Sourdough (Garlic) Naan

So one of the benefits of COVID has been the ability to try out making foods I wouldn’t have tried much before. Naan is one of them. I’ve done it before, but having a sourdough starter sitting in the house means I’m much more likely to throw together some naan for dinner than ever before. This is a surprisingly easy recipe and quite delicious. And when I say easy, I do mean it. There is no need for a stand mixer, no kneading the bread, just dump, mix and wait!

I like to make my naan garlic naan (because really, it’s the best kind of naan, but you know, if you are weird and don’t like garlic, it is optional). Onward to deliciousness!

Shawarma!

OK, so confession time. I had never of heard of shawarma until Iron Man suggests the Avengers all go out for it after saving the world. So yes, my motivations of originally trying this deliciousness was incredibly nerdy, but I can safely say that it’s one of the best food recommendations I’ve ever gotten out of a superhero movie. However, since moving down to PA, I have not been able to find good shawarma and it has made me the most sad. I mean, there is some in places nearer to Philly, but I don’t get there often enough and with COVID, well, we aren’t going anywhere.

So I’ve been lamenting my lack of shawarma and tried a few places and it was bland and not good. However, the other day, I finally googled and found this recipe. And it is DELICOUS. And fairly easy. Bonus points is because it’s still COVID times, you can use your sourdough starter and make some naan to go with it 🙂

Pão de Queijo (Brazilian Cheesy Breads)

I was first introduced to Brazilian cheesy breads by a wonderful Brazilian friend and I immediately fell in love.  She became required to bring them to every gathering we had.  She would just pick them up from local Brazilian bakeries, which, when we lived in Boston, were everywhere.  Alas, we moved and Pennsylvania, while having it’s own perks, has very few Brazilian bakeries, so I was forced to make my own.  However, it turns out that they aren’t that complicated and with the existence of Amazon, getting the one odd(ish) ingredient isn’t hard.

This recipe is an adaption from a kitchn recipe.

Vegetarian Chili

I had a friend ask for this recipe recently, so I figured I’d share here too! This can be made meaty very easily, for those of you who prefer it. Also, the spice mix is a modified version of Alton Brown’s taco potion #19, with some significant improvements IMO.

Vegetarian Chili

3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, diced
3 carrots, diced
3 celery stalks, diced
1 bell pepper, chopped
1-2 pints cherry tomatoes, halved
1 can pinto beans
1 package Morningstar farms grillers crumbles (you can substitute with ground meat or more beans or veggies)
1 small can tomato paste
4 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup red wine
1-2 tbsp chili spice mix (see below)
1-2 tbsp olive oil

Sauté garlic and onions in olive oil in a large pot. Add carrots, celery, and peppers and cook ~5 min. Add crumble and sauté until browned lightly. Add wine to deglaze, then add spice mix and tomatoes. Cook for ~1-2 min, then add beans, stock, and tomato paste. Simmer for 15-20 minutes or until desired thickness.

Chili Spice Mix:

1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon chipotle chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons hot smoked paprika
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
* amounts are my best estimate, but I’ve never totally measured, so adjust to taste.

 

 

 

The Best Banana Bread… no, really!

So everyone has opinions about banana bread.  I, personally, never saw the appeal.  It wasn’t very flavorful, and I wasn’t a big fan of adding in nuts to make it have flavor (mostly because I’m not a huge fan of nut flavored things either).  And chocolate?  If I wanted chocolate, I’m not diluting it with banana.  All chocolate, all the time.   However, I came across this recipe in Cook’s Illustrated, and it promised flavor, and used 6 whole bananas.  I gave up and tried it.  People are so sure banana bread is a worthwhile thing, I had to.

Folks… It was AWESOME.  Seriously.  Banana flavor, lovely caramel notes.  No need for nuts (though you could add if you wanted).  Just wonderful.  I now save all my “too ripe” bananas and make this with some regularity.  Try it, even if you don’t like banana bread, even if you have your recipe, give it a try.  It’s worth it.

Daddy Cookies

You know those cookies your family makes every year?  The ones that have their names in your house that have long since lost their true meaning?  These are those in my house.  I believe they are called Thumbprint cookies in other places, but they are also a bit of their own thing.  The story I know is that we call them Daddy cookies because they are my Dad’s favorite.  However, I might have just made that up.  My kid’s also call them Daddy cookies though, so their Dad has to pretend to love them too.  On the upside?  They are super delicious.

Christmas Cookies – Sugar and icing

These are literally the best sugar cookies for decorating at Christmas time.  I’ve made these every year of my life and for multitudes of people.  Even those who “don’t like sugar cookies” love these.  I know what you are thinking: “Margarine?!? Lemon Peel?!? Nutmeg?”  Just trust me.  Make them once as is, then tinker from there.

Oatmeal cream pies

Oatmeal cream pies

(makes 9 pies, 18 total cookies)

 

These are incredibly delicious and a bit heartier than what you buy at the store. While you can substitute out the cookies for any oatmeal cookie recipe and you can replace the filling with fluff if you prefer, I recommend giving it a go as listed here, but I love them and get nothing but rave reviews on them.  Once you get the hang of it, you can add additional flavoring to the filling if you want.  I’ve had good luck with adding powdered ginger. 🙂

Ha!

Found my login details.

I’ll be back to talk about food later.

Butter Roasted Turmeric Mushrooms

So the website that had Connor’s favorite mushrooms died (and now oddly redirects to “Disney Recipes” webpage).  So I’m putting this up so I can find it again in the future.