Cranberry Relish

Since we have been married I have joined Brent up in Ohio with his family for Thanksgiving.  We are there for a couple days so I enjoy making a dish to contribute to Thanksgiving dinner.  This year my yoga teacher sent out a recipe for a Cranberry Relish.  It was a great combination of delicious fruit and it will be a dish we will make throughout the year!

Ingredients:

• One 12-16 ounce bag of fresh cranberries 
• All of the seeds from one large pomegranate
• 2 clementines sectioned
• 1 apple, diced or shredded (optional to peel)
• 1 pear, diced or shredded (optional to peel)
• 1-2 tsp cinnamon depending on taste

* Optional, you may add a small amount of honey to sweeten to taste.

 

Directions:

Put all ingredients into a blender and blend to desired consistency.  Serve chilled and enjoy!

Healthy Breakfast Muffins

I am always on the hunt for a breakfast food that will keep me full for long time.  I came across this recipe for Healthy Breakfast Muffins and thought I would give them a try.  They actually came out tasty (I was skeptical with the flax seed) and kept me pretty full!  They were also a quick option for our early mornings which is very helpful.  

Healthy Breakfast Muffins (Original recipe from HelloGiggles Blog)

 Ingredients

• ½ cup of oatmeal
• 1 ¾ cups flour
• ¼ cup ground flax seed
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• ¾ cup sliced or chopped nuts (I used almonds)
• ½ cup of raisins or other dried fruit
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 banana, mashed
• ½ cup of applesauce
• 1 egg
• ¾ cup milk 1 apple, diced 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir to combine.
3. Combine wet ingredients in a bowl, including diced apples, and stir until thoroughly mixed.
4. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and stir until all dry ingredients are coated.
5. Pour batter into greased muffin tin (DON’T use liners! They will stick!) and bake for approximately 20 minutes or until just brown on top. 

 

Spicy Shrimp and Bok Choy Soup with Mushrooms

When Brent and I were vacationing in Las Vegas a couple years ago we ate at a Mexican and Chinese Fusion restaurant, China Poblano.  It was delicious, we highly recommend it if you find yourself in Las Vegas.  We had an awesome spicy shrimp and bok choy soup that I decided last year to attempt to imitate.  The result was this Spicy Shrimp and Bok Choy Soup with Mushrooms.  It is quite delicious and has become a go to meal for us.

Spicy Shrimp and Bok Choy Soup with Mushrooms (originally recipe from Food Network)

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 teaspoon crushed ginger
• 1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced
• 1 medium bok choy, trimmed and cut into 3-inch pieces, then cut sticks lengthwise
• Salt and pepper
• 1 quart chicken broth
• 1 cup seafood stock, (heat 2 cups of water with the shells of the shrimp used in the recipe at a low simmer for 15 min to make it homemade)
• 1 1/2 pounds medium peeled and deveined shrimp
• 1/2 pound vermicelli (thin spaghetti)

Directions:

1. Heat a medium soup pot over medium-high heat. Add vegetable oil, 3 turns of the pan, crushed red pepper flakes, garlic, ginger, mushrooms, and bok choy, then season with salt and pepper.
2. Add chicken broth and seafood stock or clam juice. Put a lid on the pot and bring soup to a boil.
3. Add shrimp and noodles and cook 5 minutes, then turn off soup and let it sit 2 to 3 minutes more.

Homemade Pasta

For Thanksgiving each year we head up to Ohio to visit Brent's family.  Since we stay with his Aunt and they host a beautiful Thanksgiving feast I always like to bring them something.  Last year it was a really neat candle that looked like an ornament.  This year I decided to bring them some dried homemade pasta.  Making pasta is super easy and taste exponentially better than dried pasta you get in the store.  I have always made pasta and then used it the same day so drying it to keep for a couple months was a new feat and worked out great!

Homemade Tagliatelle Pasta (original recipe from A16 Food and Wine Cookbook)

Ingredients

• 6 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 cups water
• 1 egg, lightly beaten

Directions

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the flour and salt.  On low speed drizzle in the water and egg.  Mix until just combined then knead on medium-low speed for 3 min.
2. Check the consistency, it should feel slightly tacky but not sticky.  If the dough sticks to your fingers add 1/4 cup more flour.  Continue to knead the dough for 10 min.  
3. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces, wrap each piece tightly in plastic wrap and let rest for about 30 min.  

1. Prepare a large amount of counter space and flour it.  If using a hand a crank pasta machine attach it to the counter next the flour area.  
2. Unwrap a piece of the dough and flatten dough into a rectangle no wider than will fit comfortably through the rollers.  Guide the dough through the first setting of the pasta machine, then through each setting until the second to last setting.  At this point guide it through the tagliatelle cutter (if too long then cut in half before putting through).
3. If cooking the pasta that day then coat the noodles lightly in flour then place on a baking sheet until ready to cook.  If drying the noodles hang each noodle over a broom placed between two chairs. 
4.  Once the pasta starts to dry (about 30 mi. to an hour) remove a couple pieces at a time to wrap in a next shape.  On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper place all the nests and let dry over the next 2 days.
5. After completely dry put pasta in an airtight container. Should last a couple months.
6. When cooking the pasta boil for about 5-7 min.