Food In Many Forms

I spent last week in Ocean City, MD and after eating out for three days in a row, I was actually craving vegetables. The result? A combination of Paula Deen's Dirty Rice , a Dirty Rice recipe from AllRecipes , and the Sausage Jambalaya recipe on the back of Uncle Ben's Parboiled Rice . I took onion, celery and bell peppers from Paula Deen, kidney beans from AllRecipes and garlic, Worcestershire sauce, chicken broth and Andouille sausage from Uncle Ben.  Cajun Rice a la Ocean City Ingredients: 1/2 onion, finely diced 1 can dark red kidney beans 3 stalks celery, finely chopped 1 red bell pepper, finely chopped 4 pack of precooked Cajun Andouille sausage, sliced Bouillon cube (Recommended: Edward & Sons Not Chick'n)  Worcestershire sauce 1 1/2 cups white rice Salt & Pepper Directions: 1. Boil 3 1/3 cups of water, drop in 1 bouillon cube and allow to melt, pour in rice 2. Sauté onion, celery, and bell pepper, flavoring with Worcestershire s...

I finally got up the courage to try making tofu the other day. I used what they call the dry method . You chop the tofu into small cubes, pat them down with a paper towel and fry them in a non-stick skillet with no oil until the sides are golden.While they are browning, press them down with a spatula to steam out the water. Then marinate for 30 minutes or more.  We used a Balducci's Thai Marinade. I am going to have to experiment with marinades because the one I used was a little salty.  After marinating, we stir-fried the tofu with olive oil and mushrooms. I cooked the scallions, carrots, snow peas and bell peppers separately and added them in later. Deliciousness complete! I'm going to test out different marinades this week and see which ones are best :)

From Quincy Market: Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

I have been working at a hospital and helping them run a Wellness Program all summer. Each week we send out recipe ideas and workout tips in a newsletter to the participants. Each week I promise I will try the recipe before hand to make sure I am not going to discourage people from eating vegetables or trying a new food. And each week, I fail to do it. Well, this week the recipe is not a vegetable or a new way to bake chicken, but muffins. Muffins I can do. I have no problem finding the motivation to bake up a batch of Fig Muffins. Especially because there is a valuable lesson in recipe substitutions to be learned. And the added bonus? The recipe was written by a Registered Dietitian! Check out Ellie Krieger on the Food Network if you get a chance - she is the real deal. Ingredients Cooking spray 1 cup chopped dried figs, plus 3 whole dried figs 1 1/2 cups bran cereal (recommended: All-Bran) 1 cup lowfat milk 1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 1/2...

If you recall, Valentine's Day 2010 consisted of crostini appetizers, stuffed peppers and rack of lamb . See February 17th . But until now, there has been no photographic evidence. This makes me want to make those stuffed peppers again... they were sooo delicious!

One of my good friends is a chocolate fiend and we thought this would satisfy her craving because of the 4 ounces of chocolate that goes into it (about 1 Hershey's chocolate bar ). However, the resulting taste was more like a coffee cake than a birthday cake. I don't recommend shaving the chocolate by hand with a cheese grater - it was very messy!! But Wiki Answers says the best methods are with a potato peeler or a melon baller: Vegetable or Potato Peeler - Hold the chocolate with a paper towel and pass the vegetable peeler over the narrowest side of the chocolate block. The chocolate will curl up like wood shavings. Melon Ball Scoop - Position the bar of chocolate on a parchment paper covered pan and hold it down with a paper towel. Scrape the melon ball scoop across the surface of the chocolate. You will get curved shavings. OLD WORLD CHOCOLATE SPICE CAKE WITH CITRON A tempting tube cake with a rather heavy crumb. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Hav...

While acting as a chef's assistant yesterday, I learned a delicious recipe for scallops. My only concern is the fat and saturated fat content, but using half or two thirds the amount of oil in the sauce might help. I keep meaning to experiment with proportions in pesto sauces... Maybe this is my chance. Ingredients 12 large sea scallops (about 1 1/4 lbs) 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh basil 1/2 cup plus 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil 1 garlic clove, finely minced 1 Tbsp unsalted butter Basil leaves, garnish Directions 1. Remove and discard the small side muscle from each scallop. Rinse scallop with cold water and pat dry with paper towels, set aside. 2. For sauce, in a blender, combine basil, 1/2 cup oil, garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Blend until smooth. Set aside. 3. In a large nonstick skillet, heat butter and remaining 1 Tbsp oil over high heat. Season scallops with salt and pepper to taste, and add to skillet. Cook 2 minutes per side or until golden crust...