Basic Creamy Tomato Soup Sunday, Jan 18 2009 

Appetizers and Soups , , singlegaleats 12:56 am

Ingredients
Cooking spray
1 large onion, chopped
4 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 (28 ounce) can stewed tomatoes (no spices added)
4 cups pureed pumpkin or butternut squash
pepper

Directions
In pot, saute onion in cooking spray until limp but not browned. Stir in 3 cups of the stock, and let simmer, partially covered for about 15 minutes. Pour tomatoes into the food processor and puree. Add to pot above. Add the pumpkin and remaining 1 cup stock. Season with the pepper and other spices as deemed necessary.

 

Smokey Cashews Sunday, Dec 28 2008 

Appetizers singlegaleats 8:00 pm

Ingredients
2 cups (9 ounces) unsalted cashews, toasted
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon smoked hot paprika
2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons coarse salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

Directions
Toast cashews: Spread nuts in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet, and bake at 350ºF, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Toss cashews with remaining ingredients until evenly coated. Cashews can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 2 weeks.

Yields 2 cups.

source: yumsugar

 

Parmesan Black Pepper Biscotti Sunday, Dec 28 2008 

Appetizers and Breads and Breakfast , singlegaleats 7:51 pm

Ingredients
1 1/2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns
4 cups all-purpose flour plus additional for dusting
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
4 1/2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano, finely grated (2 1/4 cups)
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
4 large eggs
1 cup whole milk
Special equipment: an electric coffee/spice grinder*

Directions
Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Pulse peppercorns in grinder until coarsely ground. Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, 2 cups cheese, and 1 tablespoon ground black pepper in a large bowl. Blend in butter with a pastry blender or your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Whisk 3 eggs with milk and add to flour mixture, stirring with a fork until a soft dough forms. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and quarter dough. Using well-floured hands, form each piece into a slightly flattened 12-inch-long log (about 2 inches wide and 3/4 inch high). Transfer logs to 2 ungreased large baking sheets, arranging logs about 3 inches apart. Whisk remaining egg and brush some over logs, then sprinkle tops of logs evenly with remaining 1/4 cup cheese and 1/2 tablespoon ground pepper. Bake, rotating sheets 180 degrees and switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until logs are pale golden and firm, about 30 minutes total. Cool logs to warm on sheets on a rack, about 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 300°F. Carefully transfer 1 warm log to a cutting board and cut diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices with a serrated knife. Arrange slices, cut sides down, in 1 layer on a baking sheet. Repeat with remaining logs, transferring slices to sheets. Bake, turning over once, until golden and crisp, 35 to 45 minutes total. Cool biscotti on baking sheets on racks, about 15 minutes.

* I hand cracked the black pepper using my everyday pepper grinder.

Makes 5-6 dozen biscotti.

source: yumsugar

 

Sugar ‘n’ Spice Nuts Sunday, Nov 9 2008 

Appetizers , , , , singlegaleats 2:00 am

Ingredients
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 egg white
1 cup salted cashews
1 cup pecan halves
1 cup dry roasted peanuts
1/2 cup dried cranberries

Directions
In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon and cayenne; set aside. In a large bowl, whisk the egg white; add nuts and cranberries. Sprinkle with sugar mixture and toss to coat. Spread in a single layer on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 300° for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown, stirring once. Cool. Store in an airtight container.

Yield: 3 1/2 cups or 14 servings

Source: taste of home

 

Pumpkin Cookie Dip Sunday, Nov 9 2008 

Appetizers and Desserts , , singlegaleats 1:49 am

Ingredients
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
2 jars (7 ounces each) marshmallow creme
1 can (15 ounces) solid-pack pumpkin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon grated orange peel
Gingersnaps or vanilla wafers

Directions
In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and marshmallow creme until smooth. Stir in the pumpkin, cinnamon and orange peel. Serve as a dip with cookies. Store in the refrigerator.

Yield: 4 cups

Source: taste of home

 

Pumpkin Pie Wontons Saturday, Oct 4 2008 

Appetizers and Breakfast and Desserts and Vegetarian , singlegaleats 5:44 pm

Ingredients
1 cup canned pumpkin
2 Tbs. maple syrup
3 Tbs. light brown sugar
16 packaged wonton wrappers
Granulated sugar for dusting
Ground cinnamon for dusting

Directions
Preheat oven to 400F. In medium bowl, mix pumpkin, maple syrup, brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice. Place one wonton wrapper flat on work surface. Spoon 1 Tbs. filling into center. Moisten edges of wonton with water and fold in half to form triangle. Press edges to seal. Repeat with remaining filling and wontons. Arrange filled wontons on ungreased baking sheet. Lightly coat wontons with nonstick cooking spray and sprinkle each with sugar and cinnamon. Bake until golden, about 16 minutes. Turn and bake 2 more minutes. Set baking sheet on wire rack to cool.

Makes 16 servings.

Source: Vegetarian Times

 

Apple Black Bean Salsa Thursday, Oct 2 2008 

Appetizers and Sauces and Condiments and Vegetarian , singlegaleats 10:47 pm

Ingredients

1 cup canned black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup diced plum tomatoes
1 cup diced unpeeled apple
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/4 cup diced red onion
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely minced
Salt to taste

Directions
Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl. Mix gently with a large spoon. *Jalapeno peppers can range from mild to fiery. To avoid flavor jolts, taste a tiny bit before deciding how much to add. To prevent the apples from discoloring, add them to the bowl with the lime juice.

Source: boston.com

 

Spaghetti Squash Ideas Sunday, Sep 14 2008 

Appetizers and Desserts and Entrees and Salads and Vegetarian , , singlegaleats 3:20 am

Idea #1: Low Carb Spaghetti
Cut squash in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds and bake it at 350°F for 30 minutes or until you can pierce it with a knife with little resistance. While it’s baking, sauté diced onions, tomatoes, one minced clove of garlic, and a handful of chopped fresh basil. Scoop out the flesh with a fork (it should be stringy), place it on a plate and top with your tomato mixture.

Idea #2: Greek Salad
Bake the same way as above, but this time scoop out the flesh, place in a bowl, and allow it to cool in the fridge. After 20 minutes, pour the squash flesh onto a cutting board and chop it up a little. Place it in a bowl and mix in diced tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, lemon juice, olive oil, spices, feta, and olives to make a Greek salad.

Idea #3: Salad Topper
Bake, allow to cool, and then marinate spaghetti squash with lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, and rosemary. Top it on your garden salad for a little extra flavor and texture.

Idea #4: Dessert
For a treat, before placing it in the oven to bake, sprinkle cinnamon, a little nutmeg, a drizzle of honey, and top with chopped walnuts. Serve warm.

 

Arugula-Pear Salad with Olive Vinaigrette Saturday, Sep 13 2008 

Appetizers and Salads and Vegetarian , singlegaleats 9:44 pm

Ingredients

1/3 cup pitted Kalamata olives chopped
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons white balsamic or white wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 ripe red or green Bartlett pear halved, cored, and sliced
1 bag baby arugula (5-ounce)
2 ounces Grana Padano or Parmesan cheese shaved with a vegetable peeler

Directions

Whisk olives, olive oil, vinegar, and pepper in a large salad bowl until combined. Add pear and arugula; gently toss to dress. Divide salad over plates. Top with shaved cheese.

Source: redbook

 

Peanutty Cabbage-Apple Slaw with Raisins Saturday, Sep 13 2008 

Appetizers and Salads and Vegetarian , , , singlegaleats 9:38 pm

Ingredients

1/3 cup white balsamic or cider vinegar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons roasted peanut oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
3 cups coarsely chopped Granny Smith apple
1/2 cup golden seedless raisins
1 (16-ounce) package cabbage-and-carrot coleslaw

Directions

Combine first 5 ingredients, stirring with a whisk until sugar dissolves. Combine apple, raisins, and coleslaw. Drizzle with vinaigrette; toss well to combine. Chill for up to 3 hours.

Source: my recipes