Hibiscus Flank Steak

Flank Steak recipe from Pati's Mexican Table

Different and unusual recipes intrigue me.  When I see a show about cooking with hibiscus, I'm on board.  It's something outside my comfort zone and has the potential to be excellent.  That's how it was when I watched the TV show Pati's Mexican table and she showed a number of recipes using hibiscus.  I had purchased some when I made some enchiladas and had never used the 2nd package of what I bought.  In fact, I had a bit of a scratchy throat after eating them so I was fearful of an allergy.  After realizing that they are in a tea that I have in the pantry, I carefully tried a few sips (with an Epi-pen ready).  Having no reaction, I realized that I could try this recipe.

I made the hibiscus syrup as directed on the website linked above.  It was fabulous.  So good, that my plan will be to have some of this concentrate with fresh lime juice in my refrigerator most summer days.  As usual, I cut down on the sugar quite a bit.  Instead of using 1 1/2 c for the concentrate I used 1/2 c figuring I could add more.  I have to say, the 1/2 c was perfect for us.

Sadly, I didn't take a picture of this recipe.  So, when I repeat it I will do that and update this post.  Until then, I encourage a peek at the link above.

Baked Eggs

Eleanor has been cruising Pinterest and has a board full of food pins.  It's great for me since I'm always looking for some good meal ideas.  Although we have made baked eggs in the past, it had been awhile;  actually, it had been so long ago that I had forgotten what a great breakfast option it is.  We made them in ramekins and used eggs, leftover cheese (feta in some and goat cheese in others), a sprinkling of herbs (basil, oregano, and parsley), and just a dash each of salt and pepper.  Baked at 375 for slightly over 25 minutes and served with toast, this was an easy breakfast.

Samoa Brownies

You may want to stop reading right now.  These are sweet and sticky and gooey and easy and fabulous.  Just the kind of sweet where your teeth hurt.  Eleanor found the idea on Pinterest....yes, something I need to explore a bit more and put the button and a print button on this blog.  Yea, add that to my list.  Anyway, the girls tried making the samoa cookies a few weeks ago and found it was too much work and the caramel wasn't quite right.

We simplified things a bit this time.  I made the caramel from sweetened condensed milk.  This makes me feel slightly inadequate since I did not know that this could be done until recently.  Seriously, seriously delicious.  We found that it's a great caramel dip for apples....and eating the fruit must somehow balance out the wickedness of this decadent caramel.

So, peel off the label on a can of sweetened, condensed milk and cover with water and keep on a low boil for 2 hours.  That's all.  The girls toasted coconut and mixed the toasted coconut with the caramel using that as a topping for the brownies (I'm quite sure any brownie recipe will do.....I hate to admit it but we used the boxed kind).  A few melted chocolate chips were drizzled on the top.

This takes brownies to a new level!

Mark Bittman's Sweet Potato and Black Bean Salad

Black Bean and Sweet Potato Salad

I know that I have been a bit lax on the blogging.....sometimes life just gets away from me.  So, what took over?  A bit of the championship swim season (and co-coordinating volunteers), busy work schedule which tends to be cyclical, an ER visit due to dehydration for our exchange daughter, a bit of working out, music concerts and Federation and solo/ensemble.  Throw in some car repairs requiring a trip to the dealership and a dying dishwasher, and you have the last few weeks of my life.  Basically it was just a few other priorities.  For the most part, we have still eaten well; however, the taking pictures and blogging has been a low priority for the past few weeks.  I knew I was really behind on the blogging when my coworker, who has two jobs and four children (all boys) said she was caught up on my blog.  Ummm...yea...guess it's time to put up a few recipes.

I started this Sunday with getting a bit ahead on the cooking duties.  I made some spicy Thai noodles for lunches this morning as well as this salad for dinner tonight.  I think this salad, along with roasted broccoli, mashed potatoes, and pretzel coated chicken will make a fabulous Sunday night dinner.  And, I even have Eleanor and Luisa's samoa brownie creation for dessert (and yes, I will blog about that too).

I have a great menu planned for this week with rice con queso casserole adapted from Diet for a Healthy Planet.   Some sandwiches as recommended in this month's Bon Appetit will be on the menu as well.

Last night I made fabulous curry from a package.  I had a plan to make some home made but didn't have coconut milk; however, this packet was in the pantry.......will need to get more of this, for sure.  The curry was topped with chopped apples, chopped bananas, and coconut.  A fabulous start to my week of good food!


Mark Bittman's recipes are usually great...and this was no exception.  I made it just like his recipe...maybe cutting down on the oil just a bit.  From the NYT (it's all his recipe)

Roasted Sweet Potato Salad With Black Beans and Chili Dressing

4 med sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" chunks

1 large onion, preferably red, chopped

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 to 2 tablespoons minced fresh hot chili, like jalapeño

1 clove garlic, peeled

Juice of 2 limes

2 cups cooked black beans, drained (canned are fine)

1 red or yellow bell pepper, seeded and finely diced

1 cup chopped fresh cilantro.

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Put sweet potatoes and onions on a large baking sheet, drizzle with 1 tablespoons oil, toss to coat and spread out in a single layer. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast, turning occasionally, until potatoes begin to brown on corners and are just tender inside, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven; keep on pan until ready to mix with dressing.

2. Put chilies in a blender or mini food processor along with garlic, lime juice, remaining olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Process until blended.

3. Put warm vegetables in a large bowl with beans and bell pepper; toss with dressing and cilantro. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve warm or at room temperature, or refrigerate for up to a day.

Yield: 4 servings.

Pumpkin Coconut Curry

Pumpkin Coconut Curry

Just a moment to talk about Pinterest.....something I find addicting in my brief visit.  I think that it's a fun way to find lots of things....but especially fun for me to browse the recipes.  If I just had a tiny bit more time I think I would post things from this blog on there and probably get lost for hours in the various nooks and crannies of Pinterest.  Ah...dreams.  Back to the recipe......that's where I came across this one....thinking it could go either way...really good or not.  I had to try.  Ummmm....really good.  With some mango chutney and a few peanuts this was a delicious dinner. I made a few adaptations....eliminated the boullion flavoring and the cinnamon stick.  I'm guessing cilantro would really add to this dish, but I didn't have any.

I think we'll be having this again.  I guess my main difference from the blog where I found this is the number of servings.  Four of us wiped out this out, but we all had worked out quite a bit the day we had this, so it could be that we're just hungry people!

From Familyfreshcooking.com:

• 1 medium Onion, chopped
• 2 cups peeled and chopped Carrots
• 6 Garlic Cloves, chopped
• 1 15 oz can Pumpkin Purée
• 1 13.5 oz can light unsweetened Coconut Milk
• 1 1/2 pounds Ground Chicken
• Olive Oil for pan

Divide the following spices in half to season the meatballs and the curry separately:

• 2 teaspoons Ground Turmeric
• 2 teaspoons Cumin
• 2 teaspoons Salt
• 2 teaspoons Ground Black Pepper
• 2 teaspoons Ground Ginger
• 1 teaspoon Nutmeg

{Meatballs}
Pre-heat oven to 400˚F. Use hands to combine ground chicken with 1/2 of the above spices. Shape into 1″ meatballs and place on a baking sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes, until lightly browned and cooked through.  Set aside.
{Pumpkin Curry}
Heat a splash of Olive Oil in large sauté pan on medium high. Sauté onions for a few minutes then add carrots, garlic and spices.  Cook until fragrant and onions are translucent. Add pumpkin and coconut milk to the pan.  Stir well to combine. Bring to a boil. Lower heat to medium low and simmer for a few minutes for the flavors to combine. Gently add chicken meatballs. Partially cover and simmer for about 15 minutes.