Baked Lemon-Herbs de Provence Mushrooms

The Single Serving!

      So I have been on a serious hiatus because I have been traveling almost straight since Christmas and I find it's nearly impossible to cook on the road. I am constantly dodging fast food while abroad, even though it definitely tastes better than the American counter-parts, and trying my best to live on a grant-based budget. But finally hope, and I really wanted to try these Baked Lemon-Thyme Mushrooms that I found on Pinterest (naturally). However, as per usual I think I have all of the ingredients, and then a quick scan in my cupboards tells me I am sadly mistaken. These are obviously supposed to be made with thyme not herbs de provence, but since the latter has thyme, amongst other lovely flavors, and I had it in my spice closet, that it what I went with. Also, I used my only fresh lemon to make my lemon-mint-cucumber water so I used lemon juice instead. This made a very lovely side dish to my one-pot pasta with mozzarella.

Simple list of ingredients

Place sliced mushrooms on baking sheet, close together so to spread mixture evenly

Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top after 10 minutes

The perfect side dish

Baked Lemon- Herbs de Provence Mushrooms Recipe:

     Ingredients-

    2 tbs, lemon juice
    1 tbs, dried herbs de Provence
    3 tbs, olive oil
    1 container, mushrooms (I used pre-sliced)
    4 tbs, grated Parmesan cheese
    few pinches of salt and freshly ground black pepper

     How To-

Heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Combine the lemon juice, herbs de Provence, and olive oil in a bowl and reserve. Clean and slice the mushrooms (or may already be pre-sliced) and place them in a single layer on a baking sheet. Make sure the mushrooms are close together so you don't waste the sauce topping. Slowly drizzle with the mixture and season with salt and pepper.

Bake for 10 minutes. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over the mushrooms and return to the oven for another 5 minutes. You may add some more lemon juice at the end for taste.

Enjoy!

Thoughts:

I can't see how the original ingredients that I substituted for would have made much of a difference in flavor or taste. These were perfectly baked and would make a lovely side dish or on top of pot of pasta.

Single things you can (almost) do

So I finally got my new TV unit from Ikea for my apt. It was a rough job for lil ole me!! it's 6ft across and 5ft high so you can imagine it might have been overwhelming. Luckily I had my friend P. Dubladore help me put the last bit together and prop it upright. Mucho Thanks to PD! All in all, I really love how it turned out- really nice display and storage!

Verdict- sometimes you just need help, even if you think living on your own makes you superwoman!

Roasted Honey Glazed Brussels Sprouts

Since I have a few formal events to attend in the next month or two, I am going to try to make meals where the key ingredients are vegetables (read-healthier meals, trying to keep my figure). I have recently become a big fan of brussels sprouts, and I had a bit of honey leftover from my Honey Walnut Cake recipe. Btw, Trader Joe has great ravioli packets, I decided to use the brussels sprouts as a topping for my spinach ricotta ravioli.  It's hard to do a perfect Single Serving with prepackaged meals, like pasta, but the brussels sprouts recipe is for an even One Serving.

simple meal ingredients

cut the 'stems' and remove top leaves

halve the brussels sprouts; coat in olive oil and salt

roast for 8 min

cook the ravioli

flip!

ravioli should be done

toss the brussels sprouts in sauce of hot sauce, lime, and honey

roast the sprouts covered in the sauce

The Single Serving!

Roasted Honey Glazed Brussels Sprouts Recipe:

     Ingredients-

a large handful of brussels sprouts
drizzle of olive oil
pinch of salt
1 tbs, honey
1 tsp, hot sauce (Tabasco)
1 tbs, lime juice

     How To-

Heat the oven to 375 degrees.

Chop the stem ends off the brussels sprouts and remove the top dirtier leaves. Halve them lengthwise. On a baking sheet, toss the brussels sprouts with the olive oil and season lightly with salt. Place in the oven and roast for 7 minutes. Flip the brussels sprouts and roast for another 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together the honey, hot sauce and lime juice until combined. After the brussels sprouts have roasted for 15 minutes, remove them from the oven. Mix thoroughly with the glaze, and roast for 2 more minutes. 

Top main dish with these roasted brussels sprouts.

Thoughts:

I thought the glaze was sweet and spicy at the same time, but without creating a war of competing flavors.  Very nice for a quick side dish, and relatively healthy.

Honey Walnut Cake ('The Hobbit' inspired)

So my obsession with all things Lord of the Rings has reached new heights with the release of Peter Jackson's "The Hobbit." I've always done a great deal of day dreaming about sword fighting, archery, horse back riding, mountain climbing, adventure, and because of the influence those books have had on me, I have tried a great deal of these activities.

my dream mountain man

However, I didn't realize how deprived I have been until I was re-immersed (twice in the opening weekend) in the visually stunning fantasy world that is Middle Earth (and yes, I will be moving to New Zealand soon; I am sure of it). Then I happened to read an article on HuffPost about foods that the modern Hobbit would eat for each meal:
 7:00 AM: Breakfast
9:00 AM: Second Breakfast
11:00 AM: Elevensies
1:00 PM: Luncheon
4:00 PM: Afternoon tea
6:00 PM: Dinner
8:00 PM: Supper

hipster hobbits

This recipe by Tartlette for a Honey Walnut Cake with Riesling Sabayon was one of the options.  Again, like usual, I have adapted it for my kitchen and resources, and I left out making the Riesling Sabayon for The Single Serving, as regular whipped cream seemed like a delicious alternative. I wish it looked most photoshop pretty in the end, but it was a delicious and surprisingly healthy, compared to normal cake.

les ingrédients

toast the walnut pieces in the oven

blend dry ingredients together- this is one of the best kitchen tools for a Single Serving-  Cuisanart® SmartStick® Immersion Hand Blender 

close-up view inside my hand-held blender

all of the blended dry ingredients

beat butter, honey, and sugar together until fluffy

literally one of my favorite tools in my kitchen

mix the eggs and vanilla extract

add the egg mixture to the KitchenAid®

added the dry ingredients

not in my original ingredients, but I decided to add a splash of cinnamon

pour batter in baking pan

place in the oven for 35-40 minutes

The Single Serving

Honey and Walnut Cake Recipe:

     Ingredients-

1 1/2 cups, walnut pieces
1 cup, all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp, baking powder
pinch of salt
12 tbp, unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for the pan
1/2 cup, honey
1/4 cup, sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of cinnamon

     How To-

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter your cake pan. Reserve on the side. Break up the walnuts so they are in pieces, and spread them on a sheet pan to toast in the preheated oven for 4-5 minutes. Grind the nuts in a food processor with 1/2 cup of the flour until fine. Add the baking powder, salt and remaining flour to the mixture and give it a few quick blends. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or with an electric hand mixer, beat the butter with the honey and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. While that is beating, in a small bowl, mix the eggs and vanilla. Add it to the stand mixture. Make sure it is well mixed. Add the remaining dry ingredients mix until fully incorporated. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared cake pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan for 5 minutes and then turn out onto a cake rack to cool. Serve with the whipped cream and fresh berries.

Thoughts:

I could easily see Frodo Baggins, Samwise Gamgee, Peregrin Took and Meriadoc Brandybuck sitting at old Biblo Baggin's hobbit-sized table, eating this cake while Bilbo recounts his adventures.

Steak & Baked Potatoes

     This past week, as it is the week before Christmas, I had a lot of deadlines and after work parties to attend- #firstworldproblems.  However, as such, I didn't have a chance to do any cooking for myself as I ate out mostly.  But I had still had the leftover red onion from the chorizo mac & cheese recipe, some leftover potatoes and an eye-round steak I needed to cook. I didn't want these to go to waste while I am away for the break. A big part of this blog is also trying to not waste ingredients. So for one meal, I was able to make a meal using all of these. This particular recipe will yield two servings as this is the smallest steak I could buy and I had two much onion for a single serving.  Thus the two baby potatoes, one for each serving.

your ingredients

place potatoes in baking pan and cook for 45 min

chop up the remaining onions

place the chopped onions in the melted butter

brown the onions until they are soft

cook the steak until desired done-ness (I prefer medium)

The Single Serving!

Steak & Baked Potatoes Recipe:

     Ingredients-

3 tbs, butter

3 qtrs, Red Onion, sliced 

2 baby Russet Potatos

1 Eye-Round Steak

Dollop of Sour Cream

     How To-

Preheat oven to 400 and pierce your potatoes so they can breathe while in the oven. Put the potatoes in the oven for ~45 minutes (since these are on the smaller side).  Around the 35 minute mark, start melting 2 tbs of butter on medium low heat.  Slice the red onion while the butter is melting.  Stir in the onion so it is coated in butter and let brown/soften (~6-8 minutes).  Remove the onions to a plate and melt 1 tbs of butter for the steak on medium heat.  Cook your steak until desired done-ness; I cooked mine until medium (5-7 minutes on each side). The steak and potatoes should be done cooking around the same time. Slice steak and place onions on top.  Open the baked potato and drop your dollop of sour cream (I may use more than a dollop, just saying). Enjoy!

Thoughts:

Definitely a good go-to for leftover ingredients.


Happy Holidays!!!

Chorizo Mac & Cheese

my oven mitt is telling me to drink...

 I got this recipe from DamnDelicious but I modified it slightly.  The recipe calls for macaroni (which I forgot to buy) so I used rigatoni, no loss here as all pasta types are delicious.  Also, the original recipe was a bit spicier, with the addition of jalapeños.  Not such a fan of those, but feel free to add them on your own accord.  I saw this recipe and remembered I had purchased a chorizo (stick? link?) from Eastern Market and froze it two weeks ago so this sounded like the perfect opportunity to make something with it.  This week has been hell and nothing like some comfort food on a Friday night followed by some video gaming!

Attention Ingredients!

Boil Yo Pasta!

dice the onion and pepper

no jokes here please- heat the chorizo in a skillet

stir in veggies

add the dusting of flour

mix in the milk and cheese until it's goopy

pour into baking dish and mix with pasta

sprinkle the panko to make it crispy

The Single Serving

Chorizo Mac 'n Cheese Recipe:

     Ingredients-

1 cup, macaroni pasta

Splash of Olive Oil

1 Chorizo

1 qtr, Red Onion, diced

1/2, Bell Pepper, diced

1 tbs, All-Purpose Flour

1/2 cup, Milk

1/2 cup, Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1 tsp, Lime Juice

1 tbs, Panko Breadcrumbs

     How To-

Preheat oven to 375 and grease your baking dish. Cook macaroni in a separate pot.  While the macaroni is boiling, chop up the red onion and bell pepper. Place the chorizo in a heated skillet with olive oil, medium heat. Make sure the chorizo is crumbling and gets crispy as it cooks (about 2-min). Turn down to medium low heat. Add onion and pepper to the chorizo and cook until the onion has softened (3-4 min).  Whisk in the flour, stir the milk slowly until fully combined.  Add the cheese and lime juice, then stir until a gooey mass (about 2 min).  Remove from heat and toss in your pasta. Pour into the baking dish and top off with panko crumbs for extra crispyness. Cook for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

Thoughts:

So delicious man.
Ps. It's pretty spicy with the chorizo so think twice before adding jalapeños if that is your preference