Yes it’s true – The UnKitchen Diva went on a rather long hiatus this spring. During that time a house was sold, she went on the road for 21 days straight and moved to Maryland.  To say she was otherwise occupied would be an understatement!!  Once she got to Maryland she heard over and over again about CSA.  What is this CSA?? Apparently all over the country there are Community Sponsored Agriculture (CSA) projects.  You buy a share in a local farm and every week pick up fresh produce.  Everyone in her area of Maryland raved about One Straw Farm – so obviously that was the place to go.  Besides The UnKitchen Diva figured if this didn’t get her to like vegetables NOTHING will!!  After getting lost and then saved by one of the owners of the farm, she was escorted into the huge cooler.  In there were Strawberries, Lettuce, Chard, Garlic Scapes and other things she had no idea what to do with.  The UnKitchen Diva turned to the farm owner, relayed her story (probably in far to much detail) and asked for help!  This is how she ended up with Chard and Garlic Scapes in her bag of loot! Now what to do with it??  I give you Baked Chicken with Sauteed Chard and Garlic Scapes!

Baked Chicken with Sauteed Chard and Garlic Scapes

1 Chicken Breast                                   Olive Oil

1 Garlic Scape                                       Several Chard Leaves

1/2 Cup Brown Rice (precooked)              Pepper

Paprika                                                 Garlic Salt

Salt                                                       Spoonful of Butter / Margarine

1) Get the owner of the farm to tell you in step by step detail how to cook the vegetables in your bag, immediately forget it all, go online to learn it all over again…

2) Preheat oven to 350˚.  Plop a frying pan on the stove top and pour some Olive Oil in (I’d guess about a tbs. but honestly I just pour until I think –“yep that’ll do”). Measure out ½ cup of cooked brown rice, put in microwave bowl, put some tabs of butter on top and put in microwave.

3) Take one Garlic Scape (and seriously am I the only one who wants to say Snape and thinks of Harry Potter??) Chop up into ¼” pieces and put into cute little glass bowl – because where else are you going to put it??

4) Take 3-4 leaves of Chard, roll them individually length wise like your making a snake with play dough, unroll because you forgot to wash them, wash them…, re-roll. Cut them into 1” sections. Then cut sections in ½ (first time I made this I didn’t cut them in ½ and it was like trying to eat long spaghetti strands of chard – difficult at best!!). Put in cereal bowl and make sure it’s heaping over the sides.

5) Unless your super speedy your oven should be heated now. Take a square pyrex pan put a huge spoonful of butter/margarine in the bottom and stick back into oven to melt.

6) Take 3 sections of paper towels – why 3 no idea, but it must be 3 – wash hands, rinse chicken breast, get grossed out by chicken fat, put on the 3 folded sections of paper towel and wrap the towel like a burrito around the chicken to dry, wash hands again!!

7) Take pan out of oven, put on stove top – not counter…, unroll chicken from paper towel burrito, place in pan and roll in melted butter, getting butter everywhere.

8.) Sprinkle on salt, garlic salt, pepper and paprika – in that order – it’s easier to see how much you put on – trust me….

9) Stick in oven and set timer for 9 minutes.

10) Run around the house, check your email, update your Facebook status….

11) When the timer goes off turn the burner under the frying pan on to medium to medium high heat.  Take chicken out of oven, flip, sprinkle spices again, stick back in oven and reset timer for 9 minutes.

12) When oil is hot plop in the Garlic Scapes, move them around, hear the sizzle, look for some browning on the edges – about two minutes.

13) Ok this part is like magic – I was told it would do this but didn’t believe it. Dump the Chard in, mixing it up so it gets covered in hot oil. Stir a bit and then watch it shrink to ½ it’s size – seriously it’s like a Honey I Shrunk the Kids moment! Stir around making sure what’s on top gets to the bottom etc.  After about 2 minutes it looked done to me and there was 3-4 minutes left what to do? I moved it to the back of the stove and stuck a top on it – seemed like a good plan to me!

14) When the timer reaches 2 minutes press the 2 minutes express cook on your microwave to heat the rice.

15) Timer goes off take chicken out of oven and cut into cube like pieces.

16) Layer chard, then rice, leaving the chicken for the top – making it look pretty!

Viola – Baked Chicken with Chard and Garlic Scapes!!

It was back in January, the UnKitchen Diva was having coffee (hot chocolate in her case) and discussing the finer points of Twitter with a friend, when she first heard about Tsp Spices.  She was explaining the cooking project/challenge she had set for herself and the upcoming year when her friend almost literally jumped out of her seat and said “I have the perfect company for you!”

Tsp Spices is a company that was created by two girlfriends, who lamented the fact that no matter how much they loved to cook, their spices would turn before they could use a whole jar.  Their amazingly brilliant and simple solution – package spices by the tsp.  You love it already right?!?

Back to the coffee shop –  she was telling her friend how fantastic their idea was and couldn’t believe she hadn’t heard of them earlier!  The UnKitchen Diva was also thinking what a perfect product this was for her challenge!  Her girlfriend was getting more and more excited. “You have to meet them!  We have to find a way for you to meet them.”  Now, she thought that would be really cool, but couldn’t see how it would actually happen.

Well… you see… life is a funny thing.  Between her girlfriend knowing someone, who knows them, and a cousin, who has a friend who works with them, she actually DID get to meet them!  Crazy, right?  She met Katie and Sara, along the rest of their crew, in their offices in Towson, MD.  They couldn’t have been nicer and she completely enjoyed her time with them.

As she was leaving, they gave her a tin of cookie spices and a tin of cardamon.  The UnKitchen Diva hasn’t had a chance to work her magic with them yet.  She’s thinking she’ll save the cookie spices until her nieces and/or nephews come to visit and is a little stumped on the cardamon.  She loves cardamon, but associates it with the traditional Norwegian Christmas bread and cookies she grew up with.  She needs your help!!  She’d love if you’d send ideas/recipes on how to cook with cardamon!!  We promise to feature the dish here too!

*disclaimer – I have offered to help the Tsp Spice ladies spread the Tsp Spices story – it’s an amazingly brilliant idea and I love their story!*

Valentines Day was huge for The UnKichen Diva.  That day she not only tackled lasagna but also in a fit of madness decided to make homemade marshmallows!  I kid you not.

I saw homemade heart shaped marshmallows somewhere on etsy in the weeks leading up to Valentines Day and I KNEW that I wanted to use something similar for my “Love Is…” project over on Strawberry Road.  I thought how hard can this be?  I was sure I could do it and went off to hunt through my mother’s cookie cutters looking for heart shapes.  Actually, it really isn’t that hard at all but very, very messy and sticky!!  Here’s the link to the recipe – recipe I used. They explain it far better than I can – plus they have photos for each step – gotta love that!  I made mine vanilla flavored and used red and blue food coloring to get the pink color I liked.  Then I cut the marshmallow slab into all different size hearts and odd shaped square bits…

So now I have two containers of homemade marshmallows – what do you do with that?!?  Make hot chocolate of course.  Not just any hot chocolate but Ghirardelli Cocoa hot chocolate!  I have to admit I’ve never made this before – I am traditionally a Swiss Miss girl through and through.  But pink homemade marshmallows deserve something a little higher class.  I just followed the  recipe on the container and WOW this was some mighty yummy hot chocolate!!  Between the hot chocolate and marshmallows I think I put myself into a sugar coma that lasted several hours!!  As for the rest of the marshmallows – I packaged them up and sent them to the two ladies I knew would most appreciate them – my 2 and 4 year old nieces.  And to think, this all started because I had this fabulous idea for a photo….

This is what happens when you tell the world you have 8 cups of shredded mozzarella and ask what can you possibly do with 8 cups of shredded cheese!  The overall consensus came back as – “Make a lasagna of course!”.  I have to admit The UnKitchen Diva had her misgivings about this.  How on earth was I going to get a tray – A TRAY! – of lasagna to fit rule #1 (it must be able to broken down into single servings and frozen)?!?  I researched the subject and found that yes there is a way to do it.  By the way the whole cook it in glass vs metal – wow – you people are passionate!!

Ground beef / Italian Sausage Lasagna

1 package Rozoni curly edge lasagna                     1+ lbs of  ground beef

1 32oz of ricotta cheese                                                1 egg

4 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese                    6 sweet italian sausages

2 jars of spaghetti sauce (my friend Lisa will be horrified I didn’t make my own sauce – but hey give a girl a break!)

1) Heat oven to 375˚.  My oven takes foreeeeverrr to heat up so this is really important to not forget or it could be next week before dinner is ready – just saying…

2) Find a pot that you think can hold the meat and 2 jars of sauce – then get the next largest pot.  I always misjudge how much a container can hold.

3) Put all the ground beef into the pot.  Then squeeze all the sausage meat out of the casings into the pot.  You can slice the casing and peel them off but it’s much more fun to squeeze and squish the meat out (yes I am a 3 year old in the kitchen).  Brown all the meat together.  When all the pink is gone pour in the two jars of sauce and simmer!

4) Cook the noodles according to the package directions.

5) Put all the  ricotta into a bowl.  Add an egg and mix it all together.  My Mom always does this and says it make the ricotta smoother and easier to spread – so I did it.

6) Ok I admit it I used an aluminum deep dish pan that I bought at the food store.  It was just so much easier clean up wise!  So, take said pan and put down a layer of sauce.  Then put down 4 pieces of pasta overlapping – this is important to the structure of the whole thing apparently – don’t forget to overlap!!  Put down a layer of ricotta and then a layer of mozzarella.  Repeat until your almost to the top of the pan ending with noodles on top.  I spread the last of the sauce and mozzarella on top here to make it pretty.

Ok so I have a confession here.  I didn’t put the second jar of sauce in the beginning and ran out.  So my top two layers didn’t have any meat and just sauce out of the jar.  Note to self use TWO jars of sauce in the beginning!!

7) Cover with tin foil and place in the oven.  Now my directions said for 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly – well it took 1 hour for my lasagna to get hot and bubbly – talk about a slow cooker!!  Then take the foil off and cook for 5 more minutes.

8.) Take out of the oven and let stand for 5- 10 minutes.  Without the wait it is awfully messy – not that I would know of course….

9) Serve with bread – mmmm yummy lasagna!!

Ok so here’s how I got it to abide by rule #1.  I put the lasagna in the fridge to really get it to set – in fact I left it there over night and then had some for lunch the next day.  I cut the lasagna into individual servings, wrapped the serving in saran wrap and then tinfoil.  Apparently saran wrap then tinfoil is a very important rule – having to do with taste and all that.  I then actually put all the pieces into a freezer bag – labeled and froze away.  Not sure exactly how many servings one would normally get with this – I ate 2, gave away some to a friend for his and his families dinner and froze 6.  So I’m guessing 10-12.  Viola – dinner for one, dinner for all!

]]> http://lilbludragonfly.com/2010/02/the-unkitchen-diva-tackles-lasagna/feed/ 3 http://lilbludragonfly.com/2010/02/memories-of-my-childhood/ http://lilbludragonfly.com/2010/02/memories-of-my-childhood/#comments Wed, 03 Feb 2010 03:46:30 +0000 Jennie http://lilbludragonfly.com/?p=684 I love Smarties!!  I have vivid memories of visiting my Grandmother and there being a huge, glass cookie jar full of Smarties.  It was heaven!!  Funny enough, none of my siblings or cousins remember this – I wonder if it was a one time event that happen to make a lasting impression…  I’m not sure when it entered into my head, but I’ve know for a long time that when I had my dream home I want to always have a large jar full of Smarties.  My living situation is in flux right now but as a symbol of where I hope I’m heading, I decided to get myself a jar and fill it to the top with Smarties!  So now I have my jar full of Smarties, all I need is “my home”!!

Yum – Stuffed Peppers!!  Now I have to admit that this is not a new dish for me.  In fact it’s one of the few meals I do well!!  If you read my last UnKitchen Diva post – you know that moving forward with this cooking project I have two rules. 1) Everything must be able to be broken down into individual servings that I can freeze and 2) it must look pretty.  That’s it – pretty simple.  I’m such a visual person I thought I’d show you a meal that I think fits the rules perfectly – stuffed peppers!!

Stuffed Peppers

1 1/2 lbs ground beef                          1 onion, chopped

1/4 tsp salt                                            1/4 tsp garlic salt

1 tsp oregano                                       can of tomato sauce

4 peppers

1) Brown the ground beef.  While this is going on I measure the spices and put them in one of those small glass bowls.  Except this time I couldn’t find the garlic salt but I did find garlic powder – what the heck, couldn’t be that different, right?? I then chop the onion – or at least hack at it until it’s in several different pieces….

2) Add all the ingredients (but not the peppers!!! – for those of you who are literal like me…). Mix well.

3) I kind of let it bubble and stew a little bit here – no idea why – getting the flavors to blend better?? Really, I don’t know why.

4) Clean and cut the top off the peppers.  Wash out the insides of the peppers.  Is any one as fascinated as I am that there can sometimes be a small pepper like thing growing inside, no?  Anyway, once they’re washed place them in an oven safe dish.

5) Stuff peppers with meat mixture and bake for 1 hour @ 350˚.

6) I usually start the wild rice at the same time I put the peppers in the oven.  They roughly take about the same amount of time.

7) Place cooked, wrinkly pepper in the center of the plate.  Spread rice all the way around the base – making a ring of rice.  - so pretty!!

*Here’s how I make it fit rule 1.  I only fill and cook one pepper. I also only make enough rice for one serving.  I use 3 cup size tupperware pieces to freeze the rest of the meat mixture.  Viola – single servings and pretty!!

So here it is – I’m outing myself – I am a single women in her 30′s who has absolutely no idea how to cook.  I have all sorts of excuses – I’m single, cooking for one is no fun, have you ever tried eating beef stroganoff 6 days in a row (seriously – no fun!) and the list goes on.  My dinners are often eggs (scrambled and sunny side down), hamburgers and baked chicken breast.

Lately I find myself thinking unthinkable thoughts – I actually want to learn a thing or two in the kitchen.  Now don’t get me wrong – I can’t see me ever aspiring to be a Kitchen Diva of the highest order.  I’m fairly sure that the Unkitchen Diva in me is healthy and strong but I’m feeling a pull to try something new.

Take today for instance – I made individual puff pastry frittatas – well sort of.  I tried making individual frittatas a few weeks ago – I would not term it a success.  They stuck to the muffin pan, deflated like a pricked soufflé and generally did not look pretty at all.  They were however edible, which is a vast improvement over some of my past experiments.  I decided to tackle them again but this time with a pastry type shell.  When I whipped open the oven door, as the timer was going off, I was very pleasantly surprised.  They looked pretty even!!

Right then and there I made a decision.  I would try new recipes this year and share my triumphs and more than likely failures with you.  I don’t know where I’m going with this.  I have no cuisine picked out, nor do I know how often I’ll be doing this but I have decided there are some rules.  I need to be able to break the recipe down into individual servings.  I hate wasting food – but also hate eating the same thing every night until it’s gone – so individual servings that I can freeze is a must.  The second rule is  - it has to look pretty!  Hey I’m a visual girl!! Other than that I’m fairly open.  I would love if you all had any recipes to share and will post my attempts at them.  Hopeful at the end of this I’ll learn how to cook some new dishes (and become a better food photographer – wow, so much to learn there!!)!

So here’s how I made the frittatas – 5 in all:

1) Rolled out 1 sheet of store bought puff pastry and cut to fit into an extra large size muffin tin.  I had enough for 5.

2) Cut up 1/2 a green pepper and 1/2 an onion. I tossed handfuls of each into the bottom of each cup. Note: I have tons of leftover diced pepper and onion – not sure what I’m going to do with them yet…

2.5) Put handfuls of shredded cheddar cheese into each cup.  Yeah… I forgot to do this.

3) Stirred/scrambled(??) 9 eggs with some salt and pepper.  Poured into each cup until almost full.

4) Stick in 350˚ oven for 40 minutes.  During this time turn on the oven light 42 million times to see if anything is really happening.

5) At the end of 40 min take them out (or here’s were you melt the cheese on top if you forgot to put it in) and cool.

Viola!

I love the flavor of lemon! My birthday cake when I was a kid was a yellow cake with lemon curd filling, white icing and coconut – ohh the sweetness!! (If anybody can find me that cake now – I’ll be your new BFF!!)  As I got older my cake became a lemon meringue pie – oh the love!

These cookies offer the same lemony delight I got from the cake and pie and have become a favorite cookie of mine to give away at Christmas.

1 egg

1 package lemon cake mix

4 oz Cool Whip (1/2 of a regular container), thawed

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1) Mix cake mix, Cool Whip and egg until well blended. This makes a really really sticky biscuit like batter. I alway use a wooden spoon to mix it all together – no idea why!

2) Ok here’s where the powdered sugar plays a huge role! Did you ever take a gymnastics class? Remember when you went to use the bars you would chalk up you hands? This is what you want to do with the powdered sugar – chalk up! This batter is so sticky if you don’t it will be like having warm pull taffy in your hands!! (not that I’ve ever made taffy but I was involved with an ad campaign where we photographed salt water taffy being made – powdered sugar was every where!!)

3) Now that you’re chalked up you want to pull pieces of the batter off – like drop biscuits (not that I’ve ever made them either!!). I have a plate covered in powdered sugar I drop the pieces on to the plate and cover them in sugar. Then I roll them in my hands to make a dough meatball – about 1 inch in size.

4) Take your dough meatballs and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350˚ for about 10-12 minutes. These cookies can be easy to over cook – you want them to be slightly browned before you take them out

5) When you remove from sheet they will still be soft and a little squishy. They get firmer as they cool.

6) Enjoy the lemony goodness with a huge glass of milk!!

* If you are more a fan of chocolate than lemon – you can substitute the lemon cake mix for a chocolate one*