Recipes – Page 12

The Fattoush Salad

Published on February 19, 2014February 18, 2014 by twinswithoriginalityLeave a comment

T.W.O. first discovered fattoush salad at a great lunch spot in San Francisco called Blue Barn! The restaurant offers many kinds of salads and sandwiches, but the fattoush salad was our favorite. This salad is a variation of your traditional Greek salad – It has many of the same ingredients, but includes pita chips, parsley, mint and garbanzo beans. It’s delicious and makes for a great lunch or dinner dish!

Ingredients

For the salad:

-Mix of romaine and kale lettuce
-Garbanzo beans, rinsed
-Cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
-Persian cucumbers, sliced
-Red Onion, chopped
-Kalamata olives, chopped
-Mint, chopped
-Parsley, chopped
-Pita Bread
-Feta cheese
-Chicken (optional)

For the dressing:

-1/4 cup olive oil
-1 cup lemon juice
-1 teaspoon cumin
-1 garlic clove, chopped
-Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 415°F. Cut the pita bread into small squares and toss in olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread the pita bread on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake in oven for 15 minutes, making sure to flip the pita bread over halfway through so they cook evenly. Take the pita chips out of the oven and set aside.

Next, chop the salad into small pieces. Next add in the garbanzo beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, olives, mint, parsley, and cheese.

Add in the pita chips.

Toss the ingredients with the dressing. Make sure to add in the dressing right before serving so the pita chips don’t get soggy.

It’s time to eat!

Cabbage Crunch Salad

Published on February 17, 2014February 16, 2014 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

Bored of your traditional salad?! We’ll T.W.O. has a new recipe for you! Cabbage crunch salad has been a favorite side dish in T.W.O.’s family for generations. It’s easy, fresh and a crowd pleaser!

Ingredients

– 1 head of green cabbage
– 1 cup green onions, chopped
– 1/3 cup cilantro, chopped
– I package chicken top ramen noodles

Dressing:
-3/4 cups rice vinegar
-1/4 cup red wine vinegar
-1/3 cup vegetable oil
-2 tablespoons white sugar
-1 packet top ramen seasoning (included in package with dry noodles)
-Ground pepper
– Krazy Salt

Using a sharp knife, cut the cabbage in half. Take the “core” out of each half. Next, cut the cabbage in thin slices to create a “slaw”. Put the cut cabbage in a mixing bowl. Add the chopped green onions and cilantro. Break the top ramen into small clusters over the salad. If you are having a hard time breaking the ramen, place the ramen into a Ziploc bag and pound until small clusters are created. Combine the noodles with the cabbage.

For the dressing, add all the ingredients together and mix well. Add fresh ground pepper and Krazy Salt to taste.

Pour the dressing over the cabbage mixture and toss. Make sure the dressing, ramen noodles and green onions are evenly distributed throughout the cabbage slaw. After everything is mixed well, cover with foil or plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator. It’s best to let the salad marinate for at least one hour before serving. Serve chilled.

Bon Appetit!

Pesto Artichoke & Mushroom Pizza

Published on February 14, 2014February 13, 2014 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

It’s Friday Night Pizza with T.W.O.!! First off, Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone!! Hope you are spending the day with loved ones and enjoying some delicious food! If you haven’t already decided on dinner plans, here is a great last minute recipe to add to your night. Pesto Artichoke & Mushroom Pizza. The pesto combined with the artichoke hearts and mushrooms make this pizza a savory meal that your special someone will surely enjoy! Warning: this pizza contains garlic!

Ingredients
– Pizza dough
– Cornmeal
– Flour
– Pesto*
– 1 cup marinated artichoke hearts, sliced
– 1 cup mushrooms, sliced
– 3to 4 cloves garlic, chopped
– 2 to 3 cups mozzarella

* T.W.O. used Bolani Basil Pesto (all natural, low fat)

Preheat oven to 425ᴼF.

Roll out the pizza dough on a floured/ cornmeal surface. Once the dough is evenly rolled out, transfer the dough to a greased cookie sheet. Next, spread the pesto onto the dough, making sure you reach all the edges. Then sprinkle the mozzarella to the pizza. Spread the garlic evenly on top of cheese along with the artichoke hearts and mushrooms.

Let the pizza rise for about 15 minutes. Note – you don’t want to put the pizza in a cold oven, so make sure your oven reaches 425ᴼF. Once the oven is ready, place the pizza in the oven and watch closely. Keep the oven door close so the heat stays in. The pizza will take 15-20 minutes. Once done, take the pizza out of the oven and let it sit for 5 minutes prior to cutting.

Cheers to another successful Friday Night Pizza Night!

Peanut Butter Cookies

Published on February 13, 2014February 13, 2014 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

Peanut Butter Cookies

As you probably have learned, T.W.O. loves peanut butter. We can have peanut butter in the morning, afternoon and night! We thought we would share one of our favorite peanut butter recipes that have been exchanged between our family members for many years. The cookies are soft flavorful and nutty! Oh, and we can’t forget about the dough….it’s pretty amazing!

Ingredients
– 1 cup crunchy peanut butter*
– 1 cube butter, softened
– ½ cup shortening
– 1 cup granulated sugar
– 1 cup brown sugar
– 2 eggs
– 2 ½ cups flour
– 1 teaspoon baking powder
– 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda

* T.W.O. likes to bake with Skippy, Jiffy or natural peanut butter (oil pre-mixed)

Cream together peanut butter, butter and shortening with a mixer. Add in the granulated sugar and brown sugar and mix well. Slowly beat in the eggs. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl, so the ingredients blends well. Add in the flour, baking powder and soda. Once all the ingredients are combined, you should get sticky, thick dough. Chill the dough for an hour or until the dough gets cold.

Preheat oven to 350.°

Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Line your cookie sheets with parchment paper. Take a spoonful of dough and roll into a ball. Repeat until all the dough is used. With a floured potato masher, press down on the “balls”. Don’t smash too much, you don’t want the cookies to burn. If you don’t have a potato masher, you can flatten the cookie with your hand and use a fork to create a criss-cross design.

Place the cookies in the oven for 10-12 minutes. Don’t overcook! Remove from the oven and let it cool on the cookie sheet for 1-2 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack.

Plate the cookies, grab a glass of milk and enjoy!!!

Happy Baking!

Lamb Shanks in Red Wine Sauce

Published on February 11, 2014February 10, 2014 by twinswithoriginality3 Comments

Lamb. It’s so versatile! Lamb chops, leg of lamb, lamb kabobs, ground lamb, and our most recent recipe— Lamb Shanks! It was a perfect Saturday evening to cook this delicious dish. The lamb is braised in a red wine sauce for a few hours and the results are magnificent— tender, flavorful meat, falling off the bone and into your mouth. It is just heaven! The dish went well over creamy polenta. So next time you are thinking lamb, try this recipe out!

Ingredients

-2 Tablespoons olive oil
-4 Lamb Shanks
-1 Sweet Onion, sliced into half crescents
-2 Shallots, chopped
-4 Garlic cloves, chopped
-1 teaspoon sugar
-1 ½ cup Dry red wine
-2/3 cup Balsamic vinegar
-2 cups Beef broth, low sodium
-2 Tablespoon Brown Sugar
-Montreal Steak seasoning

Begin by seasoning the lamb shanks with the Montreal Steak seasoning.

In a large sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium to high heat. Brown the lamb shanks on both sides until golden brown. Remove the lamb from the pan and keep the remaining “fat” juices.

Reduce the heat to medium and begin sautéing the garlic, onions, and shallots. Add in the sugar. Cook until they are golden brown and caramelized.

Turn up the heat and deglaze the pan with red wine, making sure the mix while cooking. Cook until the red wine has reduced. Next, add in the balsamic vinegar, beef broth and brown sugar and bring to a boil.

Reduce the heat to low and allow the lamb to simmer for about 2.5-3 hours. You will know when the lamb is done when the meat begins to fall off the bone and the sauce has reduced into a thin glaze.

T.W.O. decided to throw in some baby carrots about 10 minutes prior to the lamb shanks being done. The carrots had a great flavor after being cooked in the wine sauce.

Polenta

Ingredients

-4 cups vegetable broth, low sodium
-2/3 cup polenta
-1/3 cup grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan

In a sauce pan, bring the vegetable broth to a boil. Reduce the heat and whisk in the polenta. Mix frequently for about 15-20 minutes until the polenta is soft and thick. At this time add the Pecorino Romano. Mix well.

Plate the lamb shank over polenta, mashed potatoes, or quinoa! Time to eat!

Peanut Butter Coconut Popcorn

Published on February 10, 2014February 9, 2014 by twinswithoriginality2 Comments

This past Saturday evening, T.W.O. spent their night in with a delicious home cooked meal, the Olympics and POPCORN! Peanut Butter Popcorn to be exact! And we cooked it the old fashion way- the stove! Instead of using olive oil for the bottom of the pan, we used coconut oil- and WOW, was that an excellent choice. The popcorn had a subtle taste of coconut and was complimented by the peanut butter we decided to add in. Sweet and Savory! We are excited to try what other “mix-ins” we can add next time we make the coconut popcorn. Until then- you have to try this recipe out!

Ingredients

-1 to 1 ½ cup Popcorn kernels
-1 Tablespoon coconut oil
-1/3 cup peanut butter
-Sea Salt

Begin by placing the coconut oil into a medium to high heated sauté pan that has a lid. When the coconut oil is melted, make sure that the entire pan is seasoned with the oil. You don’t want the popcorn to stick or burn. Next, add the kernels to the pan and cover.

The popcorn will begin to pop. Turn off the heat when you start hearing the popcorn to stop popping. We have a rule that if there is more than 5 seconds between the pops, then the popcorn is done- so turn off the heat! Place the popcorn in a large bowl and season with salt.

In a small dish, melt the peanut butter for 20-30 seconds in the microwave. Once melted, pour over the popcorn and mix.

Now it’s time to sit on the couch and watch the Olympics!

Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Granola

Published on February 7, 2014February 5, 2014 by twinswithoriginality2 Comments

T.W.O. has enjoyed starting our mornings off with fruit and yogurt- either Greek or Icelandic yogurt. But there has been one thing missing- granola! So we decided to make out own, healthy version of the nutrient-rich topping! And guess what they decided to flavor the oats with? Yes, that is right- Peanut Butter! It’s just one of the items always in our cabinet- and restocked very often! This dish is not only great to top your yogurt with, but also a great addition to smoothies, cereal, ice cream or just as it is! Plus, it is so easy to make!

Ingredients

-4 cups rolled oats
-1/2 cup chia seeds
-3/4 cup peanut butter*
-1/4 cup coconut oil (melted/liquid)
-1/2 cups of agave syrup

*T.W.O. loves using Justin’s original peanut butter- so delish!

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a bowl, place peanut butter, agave syrup, melted coconut oil and heat up for 15 seconds in a microwave. Mix until the peanut butter mixture is smooth.

Place the oats into a large size bowl and stir in the peanut butter mixture. Combine together (using your hands might make it a little easier!). Make sure to leave some big clusters.

Spread out the granola on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Place into the oven and bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. (The granola might feel soft at this time, but it will harden up once you leave it out at room temperature) Make sure to mix up the granola while in the oven so it bakes evenly. You don’t want just the edges to be brown!

After the granola has reached room temperature and harden, you can enjoy it the way you want! Store the granola in an air-tight Ziploc bag or container.

Enjoy!

Orange Chicken

Published on February 6, 2014February 6, 2014 by T.W.O.1 Comment

Orange Chicken. Yes – the popular dish people order for take-out or pick up in the frozen section at the market. Well, now it’s time to learn how to cook it! T.W.O. whisks up this recipe, the healthy way. There is no deep-frying or added fat, but T.W.O. can assure you that after you try this easy recipe, you won’t want to eat the bad stuff. It’s an easy dish the whole family will love!

Ingredients

-1 tablespoon olive oil
-1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
– 2/3 cup orange juice
– 3 Tablespoons honey
– 3 Tablespoons soy sauce
– 2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
– 1 teaspoon chili sauce (sriracha or sambal oele)
– 1 Tablespoon orange zest, grated
– 1 clove garlic, minced
– 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
– 1 Tablespoon water
– 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
– 1/4 cup green onion, diced

Cut the chicken into 1-inch cubes. In a sauté pan, heat the olive oil and 1/3 cup orange juice over medium heat. Add the chicken cubes and cook for about 6 minutes. Make sure to mix the chicken so it cooks on all sides.

While the chicken is cooking, begin mixing the wet ingredients together. In a bowl, add the remaining orange juice, honey, soy sauce, rice vinegar, chili sauce, garlic, orange zest, ginger, water and cornstarch. Mix well.

Add the wet ingredients to the chicken and cook for about 4 minutes on medium to low heat. The sauce will thicken. Make sure to coat the chicken in the sauce when cooking.

Remove from heat and put over a bed of quinoa, rice, and sautéed vegetables or even rice noodles. Top the dish off with green onions. T.W.O. put theirs over quinoa and added a side spinach salad.

See, we told you this was going to be an easy recipe for your weeknight or weekend dinner. Warning – make extras so people can go back for seconds!

Kitchen Essentials

Published on February 5, 2014February 5, 2014 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

1. Le Creuset Signature Cast-Iron Oval Dutch Oven ; 2. KitchenAid Pro Line Stand Mixer,7-Qt.; 3. Silicone Pastry Mat; 4. Williams-Sonoma Nonstick Insulated Cookie Sheet; 5. Cuisinart Elite Die Case Food Processor, 12 cup; 6. 10-Piece Glass Bowl Set; kitchen essentials page2

7. Pyrex Rectangle Glass Baker;8. Le Creuset Pastry Brush; 9. Non-Skid Cutting Mats; 10. Oxo Pop Containers; 11. Le Creuset Silicone Spatulas; 12. OXO Peelers

Asian Kale Salad

Published on February 4, 2014February 2, 2014 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

Are you a fan of Chinese Chicken Salad? Well, you are reading the right recipe! If you aren’t, that’s okay. Try it out anyways; you might be pleasantly surprised. Thanks to a co-worker, T.W.O. was introduced to Lacinato kale. It is also known as Tuscan kale, Tuscan cabbage, or Italian kale. It is lightly a little sweeter and more delicate than your traditional curly kale. The smooth leaves combined with the rice noodles, crunchy almonds and the mandarin oranges makes this salad a perfect meal!

Ingredients

– 1 bunch Lacinato Kale
– 1 cup mandarin oranges
– 2 cups thin rice noodles
– 1 cup carrots, shredded
– ½ cup roasted almonds, chopped
– Lemon Vinaigrette dressing (Recipe HERE)
– ¼ cup Rice Vinegar

Bring pot of water to a bowl. Once it reaches to a boil, remove from heat and add your rice noodles. Cover and let it sit for 10 minutes. Once the noodles are done, drain and add rice vinegar. Set aside.

Chop the kale and put in a big bowl. Add your rice noodles, mandarin oranges, carrots and almonds. Toss in the lemon vinaigrette dressing. Plate and serve! Feel free to add chicken or any other protein to make it a meal!