, then toss with lemon juice.
Add apple mixture to cabbage mixture.
Whisk together mayonnaise, sour cream, honey, mustard, salt, celery seed, and pepper.
Add dressing to cabbage-apple mixture, and toss to combine.
Drizzle apple cider vinegar over coleslaw mixture and toss to combine.
Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving, to give the flavors time to meld.

Tourtiere experiment #1

G's family is French-Canadian, which means a whole bunch of fun cultural traditions. One of these is the traditional holiday meat pie, called tourtiere.

Two Christmases ago - the first Christmas I spent with G's family and my first time meeting the B clan - I cut my fork into my very first piece of tourtiere, a bite comprising flaky pastry crust, savory meat-and-spice filling, and tomato ketchup out of the bottle as a finishing touch. I wasn't at all surprised to discover I really enjoyed this traditional holiday dish.

Fast forward to Christmas 2010, my first as an official, married-into-the-family member. I had been toying with the idea of trying my hand at making homemade tourtiere. (G's mom purchases hers from a local restaurant.) I was reminded of this half-baked (haha) plan by my sister-in-law to be. So I pestered MomB to pass along her sister's recipe, which is included below.

Tourtiere (Auntie J’s recipe)

1 lb ground beef

½ lb ground pork

1 small potato, mashed

¼ onion, chopped

Very little clove

Pinch cinnamon

1 tsp Bell’s seasoning (yellow box with turkey)

Salt & pepper to taste

Double pie crust

1. Cook the beef, pork, onion, salt & pepper, clove, cinnamon, and Bell’s seasoning to taste.
2. Drain fat.
3. Add mashed potatoes and mix.
4. Put mixture in pie crust.
5. Top with second crust.
6. Cook 30-45 minutes at 400 F.

Well, after consulting with my chief taster, aka G, I decided to combine elements of some of the other recipes I'd researched. My experimental recipe (#1) follows.

Tourtiere (Jieun’s experimental recipe #1)

1 medium potato, peeled and chopped into 1” pieces

1 ½ small yellow (waxy) potatoes, peeled and halved lengthwise

¾ cup beef broth, divided into ¼ cup and ½ cup

1 lb ground beef

½ lb ground pork

½ onion, chopped

¼ tsp clove

¼ tsp cinnamon

1 tsp Bell’s seasoning (yellow box with turkey)

1 bay leaf

Salt & pepper to taste

Double pie crust

1. Cook potatoes in saucepan with enough water to just cover, until tender. Mash the cubed potato with ¼ cup of the beef broth. Dice the waxy potatoes. Set aside.
2. Cook the beef, pork, onion, remaining ½ cup of beef broth, clove, cinnamon, Bell’s seasoning, bay leaf, and salt & pepper to taste over medium-low heat. Add diced potatoes and combine. Then reduce heat to low and simmer until liquid is reduced to about 2 tablespoons.
3. Add mashed potatoes and mix.
4. Place bottom crust in 9” ungreased clear glass pie plate (I have a Pyrex) and trim. Add meat filling, and top with second crust. Fold top crust over the edges of the bottom crust, and flute the edges. Cut steam vents into the top of the top crust.
5. Cook 15 minutes in preheated 400 F oven, then place foil around outer edges. Replace pie in oven and bake another 15-30 minutes, until crust is golden brown.

*ETA G's advice:*

• reduce amount of cinnamon
• make the mashed potatoes more "runny"
• omit the diced potato - this meat pie was too starchy / potato-y

Checking the "M" box

What an odd feeling, to check off the "M for married" box on an official form for the first time! Especially when that is accompanied by filling in "G. B., husband" in the emergency contact section of the same form...

The season's first batch of pumpkin bread...

...just came out of the oven and we are both (all - since there are two loaves) currently cooling our heels, waiting for G to come home so we can sample the yummyness together. After a dinner of crock pot chicken noodle soup, that is. Very cozy for a chilly fall day!

I'm not sure how the end result will taste - will keep you posted - but here's the recipe I came up with and used for this batch, after much online research:

Pumpkin Bread  (makes two 8" loaves)

1 C (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 C white sugar
1 C dark brown sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 C all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 (15oz) can solid pack pumpkin
1/8 C (approx) unsweetened applesauce

Sugar & Spice Blend
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 Tbsp white sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine sugar & spice blend ingredients. Butter two 8" loaf pans, then sprinkle sugar & spice blend evenly on bottom and sides, about 1 Tbsp each pan.
3. Cream butter and sugars together, then add eggs one at a time while mixing. Add vanilla extract and mix in.
4. Combine all dry ingredients together, then gently stir into butter mixture until just combined.
5. Stir in canned pumpkin and applesauce.
6. Distribute batter evenly between prepared loaf pans. Sprinkle sugar & spice mixture on top.
7. Bake approximately 50 min to 1 hr, until cake tests done.

*Note:* I added about 1/2 cup of semisweet chocolate chips to half the batter for one of the loaves.

*ETA:* Not too bad a first attempt... Got the sweetness/sugar amount right, but could bump up the spices a bit.

First dinner of September (2010)

On the menu tonight:

• Raspberry-Balsamic Chicken (from The Complete Cooking Light Cookbook)
• Savory Polenta (Alton Brown's recipe)
• Sauteed Mushrooms (improvised)

Our thoughts:

• The raspberry-balsamic glaze/sauce is a tish on the sweet side for our liking. Shocker, right? Should've known.
• I used regular cornmeal for the polenta; I think we'll locate, buy, and try the coarsely-ground stuff next time.
• I used a bit of marjoram and thyme (dried, not fresh) for the sauteed mushrooms. Yum. I want to buy some wild mushroom varieties and Madeira next time, in an attempt to recreate Cork's yummy sauteed mushrooms.

Our wedding after-party, in pictures (part 5)

Many thanks to all of my friends - and especially my sister Laeun - for passing around my camera and taking these photos.

Our wedding after-party, in pictures (part 4)

Many thanks to all of my friends - and especially my sister Laeun - for passing around my camera and taking these photos.

Our wedding after-party, in pictures (part 3)

Many thanks to all of my friends - and especially my sister Laeun - for passing around my camera and taking these photos.