Parmesan Risotto

Last night I was feeling very nostalgic for some of the foods that we made in class this past year. So when I had to think of something to make to go with salmon that I made, I thought about a suggestion that my friend made at the beginning of the summer, that also happened to be something that we learned in our traditional european cuisine class.

Parmesan Risotto

4- 5 cups chicken stock
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 yellow onion - diced
1 garlic clove - minced
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
1 cup white wine
1/2 cup grated parmesan
salt and pepper
1 teaspoon thyme

Begin by heating the chicken stock and keeping it on a low burning to stay warm. In a medium sized pot, melt 2 tablespoons of butter, add onions and garlic, season with salt and pepper and sauté for 2 minutes or until onions are translucent. Add rice and cook for about 5 minutes until slightly translucent, stirring frequently. add wine and cook until evaporated. Begin to add stock 1/2 cup at a time, stirring continuously. Once stock has been absorbed, add the next 1/2 cup, continue or 20-25 minutes or until rice is fully cooked. Once cooked, remove from heat, add remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, parmesan, thyme and season with more salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

Risotto is definitely a time commitment but if you are willing to be patient, which is definitely sometimes difficult for me, than it can really pay off. With my work week basically over I am very much excited to relax this weekend. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Baked Salmon in Parchment

All day at work all I could think about was what I wanted to make for dinner. But it wasn't till after I had gotten home that I remembered one day in my nutrition lab where all we focused on was wrap cookery. So tonight I decided to bake salmon in parchment paper for my parents and I as a healthy summer meal that I anyone can do. 

Baked Salmon and Zucchini in Parchment 

yield: 1 serving

1 small zucchini or summer squash - halved and thinly sliced 

1 tablespoon shallots- thinly sliced 

Olive oil 

Salt and Pepper 

1 8-ounce salmon fillet 

1 tablespoon lemon juice 

A pinch of dill weed 

1 piece of parchment paper 

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Fold the parchment paper in half to crease it then open it back up. On one side lay down the sliced zucchini and top with shallots. Drizzle a small amount of olive oil over vegetables and season with salt and pepper. Lay the salmon fillet over the vegetables, squeeze lemon juice over fish and top with dill weed. Fold over the other half of parchment and fold the bottom part over the top in small creases until the opening of parchment is sealed. Bake for 15 minutes, let sit for 2-3 minutes out of oven, then cut a slit in the top, open up parchment and serve. 

My work schedule this week has been switched around so it almost makes it feel like this week has gone on forever, although thats also probably because I worked Sunday as well. Either way I am happy for this week to almost be over and to fit in some more driving practice in this weekend. So till next time, 

Keep Cooking Brooklyn! 

Cinnamon Apple Bread Pudding

Monday nights are not the busiest nights at work, so we are often left with a large amount of baguettes and donuts that we end up having to through away at the end of the night. So last night, instead of throwing them away, my coworker and I took some home. Since my family doesn't really eat bread that often, I thought I would use the day old bread today in a bread pudding.

Cinnamon Apple Bread Pudding

1 baguette - cubed
1 1/2 cups almond milk
1 1/2 cups apple sauce
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 eggs
1 apple (red or green) - diced
1/4 cup raisins
Powdered sugar

After cubing up the bread, mix together the milk, apple sauce, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl. Taste and add more sugar if needed. Beat in eggs. Fold in the bread cubes, diced apples and raisins. Pour mixture into glass pan and place in refrigerator for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 and bake for 45 -50 minutes until inside is set and top is lightly brown. Dust the top with powdered sugar and serve slightly cooled or fully chilled.

I usually am not a fan of bread pudding, and I added more sugar when writing this post because it originally did not have enough, but overall I actually liked this more than I thought. Even though we don't often have bread in our house, it is always hard to know what to do with it when we do, so I am hoping to come up with more stale bread recipes to re use what would normally be thrown away, so till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Meal Prep Monday

Yesterday at whole foods I got some orecchiette pasta to use for meal prep monday. So after my daily Starbucks run, I decided to use up some of the left over goat cheese from yesterdays recipe and make a quick pasta for after work.

Orecchiette with Goat Cheese and Mint

1/2 cup orecchiette
1/4 yellow onion
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup frozen peas
2 ounces goat cheese
1/2 cup milk or cream
1 tablespoon mint - chiffonade
Salt and Pepper

Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook orecchiette for about 11minutes. While the pasta cooks, sauté the onions in butter till softened and translucent. Add the peas and warm through. Add milk or cream and cheese and heat till the cheese melts. Add the pasta and reserve a small amount of pasta water for later use. Stir pasta into sauce and let the sauce simmer while stirring. Simmer till sauce has reduced slightly and thickened. Add a few tablespoons of reserved pasta water to add more thickness. Season with salt and pepper, plate pasta or place in tupperware container and top with mint.

There are only 39 days left of the blog and I can't tell if its moving quickly or slowing down. For the most part if feels like having basically a month left isn't that much time at all, but when you put it inot perspective a month can seem like a long time. Unfortunately I won't be able to go to Maine for two weeks like I usually do in the summer, so that means 6 more weeks of working, sleeping and cooking, which can start to get boring. Maybe I could think of something exciting to do for the blog to make time move a little more quickly. Till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Sweet Potato Latkes Appetizers

My family and I haven't really been all together for dinner in a pretty long time, with my brother on a two week long business trip and then my mom away for a week at a yoga retreat, a family dinner was long over due. So to make things a little special, I made a little appetizer to enjoy during the news.

Sweet Potato Latkes Appetizers

1 large sweet potato
1/2 onion
1 egg
1/3 cup flour
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Salt and pepper - to taste
Canola Oil
1 ounce chevre goat cheese
1 tablespoon cream cheese
Dill

Using a box grater, grate the sweet potato and onion into a small bowl. Mix in the egg, flour, nutmeg and salt and pepper. Heat a pan filled an inch high with oil and place small spoonfuls of the sweet potato mixture and cook for about 4 minutes on each side till lightly browned. Let the pancakes drain and cool on a plate with paper towel to soak up the excess oil. When ready to plate, mix together the goat cheese and cream cheese and pipe a small dollop of cheese mixture on each pancake and top with dill.

After a short morning shift at work, my dad and I drove to the new whole foods that I hadn't gone to yet and looked around for some interesting products. The real point of the trip was to let me practice my driving, but the whole foods was huge and I could definitely see myself spending hours scouring the aisle for unique finds. Hopefully sometime soon I will have the time to spend there, so till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Classic Macaroni Salad

Today my family and I drove out to Long Island for a family barbecue to celebrate the summer birthdays of the family. The barbecue ended up being filled with sharing photos that were found in storage a few weeks ago from when we were all kids. There were tons of hilarious photos of our baby days and loads of pictures that we hadn't seen before. So with the request of my aunt, I made a macaroni salad to go along with everything else being served.

Macaroni Salad

2 cups dry macaroni
2 stalks celery - diced
1 red onion - diced
1/2 red bell pepper - diced
1 tablespoon parsley - finely chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
3/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons cider vinegar
3 tablespoons sour cream
Salt and Pepper - to taste

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta till al dente - about 6 minutes. In a big bowl, mix together mayonnaise, mustard, sugar, vinegar and sour cream. When pasta is cooked, drain and rinse and let cool for a few minutes while you cut the vegetables. Add the pasta and the cut vegetables and parsley to the bowl with the dressing. Mix together and season with salt and pepper. This salad is even better if made a day ahead and allowed to sit in the refrigerator overnight.

Usually I am off of work all weekend, but tomorrow I am covering someones shift at work, which just seems odd because I feel like my whole week is going to be thrown off because I won't actually be sure of what day it is. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

New York Style Black and White Cookies

Growing up in New York, it was pretty normal to see giant black and white cookies in the display cases of bagel shops or corner stores and it wasn't after I left that I realized that those delicious giant cookies were actually a New York thing. The other day I saw one of these giant cookies in a store and thought that it would be cool to try and recreate them at home. So today on my day off I decided to try it out.

Black and White Cookies
Yield: 8 Cookies

1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup softened butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg

Icing:
1 1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1-2 tablespoons water
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl whisk together flour, baking soda and salt, set aside. In another bowl mix together buttermilk and vanilla. In a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar and mix for about 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the egg and mix till combined. Then slowly add the flour and buttermilk mixture alternating between the two and beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Scoop 1/4 cup mounds of the cookie batter onto a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 15-17 minutes, until lightly brown around the edges and still soft and springy in the middle. Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack and let cool for 10-15 minutes.
While cookies cool, mix together the confectioners sugar, corn syrup, lemon juice, vanilla and 1 1/2 tablespoons of water. Spread the vanilla icing on one half of the flat side of each cookie. Once all the cookies are iced with the vanilla icing, add the cocoa powder to the icing mixture. Add 1 teaspoon of water at a time until you reach the same consistency as before and finish icing the other half of each cookie with the chocolate icing.

These cookies were actually really fun to make and they came out pretty close to what I remember the original tasting like. It also made my day off a little more entertaining considering it was otherwise filled with doing laundry and cleaning my room. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Rosemary Cashews

After my last day of work for the week, I thought it would be nice to take a little break from cooking dinner, so tonight I'm going out to dinner with one of my friends. But we were seriously lacking snack foods in our cupboard and I was wanting something to snack on, so I decided to flavor some cashews for a quick snack.

Rosemary cashews

8 ounces halved cashews
1 tablespoon rosemary
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 teaspoon brown sugar
pinch of cayenne
pinch of salt

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Place the cashews on a sheet pan and toast them for about 10 minutes. In a small bowl mix together the remaining ingredients. When the nuts are toasted, add them to the bowl and mix till evenly coated.

These nuts would be great along side a cheese plate or appetizers at a dinner party or are just great by themselves as an after school or after work snack. After was seems like a long week of work, I am looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow and doing whatever I feel like doing because I have nothing planned for the whole day. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Steamed Pork Dumpling

Today after work I suddenly had the urge to try something completely new. And I don't know if I was drawing inspiration from the cooking asia club at my school that my best friend is apart of or if I was just craving Chinese food, but I decided that I was determined to make pork dumplings. 

Steamed Pork Dumplings 

2 clove garlic - minced 

1 teaspoon ginger - minced 

2 tablespoons sesame oil 

2-3 scallions 

12 ounces ground pork 

2 tablespoons hoisin sauce 

3 teaspoons soy sauce 

1 package wonton wrappers 

In a saute pan, combine the garlic, ginger, sesame oil and scallions and cook for a minute or two until fragrant, let cool for a minute. In a medium sized bowl mix together the scallion mixture, ground pork, hoisin and soy sauce. Season with black pepper. Fill wonton wrappers with a small spoonful of filling and fold in half into triangles. In a sauce pot with a metal steamer inside, bring enough water to just touch the bottom of steamer to a boil. Fill with as many dumplings as will fit in one layer and cover pot and steam for 10-11 minutes. Serve with a sauce of soy sauce, hoisin and sriracha ( I didn't measure anything for sauce, just added till it tasted how I wanted). 

After searching for an hour in my neighborhood for ingredients I definitely was tired. This recipe is definitely one of the most difficult things I've made but it was probably ten times harder because of my exhaustion. So as I am falling asleep while writing this, I am hoping that I can come up with something to make tomorrow that will be a little easier for an after work recipe. So till then, 

Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Grilled Corn Salad

With corn finally in season and a few left over ears in the refrigerator, I thought that a fresh grilled corn salad would be a nice side dish to go with the barbecue chicken that my dad made the other night for dinner.

Grilled Corn Salad

4 ears corn
2 zucchinis - cut lengthwise into thirds
1 red onion - diced
1/2 cup heirloom cherry tomatoes - halved
2 sprigs thyme
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Start by tossing the ears of corn and cut zucchini in olive oil, salt and pepper. Grill the zucchini and corn for about 3-4 minutes a side. Cut the kernels off the corn cobs and dice the zucchini into small pieces. Mix the corn and zucchini with the onion, tomatoes and thyme leaves. Toss with the vinegar and olive oil and season with additional salt and pepper.

I am sorry that this post is so short, but I had a long closing shift at work today and now I have to go to bed and prepare myself to wake up at 6 am to open at work tomorrow. Even though work is tiring and the hours don't always seem ideal, it is rewarding and I am learning a lot. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies

Because of the large quantity of leftovers in our fridge, I decided to skip meal prep this week and forage for food after work from what we already have. But this morning I woke up with a craving for cookies, so with mom gone for the rest of the week, I thought I would make a small batch of oatmeal chocolate chunk cookies. 

Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies 

Yield: about 12 

1 stick of butter - softened 

1/2 cup brown sugar 

1/4 cup granulated sugar 

1/2 teaspoon vanilla 

1 egg 

1 cup flour 

1/2 teaspoon baking soda 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 

1 1/12 cups oats 

1 cup chocolate chunks 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In small bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon, set aside. In a stand mixer, mix together the butter and sugars till light and fluffy. Add in the egg and vanilla. Slowly add the flour mixture and stir till combined. Finally add the oats and chocolate chunks. Place small spoonfuls of dough onto two cookie sheets and bake for about 10 -12 minutes. Let cool and store in an air tight container. 

So far this summer hasn't been nearly as hot as it normally is, which is nice because it leaves more of an opportunity to cook things without feeling like you are making the house ten times hotter than it already is. There is something about baking cookies like this that seem so innocent and is a relaxing way to spend my morning before work. So till next time, 

Keep Cooking Brooklyn! 

Panzanella Salad

We don't often have leftover bread in our house, and when we do it usually ends up sitting in our cupboards for weeks before someone finally throughs it away. This time I thought that I would try to do something with it. So I went to a classic italian dish that is a great way to turn stale bread into a hearty summer side dish. 

Panzanella Salad 

1/2 a baguette 

1 small jar marinated artichoke hearts

4 ounces mozzarella cheese - cubed 

1/4 cup heirloom cherry tomatoes - halved 

1 tablespoon basil - chiffonade 

1/4 cup olive oil 

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 

1 teaspoon dijon mustard 

In a small bowl toss together the cubed bread, artichokes, mozzarella, tomatoes and basil. Pour in a few tablespoons of the marinate from the artichokes and toss to coat the bread. In a separate bowl whisk together the olive oil, vinegar and mustard. Pour half of the vinaigrette over the bread, toss and leave the bread mixture in the refrigerator to soak up the liquid. When ready to serve, toss the salad with the remaining vinaigrette and serve. 

This salad would be even better if you toast the bread on the grill to give it a deeper flavor and texture. This week my mom is away on a yoga retreat, which means its just me, my dad and my brother for the next few days, which could be a dangerous combination. With the week without mom around, I assume that it will result in a few indulgent recipes that my mom would not want around for temptation. So till next time, 

Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Summer Gazpacho

I am not a huge fan of soups. I usually don't enjoy the texture and I just don't find it appealing. But one of the most refreshing dishes for summer is a cold soup, so I made some fresh gazpacho inspired by a popular item at work.

Gazpacho

5 vine ripened tomatoes - peeled and deseeded
1 kirby cucumber - peeled and deseeded
8 ounces watermelon
1 1/2 small red onions - chopped
4 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and Pepper

Remove the core from the tomatoes and make a small X on the bottom of each tomato. Place the tomatoes in a pot of boiling water for 30-60 seconds and let cool in an ice bath. Peel away the skin of the tomatoes and remove the seeded. Place the tomatoes, cucumbers, watermelon and red onion in a blender and blend until smooth. Slowly drizzle in the oil while blending, season with salt and pepper and chill until time to serve.

My favorite part of this recipe is the red onion flavor, I think that it gives it a strong flavor without making it spicy. I think this soup is the only one that I actually enjoy and it is a great recipe to try for lunch or dinner. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Perfect Margarita Pairing

With all the ingredients for frozen margaritas in the fridge, my mom decided to have margaritas at home with one of her co workers instead of going to their regular margarita spot. So to go with the chips and salsa that my mom was going to serve, I decided to make a corn and black bean guacamole.

Corn and Black Bean Guacamole 

1/2 sweet onion - diced 

1 clove garlic - minced 

2 tablespoons cilantro - chopped 

2 avocados - diced
1/2 can corn - drained
1/2 can black beans - drained and rinsed
1/2 lime - juiced
Salt and pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and mash avocado together.
Serve with chips and salsa and a sprinkle of chopped cilantro.

This summer has been surprisingly cool as far as the heat, especially for summer in the city. So its nights like these that are nice to spend on the deck with a cold drink and good food. Even though the mosquitoes are viscous, it's still nice to be able to enjoy outside without having to hide in the air conditioning. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Caesar Salad with Polenta Croutons

With an excess of leftover pasta in the fridge, I thought what better to go along side it than a caesar salad with a homemade dressing and croutons with a twist. While I was listening to a Shane Dawson podcast on a train back home from school for spring break, he started talking about polenta croutons. I hadn't heard of them before, but I was automatically intrigued. Every since I have wanted to make them and see what they were like, so this seemed like a good opportunity to test it out.

Caesar Salad with Polenta Croutons 

Dressing: 

5 cloves garlic

1 tablespoon dijon mustard 

1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce 

2 tablespoons mayonnaise 

1/2 cup olive oil 

2 anchovies

1 tablespoon lemon juice  

salt and pepper 

Polenta Croutons: 

1 cup corn meal
3 cups water
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup grated parm
Garlic powder
Salt and pepper

For the croutons, start by cooking the polenta how you normally would. Boil the water and add the corn meal, stirring constantly and simmering till it becomes very thick (about 15-25 minutes). Once thickened, stir in the butter and cheese, season with salt and pepper and spread into a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray, let set for 10 minutes. Then cut into squares and place on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray and sprinkle with garlic powder and bake for 30-40 minutes until crispy on the outside. For the dressing blend the garlic, dijon, worcestershire sauce, mayonnaise and anchovies. Then slowly drizzle in oil while blending. Season with salt and pepper and a small amount of lemon juice. Drizzle dressing over romaine lettuce, top with croutons and serve.

I learned that the polenta croutons are best if served straight out of the oven because they are crispy and still soft in the center. I think that the polenta croutons were an interesting take on a classic food and the dressing had a mice garlicky spice to it. I'm starting to run out of ideas for what to make but I am hoping that inspiration
will strike somewhere like it did from the podcast for these croutons. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Pesto Pasta Salad

Considering today's post marks the halfway point for summer and blog posts, it seems fitting that I ended up making something for a small party that my mom had tonight. After the weekly yoga class in our living room, it was all about the frozen margaritas and good food to bring everyone together for one last yogi summer celebration. So with a pasta salad request from my mom I thought I would make some more pesto and use it to make a fresh summer pasta dish to be served cold. 

Pesto Pasta Salad 

2 pounds bowtie pasta 

1 batch homemade pesto (check out that recipe in an earlier blog post) 

3 ears corn 

2 red bell peppers 

Salt 

Pepper 

Cayenne peper

1 small container cherry tomatoes - halved 

Shaved parmesan cheese 

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta for 11-12 minutes or till al dente. While that cooks, cut the red pepper into large chunks and rub with olive oil, salt and pepper and grill till lightly charred and soft. Shuck the corn and rub with olive oil, salt, pepper and a small amount of cayenne pepper and grill with the bell peppers. Once the peppers and corn are cooked, slice the peppers into thin strips and cut the corn kernels off the cob. Once pasta is cooked, toss with a little bit of olive oil to prevent sticking. Then stir in the pesto to coat the pasta and add the peppers, corn, tomatoes and a small amount of parmesan cheese. Store in the refrigerator for an hour or so and serve cold. 

With summer half over, it seems like a sign that I can start thinking about moving back into the dorms in the fall. So I can now justify spending the rest of my free time online shopping for things I need for my dorm and new clothes for the school year. Some people may say it's a bit early, but I argue that it is never too early to think about the things you need to buy to start the school year off right. So till next time, 

Keep Cooking Brooklyn! 

Homemade Fruit Leather

The other week I was looking up some cool things I could do with an excess of fresh fruit from the farmer's market. I came across a few recipes and instructions for how to make homemade fruit leather and I was immediately intrigued. Unfortunately I didn't have enough time that day to try it out, so this weekend I spent my sunday experimenting with homemade fruit leather.

Strawberry Fruit Leather

16 ounces fresh strawberries
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 lemon - juiced

After removing the stems for the strawberries, blend them in a food processor until smooth. Add the sugar and lemon juice and pulse a few times. You can strain the seeds from the mixture or leave them in, depending on your preference. Then spread the mixture onto a parchment paper lined baking pan (make sure to spray the parchment paper with cooking spray so that the fruit leather will peel away from the paper once baked). Spread the mixture out into  1/8 - 1/4 inch thick layer (I spread mine a little thin so they stuck a little so next time I would leave them a little thicker)
. Bake in a 200 degree oven for 2 -3 hours, until the leather is set and tacky in the center. Over cooking can lead to making fruit crisps instead of fruit leather. Once baking cut into strips and place each strip onto wax paper and roll to store.

This recipe was definitely an experiment. For the first time I think that it came out pretty well, however after doing it once I now how it can turn out better next time. Tomorrow will mark the half way point of summer and this blog. Its hard to believe that summer halfway over, although it did feel like it has been moving slower the last few weeks, but who knows, maybe the second half will move more quickly. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Meal Prep Monday

Since my work schedule has become constantly on a weekly basis, and it looks like I will be working from 2-10 pm on Mondays and Tuesdays for the rest of the summer, I have decided to make every Monday, a meal prep Monday blog post. So this week I took a family favorite pasta recipe and updated it a little with some new farmers market finds. 

Balsamic Caprese Pasta 

1/3 to 1/2 box rigatoni 

Olive oil 

1 red onion - thinly sliced 

1/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth 

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar 

1/2 cup Mozzarella balls - halved 

8 cherry tomatoes - quartered 

6-8 basil leaves  - chiffonade 

Salt and Pepper 

Boil a pot of salted water and simmer the rigatoni for 14-15 minutes till al dente. While the pasta cooks, sauté the onions in a small amount of olive oil, season with salt and pepper. Once softened add the chicken or vegetable broth and balsamic vinegar and let liquid simmer and reduce by half. When the pasta is done, toss with the onions and reduction, tomatoes, mozzarella and basil. Divide between two or three tuper ware containers and store in the fridge. 

These pre made meals make coming home at 10 pm a lot easier. After walking home in the pouring rain without my umbrella or raincoat, I was happy to just shower quickly and relax before going to bed. This pasta is good served warm or cold, and because of my exhaustion and pure laziness, I had it cold tonight. So till next time, 

Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Crab Cakes with Lemon Dill Sauce

The other day I was craving crab cakes for dinner, but none of my family was around to cook for and I wasn't going to make crab cakes just for myself. So today I finally fulfilled my craving with these really simple but very flavorful crab cakes. 

Crab Cakes with Lemon Dill Sauce 

Yield: 10 medium sized crab cakes 

2 eggs 

5 tablespoons mayonnaise 

3 teaspoons dijon mustard 

2 teaspoons worcestershire sauce 

2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning 

2 scallions - thinly sliced 

2 tablespoons parsley - chopped 

2 pounds lump crab meat 

1 cup panko bread crumbs 

vegetable oil - for pan frying 

Sauce ingredients: 

3/4 cup mayonnaise 

2 tablespoons dijon mustard 

1 scallion - thinly sliced 

1 tablespoon dill - chopped 

1/2 a lemon - juiced 

In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, mayonnaise, mustard, worcestershire sauce, Old Bay, scallions and parsley. Gently fold in crabmeat and bread crumbs. Then form the mixture into 10 even patties and place in the fridge to set up for 1-2 hours. When ready to cook, heat a pan with a small amount of vegetable oil and cook the crab cakes for about 4 minutes a side, until both sides are browned. You can keep them warm by keeping them in a 250 degree oven on a sheet tray. For the sauce just mix the ingredients together and let set in the fridge for at least an hour. 

My friend and I were counting how long we have left of summer and realized that the 8 weeks we have left may end up going by faster than it may seem. For whatever reason 8 weeks seems like way less time than 56 days. I'm sure we will end up regretting saying this in the fall but we honestly cannot wait to go back to school. While I love my job and I am learning a lot, I can't wait to be back with my friends and go back to the structure of school. So till next time, 

Keep Cooking Brooklyn! 

  

Garlic Herb Popcorn

Earlier this week my mom randomly came home from Trader Joes with a bag of popping corn. I don't normally eat popcorn, except for the occasion bag at the movies, but I got inspired to make some popcorn and season it with something that you wouldn't get from normal movie theater popcorn.

Garlic Herb Popcorn

2-3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/4 cup popping corn kernels
1/4 stick unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic - crushed
1 sprig rosemary
2 tablespoons parsley - chopped
1/4 cup parmesan cheese - grated
Salt

In a medium sized pot add enough oil to cover the bottom, add a few corn kernels and cover and heat. Once the kernels begin to pop, add the remaining corn kernels, cover and let pop over medium heat, shaking the pot to make sure the popcorn doesn't burn. Once the popping has stopped remove from hear and place in bowl. In a small saucepan, melt the butter with the crushed garlic and rosemary sprig and let the flavors steep in the butter. Then pour the butter over the popcorn, add salt, parsley and parmesan cheese and toss. Serve with a little extra cheese grated on top.

I never realized how many different flavor combinations could be paired with popcorn. There are Buzzfeed lists and other blogs that feature a ton of different popcorn seasoning ideas. Maybe next time I will try a sweet popcorn seasoning. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Summer Time Popsicles

One of my favorite websites to browse is Buzzfeed. So after my mom gave me the idea to make popsicles as a fun summer treat, I went to Buzzfeed to find inspiration. I found two lists that had different popsicle ideas, and tested out two of those ideas. So here are the recipes I used followed by the lists I used as inspiration.


Rosemary Infused Lemonade Popsicles

4 lemons - juiced
1/2 cup cold water
1/4 cup simple syrup - (half sugar, half water)
1 sprig of rosemary

After heating together equal parts water and sugar I let a sprig of rosemary steep in the syrup while it cooled. I then juiced the lemons and mixed it with the 1/2 of cold water and the rosemary simple syrup. Then I filled my popsicle molds and placed them in the freezer to freeze for at least 4-5 hours.

Strawberry Yogurt Popsicles

7-8 strawberries
1 cup vanilla yogurt

I cut up the strawberries and then blended them in a food processor to turn them into a puree. I then just alternated layers of strawberry puree and yogurt in the popsicle molds and let them freeze for 3-4 hours.

Lists:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/katienotopoulos/20-popsicles-for-a-freakishly-hot-day
http://www.buzzfeed.com/rachelysanders/two-ingredient-popsicles

My friends and I often send each other Buzzfeed lists that remind each other of each other and we've spent hours taking the Buzzfeed quizzes together. We've talked about making some of the different recipes we've seen and so this post is in hopes of trying out all the other recipes we have found in the future. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Falafels for Dinner

I just finished a long week of work and I was looking forward to making dinner and relaxing the rest of the night from being exhausted from waking up at 6 am. While I was walking home I passed a Mediterranean style restaurant called Pita, and all of a sudden I had a craving for Falafels, and since I haven't done any pan frying since I've been home from school, I thought I would make some at home to have with a big salad. 

Falafels 

1 15-ounce can chickpeas 

1 large garlic clove 

2 scallions 

1/4 cup parsley 

1 teaspoon ground cumin 

1 teaspoon ground coriander 

1/4 teaspoon cayenne 

1/2 lemon, juiced 

1 egg 

1/3 cup flour, plus extra for dredging 

1 teaspoon baking powder 

canola oil 

In a food processor blend together the chickpeas, garlic, scallions, parsley, cumin, coriander, cayenne, lemon juice and egg. Once combined, add the flour and baking powder and pulse a few times. Let the mixture rest in the fridge for 30 minutes. Heat a pan filled 1/2 inch up the edge with canola oil. Using an ice cream scoop, spoon the chickpea mixture into a shallow dish filled with flour and coat the outside with flour and form into small patties. Place the dredged patties into the oil and cook for 3-4 minutes per side. These can be served over a salad or in a pita filled with lettuce, tomato and tzatziki sauce.  

I don't often experiment with dishes from different cultures that I'm not super familiar with, but this summer and blog is all about getting outside my comfort zone and trying new things. With this in mind I can already think of more dishes I want to start planning and trying out to broaden my comfort zone. So till next time, 

Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

6 Minute Treat

Before work yesterday I wanted to make a quick easy treat that would use up some of my extra baking ingredients, and that I could nibble on after a long day of work. I thought I would explore some new and interesting things I could do with graham crackers because no one in my house is going to eat them straight from the box, so I might as well use them in come experimental recipes. So here's a quick graham cracker bar recipe. 

6 Mininute Graham Cracker Bars 

3 Graham Crackers 

1/4 cup butter 

1/4 cup brown sugar 

1/2 cup chocolate chips 

1/4 cup crushed almonds 

The longest part of this recipe is to cook the caramel. All you need to do is melt together the brown sugar and butter and cook on low for about 5 minutes. The mixture should have bubbles on the surface but you should be mixing constantly so nothing burns. I lined up the graham crackers on a sheet tray and once the caramel was cooking I poured it over the crackers and spread out evenly with a spatula. Then I sprinkled the chocolate chips over the hot caramel and let them melt slightly before spreading them into a thin layer. then I sprinkled with the crushed almonds and put it in the fridge to set up. I broke the graham crackers into pieces and stored them in the fridge. 

I only made a few of these, because I didn't want to have too many, to avoid temptation. But you can easily multiply this recipe to make a large quantity of graham cracker bars. These are a super quick treat that you can make for a snack bowl at a party or just for a treat to keep on hand at home. I've been nibbling on these after work to give myself a little bit of energy for the rest of the day. Tomorrow I have work super early in the morning so I should really begin to get ready for bed, but after tomorrow I have three days off in a row to relax and cook up some new and more exciting recipes. So till next time, 

Keep Cooking Brooklyn! 

Update Post: My Wifi isn't Working

As a teenager who is used to always being connected and constantly checking social media, hearing that our wifi is broken seems like the end of the world. All of a sudden it seems that I have nothing to do. I can't watch youtube videos, I can't continue whatever show I'm binge watching on netflix at the moment but most importantly I can't post a normal or complete blog post. I'm not trying to complain about not having wifi, sometimes it's good to disconnect but I'm just commenting on the initial state of shock that most people my age would have when they find out that their wifi is broken.

So I had prepared a quick sweet treat this morning to write about. But considering how hard it is to write a full blog post on my phone and that I can't add pictures till I can go on my laptop, I thought I would just write a quick update instead. So there are exactly 2 months left till I go back to school for sophomore year. I honestly can't wait. I've been away from my college friends for far too long and I am looking forward to living with  two of my closest girl friends, to the point where we are counting down the days, weeks and months till we move in. While summer seems to be going by at a snails pace, work is starting to keep me busy. I just got home from a closing shift at work and after this I'm going to shower and go to bed because I need to be awake at 6 am to go in for an opening shift. With all this work it is hard to be motivated to cook everyday but I am finding inspiration from all the specialty foods and items that I am surrounded by at work. So as I lay in my new queen sized bed and try to motivate myself to get up and shower, I am hoping that tomorrow my internet will be fixed so I can write a normal blog post, otherwise I may have to join my local hipsters and sit in a coffee shop all afternoon trying to write. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Make Ahead Pasta Dinner

After my 8 hour shifts at work, the last thing I want to do is make myself dinner. But coming home at 10 pm and having nothing to heat up or quickly put together for dinner isn't ideal either. So today I decided to prep something to eat for dinner for the next two days that I have to work at night. I used what was left in our refrigerator from the week to make things easier and threw together a pasta dish.

Spaghetti with Sausage and Broccoli

1/4 pound spaghetti
1 stalk broccoli - cut into bite size pieces
1 shallot - sliced
1 glove garlic - minced
2 pieces of grilled sausage - sliced
1/2 cup pimento peppers - sliced
1/4 cup Mozzarella - cubed
salt and pepper - to taste

Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the spaghetti till al dente. Meanwhile, Sauté the shallots and garlic in a pan with olive oil, then add in the broccoli and 1/4 cup of water, cover and let steam for 5 minutes. Drain the pasta, add back to the pot and toss in the broccoli, sausage, peppers, salt and pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil. Split the pasta between two tupperware containers and top with the mozzarella pieces.

After a slow day at work I was looking forward to warming up my pasta and writing this post while enjoying my pre made dinner. I'm thinking that this may become a weekly post series, where I can prepare a few meals ahead of time for the few nights a week that I work till 10. So if anyone has any suggestion of meals I can make please leave them in the comments. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Baked Summer Squash

This week my parents picked up some beautiful vegetables from the farmers market and let me come up with some way to use them. They got some amazing summer squash, red onions, and these small cherry tomatoes that I love to snack on whenever I pass by the kitchen. So to use up the squash I thought I would bake it with the onion and a few tomatoes and top it with a bread crumb and parmesan mixture to add flavor and texture.

Baked Summer Squash

3 large yellow summer squash - thinly sliced
2 red onions - largely diced
1/4 cup cherry tomatoes - halved
olive oil - as needed
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup parmesan
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons parsley - chopped
salt and pepper - to taste

After cutting all my vegetables I tossed them in a bowl with just enough olive oil to coat them and seasoned with salt and pepper. I piled them into a 9x13 baking pan and made sure that the tomatoes and onions were evenly distributed amongst the squash. In a small bowl I mixed together the bread crumbs, parm cheese, garlic powder and parsley and even sprinkled the mixture over the vegetables. Then I covered the pan with foil and let them bake for 25 minutes in a 350 degree oven, then removed the foil and let them bake for another 5 minutes.

Something about the farm fresh vegetables make this dish even better than it would normally be. This week I am working four days, Monday-Thursday so some of my posts may be a little late, not that they aren't already, but I also may try to make some meals that are made for people who work weird hours and want to cook food ahead of time that they can heat up later in the week or later that day. This way I can still cook everyday, and still stay healthy, but I don't have to worry about cooking at 10 at night when I get home from work and after working an 8 hour shift. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Healthy Potato Salad

Today's recipe is actually a side dish I made last night for the Fourth of July. For dinner my dad was grilling burgers and sausages so for a side dish I thought that potato salad would pair well with the rest of the meal and seemed very fitting for the Fourth of July. The only problem was that potato salad isn't a very healthy option, so I decided to try a healthier version of it, and of course we chose not to tell my dad or brother to see if they would notice. 

Healthy Potato Salad 

2 1/2 pounds red skin potatoes - quartered 

2 green onions - chopped 

1 cup greek yogurt 

1 tablespoon dijon mustard 

3 1/2 tablespoons whole grain dijon mustard 

2 tablespoons dill - chopped 

salt and pepper - to taste 

After cutting the potatoes into small bite sized pieces, place them in a pot of water and bring the water to a simmer and then cook for about 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes once they are fork tender and let them cool for 10 minutes. Mix together the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl and add the potatoes. Let sit in the refrigerator for a few hours before served. 

Overall this week has been pretty good. I've picked up a few more hours at work and I'm actually enjoying work, I hit 1,000 views on my blog and there are about 60 days till I go back to school. This summer may not have started out the best but it's definitely heading in a good direction and making these recipes everyday are helping me stay on top of my skills. So till next time, 

Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Fourth of July Red White and Blue Cheesecake Bars

Since it's the Fourth of July I figured I had to make something festive to have with our Fourth of July meal. Desserts are the easiest things to make with a red white and blue theme so after looking some different ideas up online I decided to make these red white and blue cheesecake bars.

Red White and Blue Cheesecake Bars 

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs 

1/2 stick butter 

1 1/2 packages (12 ounces) of cream cheese, softened 

3/4 cup sugar 

3 eggs 

1/4 cup milk 

2 tablespoons corn starch 

2 tablespoons lemon juice 

Raspberries (as many as desired)

Blueberries (as many as desired) 

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8x8 baking pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray. Combine the graham cracker crumbs and butter in a bowl and then press the mixture into an even layer on the bottom of the baking pan. In a food processor mix together the cream cheese and sugar until incorporated. Then add the eggs pulsing a few times after each one. In a small bowl whisk together the milk and corn starch until smooth. Then add the corn starch mixture and lemon juice to food processor and pulse a couple times. Pour the mixture over the graham cracker layer and begin placing the fruit on top. Bake for 35-40 minutes until set. Let cool then cut into 16 squares and store in the refrigerator. 

For the first time in five years we were able to go on our roof and watch the Macy's fireworks, and even though it was a little cold and windy, it was definitely cool to see the fireworks going off in front of the Freedom Tower. We used to see the fireworks on our roof all the time and seeing them again was quite a sight. So till next time, 

Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

2 Healthy Kale Smoothies

After making the kale salad yesterday I was thinking that I should figure out something to do with the rest of the kale. I immediately thought of a food trend that became a daily creation in my nutrition, a green smoothie. After discussing juicing in nutrition a few people in my class started making a veggie packed green drink everyday to enjoy during production. After that class was over we all missed our daily green drink, so this post is in honor of the nutrition class. So I made one green smoothie and one fruity smoothie that has a little kale hidden in it.

Green Smoothie

1 handful of kale
1 stalk of celery
1 gala apple
1 cup of watermelon
1 tablespoon of limeade concentrate
juice of 1 lemon
1 cup of ice


Fruity Smoothie

1/4 cup of orange juice
1 1/2 cups frozen mixed berries
1 cup of kale

I assume that I don't have give instructions to these, because all you need to do is add the ingredients to a blender. Both of these smoothies are great for summer because they are healthy and cold so they are very refreshing. I'm going to try to come up with a fun fourth of july recipe for tomorrow so make sure to check back tomorrow for that. So till then,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Kale Salad

Today was my brothers birthday so I was going to bake some cupcakes or something for him, but it was one of the most humid days of summer so far and so there was no way I was going to turn on my oven. Since we were going out for a big dinner at Dinosaur BBQ I thought I would make a small healthy lunch that was inspired by one of the salads that we make at the store where I work.

Kale Salad

3 cups fresh kale
1/2 red onion - sliced
1/4 cup slivered almonds - toasted
1/4 cups parmesan cheese
1/8 to 1/4 cup of olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

This salad is very easy and perfect for super hot days like today. All I did was toast the almonds in a pan for a few minutes just until you can smell their nutty flavor. Then I added all the ingredients in a bowl and added just enough oil to lightly coat the kale and mixed the salad for a few minutes so the kale would break down a little and become softer and more palatable.

I know that the idea of uncooked kale doesn't seem appealing to most, and I didn't think it would be very good either, but after making it and trying it I think that sometimes it can be good as long as it's flavored in the right way. I am hoping that it will get a little less humid so that I can do a little more cooking in the next few days, because between work and the heat I haven't been able to make a full meal in a while. So till next year,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!

Pancakes for One

This morning I thought I would try a breakfast recipe, since I have work later and no other time to cook today. Since I haven't really made a big breakfast in a while I was craving pancakes so I thought I would try to make a pancakes for one recipe that included some oats that I have in the cupboards from past recipes.

Oat Pancakes for One

1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons sugar
Pinch of salt
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

In a small bowl mix together the flour, oats, baking soda, sugar and salt. Set aside. In another bowl whisk together the remaining ingredients.Slowly add the dry mixture into the wet ingredients and once combined let sit for 5 minutes. Ladle a small amount of batter onto a hot skillet or griddle and cook for a few minutes each side.

These pancakes are very filling because of the oats and they would be great with some chocolate chips or banana added to them. I am thinking of making a few more breakfast recipes throughout the summer because I think that breakfast recipes are lacking on my blog so far. So till next time,
Keep Cooking Brooklyn!