Loaded Twice Baked Potatoes

17 Jun

I love to eat baked potatoes… I remember when we first got a microwave oven, way back when, I was always in charge of making the baked potatoes. Prick them a few times with a fork… bake in the oven… wrap them in foil paper to retain the heat… and eat them just like if you were at a steak house.

That was AGES ago… now, I no longer have a microwave in my kitchen and steakhouses are not part of my restaurant rotation. But I still love to bake potatoes. But they take FOREVER in an oven… even in a toaster oven which is what I usually use if it’s just me and a few others to feed.

My sister gave me an Express Cooker last Xmas as a gift. One of the recipes in the booklet that comes with the Express is how to bake potatoes… and to do it in just 15 minutes. In the regular oven, it usually takes about 1 hour to properly bake a potato. So this is a real time-saver. But the real kicker is what to mix it with… Anybody can bake a potato, but the fixings are what make it special.

LOADED TWICE BAKED POTATOES

1 large baking potato
1 tbs butter
2 tbs sour cream
2 tbs cream cheese
1 large garlic clove, minced or grated
2 scallions, chopped
1 tbs of Vegan Bac’n
2 handfuls of shredded cheddar cheese, divided
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste
  1. I baked my potato using the Express… but you can do it in a regular oven or toaster oven. I cut the potato into 2 halves, oiled it with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper. And cooked it cut side down for 15 minutes.
  2. When the potato is baked, I allow it to cool off a bit so I can handle it easily. But it needs to still be warm for you to easily be able to remove the flesh of the potato and leave the outer skin with a bit of potato so it has still some structure.
  3. Place the flesh of the potato in a medium sized bowl and mix in your favorite fixin’s… mine has butter, sour cream, cream cheese, garlic, scallions, these new Vegan Bac’ns I found at the health food store the other day and shredded cheddar cheese. I use a bit of cheese inside the mash and leave some for the topping.
  4. Mash all the ingredients together… season with salt and pepper to taste. Add a drizzle of olive oil if you feel the mixture needs some moisture.
  5. Take the potato mash and spoon it back into the potato shells. I like to mound the mixture so it looks luscious and abundant. Place what’s left of the shredded cheese on top.
  6. Place in a toaster oven on 450F or broiler for about 10 minutes to melt and brown the cheese on top.

To me, half a potato is plenty for me as a side dish… and both halves are good as a main course with a salad on the side.

Tags: , , , , ,

Celery Lime Juice

15 Jun

If you thought Celery Pineapple juice was out there… let me give you another one.

Celery juice sound weird to many people, but it’s really, really good. It has many beneficial properties, and according to Hippocrates, the father of medicine, it “calms the nerve”… which is probably why was given to me as a treatment. Among its benefits are:

1. Eating celery will reduce high blood pressure and give the effect of calmness.

2. Celery clears uric acid from painful joints and may help the treatment of arthritis and rheumatic problems.

3. Celery also helps the kidney an acts an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant.

Even with all its benefits, celery could be a bit strong for certain people, so I was recommended to take it with lemon or lime to ease it into your system.

My sister was skeptical at first, and even though I don’t think she’ll be making this anytime soon… but I believe she was pleasantly surprised when I gave it to try. I enjoy a glass of this everyday now as part of a treatment, but I believe it will be part of my juice repertoire from now on.

CELERY LIME JUICE

1 stalk of celery, chopped finely
The juice of ½ a lime
1 cup of cold water
Drizzle of agave nectar or honey
Ice cube – optional
  1. In a blender or Magic Bullet add all ingredients and blend well.
  2. Strain the juice using a fine mesh sieve to get rid of all the pulp.

Tags: , , ,

Tofu with Snow Peas and Bean Sprouts

13 Jun

Making this Korean Seasoned Tofu recipe made me think of the first time I ever made tofu. It was a Martha Stewart recipe I had seen on her show. My mom and I weren’t even declared vegetarians yet. What surprised us the most about this recipe is how much it didn’t taste like the idea we had of tofu in our minds… rather, it tasted exactly as the imprint we had of what chicken tasted like. Weird…

Since that day, my mom and I remember and reminisced about that recipe. And one day recently we found, at the Pulguero, a bag of snow peas and some bean sprouts. Armed with my “emergency” block of tofu I always have on hand, the rest is history…

TOFU WITH SNOW PEAS AND BEAN SPROUTS

3 tbs toasted sesame oil
12 ounces extra-firm tofu,
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup bean sprouts, about half a plastic container
1 cup snow-pea pods, trimmed, strings removed, and sliced into thirds on long diagonal
3 tbs soy sauce
2 tbs toasted sesame seeds
  1. Cut tofu into 1/4-inch slices and press in between a bunch of paper towels for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
  2. Heat sesame oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add tofu and cook until well browned on both sides, 6 to 8 minutes. Add garlic and cook for about 2 minutes.
  3. Raise heat to high and add sprouts and snow peas. Stir-fry for 3 to 4 minutes.
  4. Season soy sauce. Remove from heat, transfer to serving dish, and garnish with sesame seeds.

 

Serve over steamed brown rice or even my version of Leek Rice. I think Martha would be proud of our rendition… don’t you think?

Tags: , , , , , ,

Ricotta and Berries

10 Jun

My favorite breakfasts include fruits… especially now that we’re starting summer and the berries are all in season.

Last week we spent a few days at my sister’s home and I love going to the farmer’s market to get a bunch of berries to serve at breakfast. But eating strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries on their own may seem to you a little boring. Why not mix them up with a little cheese??

Italians use ricotta cheese in both savory and sweet dishes… morning, noon and night. So taking a little inspiration from the land of the mammas, here’s my latest breakfast concoction.

RICOTTA AND BERRIES

Mix your favorite fresh berries – strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries, sometimes you could even add grape tomatoes. Hey, they’re berries too!!
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 tbs agave nectar, plus more to drizzle on top
  1. Mix in a bowl the ricotta cheese and the agave nectar to give it some sweetness.
  2. Add your favorite mix of berries.
  3. Drizzle some additional agave nectar on top.

 

It’s creamy and tangy at the same time… you could also use honey if you prefer instead of the agave nectar.

Berries and Tomatoes... go well together!!!

Tags: , , , , , ,

Garlic Parsley Bread

8 Jun

I loooooove garlic bread… I know it’s not the most intelligent thing to eat when on a date, but I really do not care. I go by Rachael Ray’s philosophy that 2 garlics cancel each other out. Hey… the computer surfer guy who opted not to kiss me because of the garlic mushrooms we BOTH ate, missed out!!

I made this recipe as an easy side to accompany my Spinach Cannelloni for my BIL’s birthday party… it also works extremely well to use up those parsley stems too rough to put inside the cheese filling. It’s all about using everything in the kitchen and minimizing waste… just like in a restaurant.

GARLIC PARSLEY BREAD

1 whole-wheat baguette
5-6 garlic cloves, chopped in large pieces
Stems of fresh Italian parsley… I used the stems left-over from the parsley chopped for the filling in this recipe
2 tbs of softened butter
Drizzle of olive oil
Salt and Freshly Cracked Black Pepper to taste
  1. In a small food processor blend together the garlic cloves and parsley stems until you create a green paste.
  2. In a small bowl, add the green garlic/parsley paste, butter, olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Mix well to combine.
  4. Cut the baguette into a top and bottom half. Spread the garlic/parsley spread onto both halves. Place them one on top of the other back again and wrap in parchment paper before wrapping in aluminum foil.
  5. Place in a 425F oven… the same one you’re using to bake the cannelloni. Bake and allow the flavors to penetrate the bread for about 20-25 minutes. I usually just place it in the oven with whatever I am making and leave it there until we’re ready to eat.

Slice the bread into 2” slices and serve warm…

Tags: , , , ,

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →