Easy weeknight meals: Beef Stroganoff

There are a few things in my kitchen that I am willing to spend an obscene amount of money on: cheese, bread, milk and anchovies. I love cheese to death. Give me a wedge of Stilton, some good French bread and wine and I'll call it a good meal. Unfortunately, during those rare times I decide that goat cheese and crusty baguette would suffice for dinner, the boyfriend would have to resort to ramen. I sometimes can't help but feel so terribly sorry that he would never be able to have cheesecake or creme brulee or all the wonderful food that cream and cheese creates. I do try however, to hunt down dairy-free alternatives that would work just as well as the real thing - Earth Balance shortening for chocolate chip cookies, garlic sauce instead of tzatziki, Rice Dream in mashed potatoes and soy yogurt in potato salads.

We recently discovered a dairy-free alternative to cheese and sour cream at Whole Foods. I can vouch that the sour cream by Vegan Gourmet taste almost like regular sour cream, with a slight soy flavor that mellows out when added to dishes. In fact, I think their sour cream is so much like the real thing that I've started using it in fajitas and tacos. So for the first time in his adult life, the boyfriend is finally able to try beef stroganoff - not just browned beef and egg noodles, but the whole creamy deal. It's rare times like that I think technology and chemicals have made life that much easier for a handful of people.

This is the recipe I use for beef stroganoff - you can substitute beef slices for ground beef and I've also listed the regular, dairy versions that can be used.

Beef stroganoff
Serves 4

1 lb lean ground beef
2 tbsp butter (or Earth Balance)
1 large yellow onion, diced
6 oz cremini mushrooms, sliced, stems discarded
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tablespoon Worchestershire sauce
1/3 cup marsala wine (or sherry or red wine)
1.5 cups sour cream (Vegan Gourmet or regular)
1/2 cup milk or Rice Dream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 0z. Egg noodles
Fresh parsley, chopped

Cook the egg noodles according to directions. Drain the cooked noodles, return to pot and toss with a tablespoon of butter. Cover to keep warm.

Heat 1 tbsp butter in a large skillet, add the ground beef. Use a wooden spatula to break up the chunks and sprinkle with a little salt and ground pepper, paprika and Worchestershire sauce. Allow the beef to brown without stirring - about 6 minutes. Flip over, sprinkle again with salt and ground pepper. When all the beef has been browned, remove with a slotted spoon and set aside in a bowl.

To your pan, add the remaining butter and toss in the onion and mushroom. Sprinkle lightly with salt and allow the onions and mushrooms to brown. Remember not to stir as stirring prevents browning. Once the onions and mushrooms have been browned, add in the marsala wine to deglaze the pan, scrapping the browned bits and pieces from the bottom of the pan. Turn up the heat and allow the wine to reduce by half and then turn the heat down to the lowest setting.

Add in the beef, sour cream and milk. Stir gently until the sour cream has melted and a rich thick sauce is created. DO NOT BOIL! Season with salt and pepper. Serve over egg noodles and sprinkle generously with the chopped parsley.

No-Fail Potato Salad for Memorial Day Weekend

The everlasting potato salad: always up there with zucchini bread, lemon cake, grilled salmon and hamburgers as things that will never ever go away. Everyone has a generational recipe handed down in sworn secrecy; everyone has that special potato salad recipe that they bring to potlucks and smile gently knowing that it's THE best potato salad ever.

But the truth is, sometimes, there are those potato salads that just look (and taste) like horse puke. Yes, those kind smothered in so much mayonnaise, topped off with so much hard-boiled eggs, and mashed into such fine pulp it feels like you're swallowing a vat of lard-soaked bread. I don't particularly like potatoes , but when the CSA came around with a beautiful looking bunch, I knew I had to make the one simple dish that has never failed me.

I used an eggless mayo (only 35 calories per tablespoon!) from Trader Joe's that gives the potato salad a slight creaminess, but you can use low-fat mayo instead. Or even better, just use more mustard and top if off with olive oil and some balsamic vinegar. Try this for your Memorial Day weekend barbecue with said everlasting hamburgers, lemon cake and lots and lots of wheat beer. It's perfect especially for the American Craft Beer Week happening now. And just to make sure it's no-fail, here's everything you need to know:

Sweet relish, egg-free mayo, whole grain mustard, potatoes, white wine vinegar, onion, celery, parsley and spring onion

Chop celery and onions

Quarter cooked potatoes

Mix remaining ingredients

Keep away from neighbours

Konosur's No-Fail Potato Salad
Makes six 1-cup servings

2 lbs new red potatoes, scrubbed, skin on
2 stalks celery ribs
1/4 large red onion, diced yield 1/2 cup
2 tbsp sweet relish
3 tbsp egg-free mayonnaise (substitute with low fat mayonnaise if not available)
1.5 tbsp whole-grain mustard
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 stalk spring onions, chopped

In a large pot, cover the potatoes with enough cold water so that the potatoes are all submerged. Bring the water to a boil, cover and bring the heat down to medium-low so that the water is still rolling but not boiling over. Cook the potatoes for about 15 minutes and prick with a fork to make sure the middle is cooked through. Otherwise, cook for another 5 minutes and check again.

In the meantime, finely chop the celery and combine with the minced onions in a large bowl. When the potatoes are cook, discard the boiling water and run some cold water over them for about 1 minute. Allow to cool until you can touch them and then quarter them, leaving the skins on. Toss the quartered potatoes in the bowl with the celery and onions. Add in all the remaining ingredients and very gently toss to combine, making sure that you don't break up the potatoes.

Rye Crackers & some website updates

My friends..., well, ok. That's not the best way to start, I stopped being John McCain about a week ago, but yes. Dear readers, there is news on Konosur! I've decided to change the web design into something more pretentious that will hopefully work out for the best. Please let me know if you find the design to your liking or if you prefer the former, sparse design.

In other news, you can now follow my mundane musings on Twitter. I've decided to jump on the social hipster bandwagon and do the Tweet (that's right, it's a dance where you put your left leg in the air and press the keys on your cellphone really fast). So far I've been twitting tweeting about my disastrous viewing of 'Australia' but I promise to provide more susbtantial 140-character ramblings in the future.


Here's a healthy recipe (sort of) for some rye crackers that would go absolutely fantastic with some goat cheese, a bottle of Cotes du Rhone and a living room discussion about the silliness of 140-character ramblings nobody really cares about.

Rye Crackers
Makes about 16 2x4 inch crackers

1 cup unbleached rye flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 tsp caraway seeds OR toasted sesame seeds(optional)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup and 1 tbsp cold water
Flaky sea salt like Maldon (I used an Australian Pink Flake Sea Salt)

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, salt and caraway or sesame seeds. Make a well in the center and add in the olive oil. Using a wooden spoon, swirl the flour towards the center into the olive oil to combine. Drizzle cold water slowly into the mixture, stirring until a ball of dough forms. The dough will be crumbly but still holding together.

Divide the dough mixture into two. For each half, roll out into a rough square about 1/8 inch thick. Try to roll it out as thin as you can, dusting lightly with whole wheat flour to prevent sticking. Sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Place the rolled-out dough onto the prepared baking sheet and bake at 350°F for 8-10 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven and cut into rectangular crackers with a pizza cutter. Repeat for the remaining dough.

Cool the crackers completely and store in airtight containers for up to 4 days.
Note: The crackers are soft and crumbly, to make it harder, bake for a little longer at 325°F.

Orange and Almond Tart

As promised, here is the orange and almond tart from yesterday's Easter lunch. I'm much too tired today to go into all the details of concocting this, so I will leave you with words of wisdom: This is the easiest tart you will ever make. 'Nuff said.

P/S: And it tastes like exploding blobs of citrus too! And it can be made dairy-free! And no crazy pastry-making!

(I couldn't resist the temptation, sorry for the missing slice!)

Orange and Almond Tart
Adapted from The Organic Seasonal Cookbook
Makes 6 servings

1 store-bought frozen pie pastry shell

1 unwaxed organic orange
1 stick butter (Earth Balance or Saffola also works)
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup ground almonds (or almond meal)

To make the filling, put the orange in a saucepan, cover with water then simmer for 40 minutes, covered, until completely soft. Let the softened orange cool slightly, then cut in half and remove the seeds. Put in a food processor and whiz to a puree. Add the butter, sugar, eggs and almonds and whiz again until smooth.

Unroll the pastry shell over a 8" tart tin. Anchor the edges of the pastry overhang to the side of the tart tin and prick with a fork all over. Pre-bake in oven at 425°F for 10 minutes.

Fill the pre-bake tart shell with the orange filling and bake at 350°F for 40 minutes until the filling is firm. Remove from the oven and let cool. Serve the tart in slices with good vanilla ice cream.

Apple Spice Cake with Coconut Caramel Sauce

The boyfriend ages a year today. By the unspoken law of dating courtesy, I can't reveal his age, but let's just say it warrants a nice home-cooked dinner and a delicious cake to go with it. It's always hard when someone has allergies, and with dairy-allergies it's even worse, because store-bought cake is usually out of the question. More often than not, I have to settle with baking a coffee-cake instead.

This is my take on a classic spice cake which I have tried to turn into an apple spice cake with a fluffier and lighter texture than a coffee cake. The boyfriend's mum first shared with me a spice cake recipe which was called "Wacky Cake" just because it had really weird ingredients like vinegar. I have modified that to include chopped apples and nuts, topped with a coconut caramel sauce, and is best served with some creamy vanilla ice cream on the side. The one good thing about cakes that don't have goops and goops of cream on it is that it's usually quite good for you, and you can always have an extra helping without worrying about the calories.
By the way, I have to make a huge plug for Green and Black's Organic Vanilla Ice-Cream which, when served with the apple spice cake is the most delicious thing in the world. Of course, if you're going completely non-dairy, then you can serve it with soy ice cream, otherwise, Green and Black's Organic Vanilla Ice Cream will satiate your decadent fix.

Apple Spice Cake with Coconut Caramel Sauce
Makes one 8-inch cake

Dry ingredients
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda

Wet ingredients
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup apple sauce
1 large egg
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp good quality vanilla essence
1 tsp French brandy

To fold
1 large apple (Fuji or Granny Smith, depending if you like it tart), peeled and chopped
2 tbsp chopped walnuts
2 tbsp chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour an 8-inch cake pan if you're using a traditional aluminum pan. If using a non-stick pan, do not grease.

Sieve all the dry ingredients onto a parchment paper.

In a large bowl, beat all the wet ingredients together on high speed until fluffy. Turn the mixer speed down to low. Lift the parchment paper with the dry ingredients and fold into half. Gently pour in the dry ingredients into the wet ones bit by bit. Beat gently until the ingredients come together. Turn off the mixer.

Fold in the apples, walnuts and pecans gently. Spoon the batter into the prepared cake pan. Bake at 350°F for 50 minutes until a thin knife inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Then turn out onto a wire rack and let it cool completely. Serve with coconut caramel sauce (see below) and vanilla ice cream.

Coconut Caramel Sauce
Makes 6 servings

3 heaping tablespoons brown sugar
1 tbsp butter (or vegan cooking margarine)
2 tsp vanilla essence
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup light coconut milk

In a saucepan over very low heat, gently melt the butter and sugar. Once melted, add in the remaining ingredients and whisk until everything is combine. Reduce and thicken the sauce over low heat for about 5 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes and drizzle over the apple spice cake and ice cream.

A Healthy Take on Ina Garten: Chunky Banana Bran Muffins

So ok. You should really know my workout schedule by now. I try to time my gym sessions with Giada and Ina and Chris Matthews to offset the boredom that is the elliptical or the pain that is the treadmill. For the uninitiated, that's the Food Network cooks: Giada de Laurentiis (tiny Italian, platform wearing, big-breasted hottie) and Ina Garten (big lady with a big gorgeous house) and Chris Matthews of MSNBC's Hardball (grouchy old bloke with a penchant for political sarcasm).

I like Giada mostly because she cooks easy and gorgeous food, doesn't have an annoying grin and because I lust after her pepper mill. I always come away from watching Giada's show with some recipe I keep in mind to make.

Now, the Barefoot Contessa on the other hand. I don't know. I'm quite torn. On one hand, I think she makes really elegant stuff, knows what she's talking about and isn't quite so pretentious like say... oh I don't know, Emeril Lagasse? She definitely isn't as annoying as Daisy Martinez or god forbid, Rachael Ray. On the hand, I find the Ina Garten's recipes so terribly unhealthy, I don't think it should be aired on national telly where half the population are already overweight. She can make even bran muffins unhealthy! It's quite astounding really, how she puts tons of buttermilk AND tons of butter to make bran muffins - something we all associate with being healthy. I don't know, sometimes I come off watching her show feeling a little cheated. Can you really NOT have good food without adding vats of oil and animal fat? The show today was something about breakfasts, I don't get how after having one of those insanely bad bran muffins, you can even think about eating bacon and potato omelettes! The Carbs! The Fat! Aaaahhhh... no wonder we're a nation of pure, unhealthy fatties.

So here's MY take on what a good banana bran muffin should be, one that won't leave you paunchy and sluggish from fat overkill and will still meet your fiber needs. You can have two of them with coffee for breakfast and will still be able to manage your calorie intake even if you are on a dismal, anorexic diet of 1200 calories a day! Serve with a teaspoon of raspberry jam, and you're still in the dismal, anorexic range.


Chunky Bran Muffin
Makes about 9 muffins, 135 calories each

3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unprocessed wheat bran
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp grounded flax seed
1 egg
1 large banana, sliced
1/4 cup applesauce
1/2 cup soy milk or low fat milk
1/2 cup honey
1 tsp grated orange zest
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a muffin tin with 9 paper liners.

Whisk egg in a medium bowl. Add in soy milk, applesauce, orange zest and vanilla extract.

Mix together dry ingredients in a large bowl. Make a well in the center and pour in the egg mixture. Mix until just combined. Add in nuts, banana, honey and raisins. Give it one or two stirs to combine.

Spoon into lined muffin tray until 3/4 full. Bake at 400°F for 15 - 20 minutes until a thin knife inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out clean. Cool on wire racks. If serving the next day, warm in an oven at 325°F for about 5 minutes.

Chocolate Fix: Eggless Banana Bars

Now, don't get me wrong. I have absolutely nothing against vegans or the whole vegan agenda, I just like me some meat, lots and lots of cheese and more meat. Heck, my favourite meal is roast chicken with tons of beer! I also like calling vegan baking "eggless" instead of vegan - that's how much in denial I am about the positive side of veganism.

These "eggless" banana-walnut-chocolate chip bars are the best things I've had in a while, they actually taste like soft, moist banana brownies but without all the seemingly evilness of regular brownies. The recipe comes from a website called Cookie Madness (yikes!) and they have a TON of vegan baking recipes on there. These bars are really easy to make and would serve as energy bars or a healthy dessert with some vanilla ice-cream.

Eggless Banana Bars
Yields about 15 bars (2x3 inch bars)

2 large, ripe bananas (mashed)
2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
1 tablespoon ground flax
3 tablespoon hot water
2 tablespoons margarine or butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup dark chocolate chunks
1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Line a 8-inch square pan with aluminum foil and set aside.

Pulse the old-fashioned oats in a food processor until they look coarsely ground.

Mix the ground flax and hot water together and stir until a paste forms, this will be your binder. Set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, mix the flour, ground oats, sugar, salt, cinnamon and baking soda together.

In a separate medium bowl, mix together the mashed bananas, applesauce, ground flax mixture, melted butter and vanilla.

Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and pour in banana mixture. Using a wooden spoon or a hard spatula, mix everything together until well combined. The mixture will be quite dry, make sure you mash the bananas well.

Add in the chocolate chunks and walnuts and stir to combine.

Spoon the batter into the prepared tin and bake at 350°F for 25 minutes. Cool in pan for 15 minutes, remove and cool completely on a wire rack.

Cut into 15 bars.

No-knead Rye Bread

Bread recipes tend to scare me - mostly because I've heard all sorts of nightmarish stories about loaves that are as hard as brick, a black hole in the middle of the dough, rubbery textures that put a dog's chew toy to shame etc., etc. Also, I've always that bread making should be left up to French pastry chefs and Boudoin.

I very recently, however, stumbled upon this really good site (always strange when a young man likes baking) that had a great rye bread recipe that apparently required no-kneading. I wasn't so sure if it would work, the picture looked mercilessly appealing, and I knew, I just knew that if I could make my own bread, I wouldn't have to make that dreaded Saturday trip to fight with the masses at Trader Joe's.

This bread recipe goes marvelous with an olive oil dip or just some plain ol' good quality butter. It also goes well with curry, soup, sandwiches or just to munch on something while you start preparing the next batch!

Deli-Style Rye Bread
Makes 2 1 lb loaves. From Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day on Pete Bakes.

1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
2 1/4 tsp yeast
2 1/4 tsp salt
2 1/4 tsp caraway seeds, plus more for sprinkling
1/2 cup rye flour
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
cornmeal for sprinkling
cornstarch for cornstarch wash

1. Mix the yeast, salt and caraway seeds with the water in a large bowl. Mix in the remaining dry ingredients without kneading. Ingredients will be sticky. Cover with a towel and allow to rest at room temperature for about 2 hours. at this point, you can prepare the dough for baking or store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks*.

2. Dust the surface of the dough with flour and cut off 1/2 of the dough (Note: the dough is sticky, so make sure you dust your hands properly with flour). Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball. Elongate the ball into an oval-shaped loaf. Allow it to rest and rise on a cornmeal covered surface (pizza peel if you’re going to transfer to a baking stone or a baking sheet if you’re baking right on the baking sheet) for 40 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 450 F with an empty broiler tray on the shelf underneath the one you plan to bake on. Heat the baking stone up with the oven if you are using one.

4. Make the cornstarch wash by combining 1/2 tsp cornstarch with a small amount of water to form a paste. Add 1/2 cup water, whisk and microwave for about 60 seconds. Paint the top of the loaf with the cornstarch wash and then sprinkle on caraway seeds. Slash with a deep parallel cuts across the loaf using a serrated bread knife*.

5. Bake the loaf on a baking sheet or slide it onto the hot baking stone. bake for 30 minutes. As you put the bread in the oven to bake, pour 1 cup of hot tap water into the broiler tray and quickly close the oven door. Allow to cool before slicing or eating.

*If you've refrigerated your dough, you might want to let it cool down to room temperature before shaping it into a loaf.
* I don't see the point of making the slashes, unless you want your break your bread easily into slices. This step may be omitted.

Cranberry and Orange Scones

On most days when I go to the gym, I try to veer attention away from my strenuous plodding by either watching something depressing and funny (MSNBC!) or ridiculous and delicious (Food Network!). My secret is always to head to the gym at about 1.30pm to catch Giada, Barefoot Contessa, then Chris Matthews on Hardball. I like Giada because she is very well-endowed and has really pretty things - like plates. And she doesn't annoy me as much as say... Rachael Ray does. Ina Garten I watch mostly because she whacks a pack of a fat into EVERY single thing she cooks. I like that she doesn't care if she's chubby or that she has a chubby hubby. They're my favourite chubby couple. And Chris Matthews... oh, I watch him because he's mean, mean-spirited and funny.


Well, this morning, being a bank holiday and all, I decided to try out something I saw on 'Barefoot Contessa' a few weeks ago. It involves a shitload of butter and an insane amount of dairy (heavy cream! eggs!) and just seemed like the perfect breakfast to offset what Northwesterners complain most about (the rain) and to satisfy my lust for all things pretty.


I modified Ina Garten's recipe a little - first off by making 6 scones instead of a whopping 16 scones, using less butter, and discarding the frosting and egg wash. So instead of one scone that will set you back by 600+ calories, have fun with one scone that is roughly 220 calories. I know the prissy foodies will pooh-pooh at the idea of "counting calories" but I really want to be able to leave the gym the moment 30-Minute Meals comes on.

Cranberry and Orange Scones
Adapted from Ina Garten's 'Barefoot Contessa'
Makes 6 scones

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tbsp granulated white sugar
1/2 tbsp baking powder
1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons grated orange zest
3/4 stick (6 tbsp) cold unsalted butter, diced
1/2 cup low fat milk (or soy milk)
1/2 cup dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the flour, sugar, the baking powder, salt and orange zest. Add the cold butter and mix at the lowest speed until the butter is the size of peas. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the milk and cranberries until dough forms.

Dump the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead it into a ball. Flour your hands and a rolling pin and roll the dough 3/4-inch thick. You should see small bits of butter in the dough. Keep moving the dough on the floured board so it doesn't stick. Flour a 3-inch round plain or fluted cutter and cut circles of dough. Place the scones on a baking pan lined with parchment paper. Collect the scraps neatly, roll them out, and cut more circles.

Bake for 15 - 18 minutes until the scones are light brown. The scones will be firm to the touch.

Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies

Hello! I hope your Halloween went well - I think Halloween is the one day in the year girls are allowed to dress up skankily and not be called out for me. Luckily for me too, since over the weekend, I dressed up in a failed attempt at being Sarah Palin with a sticker stuck on my chest that said "MAVERICK". I ended up looking like a school girl and a nerd (which I am).

Anyhoo. I think the disasterous, half-arsed attempt at Nailin' Paylin (heh heh heh) was offset by some really good pumpkin spice cookies which I spent so much time decorating that by the time I was done, it was too dark out to even take any good photos. I made cookies in the shape of pumpkins, ghosts, cats and bats. I think the ghosts turned out really cute and I used chocolate frosting to make the cats and bats black.


This recipe is a combination of basic sugar cookies (from Martha Stewart.com) laced with brandy and pumpkin spice. You should save this for next Halloween, or use it with your Thanksgiving cookie cutters.

Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies
Makes about 15 cookies with a large cookie cutter or 20 with a small one

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons brandy
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon all spice
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon


Whisk together flour, salt, baking powder and spices in a medium bowl. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar; add dry ingredients, and mix until incorporated. With mixer running, add egg, brandy (or milk), and vanilla; mix until incorporated.

Transfer dough to a work surface. Shape into 2 discs, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (I skipped this step and it turned out fine).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with nonstick baking mats or parchment paper; set aside.

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into desired shapes, and transfer to prepared baking sheets, leaving an inch in between. Leftover dough can be rolled and cut once more. Bake until lightly golden, about 10 minutes; do not allow to brown. Transfer to wire racks to cool.

Oh noes! No-Cheese Easy Faux Lasagna

Let's establish one thing here. I detest going to the gym. I do so almost every other day because I need to, and because I get a personal TV screen whilst peddling my legs to muscular dystrophy on the elliptical machine. I also get to put on my headphones on full volume and yell at silly Sarah Palin statements or channel silent hate to Wolf HansWolf Blitzer.


Unfortunately, Direct TV decided to be a pain in the butt today and would not allow me to watch ANY news channel (ok, I didn't even bother trying FOX News). I ended up watching Racheal Ray's 30 Minute Meals because when you're triddling on the treadmill, you need some sort of distraction, even if it's in the form of a chippy who grins like she has had one too many omelettes and sounds like she swallowed a whole bottle of ecstasy pills (who TALKS like that in real life?). I've ranted before about how annoying I find her, but I tuned in today (shamefully) to find that she was making a decent recipe which I could improvise to make it dairy-free (the boyfriend has dairy allergies). She made an easy lasagna recipe using spiral pasta instead of egg noodles. And instead of using the traditional ricotta, she used a bechamel sauce, with milk of course.


For my improvisation, I used soy milk and added sliced canned button mushrooms to create a mushroom bechamel sauce. It turned out to be a wonderfully creamy concoction, not unlike melted cream cheese. Vegans can use portabello mushrooms instead of beef for the tomato sauce and substitute chicken broth for vegetable broth. The baking part is my idea, mostly because it allows the sauces to stick to pasta and dries it up a little bit. I added grated Parmigiano just coz IHRTCHEEZ. I used a bottle of Pugliese Primitiva red wine I picked up from World Market for the recipe, and finished the rest off while cooking. The entire cooking time took less than half and hour, and the end product was pretty good considering the fact that it's really just curly-wurly pasta in tons of meat sauce.

No-cheese Easy Faux Lasagna
Serves 4

2 cups whole-grain short spiral pasta (like fusilli or rotini or spiralli)
1/2 lb lean ground beef
2 Italian sausages links
2 slices pancetta, diced
1 small can tomato paste
1 medium carrot, grated
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dry red wine
1/2 tsp allspice
2 bay leaves
1/2 can button mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsp cooking margarine
2 tbsp flour
2 cups unsweetened soy milk
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
Handful chopped parsley (fresh) or 1 tbsp dried
Freshly ground black pepper
Kosher salt

Heat 2 tbsps olive oil in a skillet. Add in the pancetta and ground beef and saute for about 5 minutes. Toss in the onions, 1/2 of the minced garlic, grated carrots, allspice, bay leaf and freshly ground black pepper and saute for another 10 minutes until the beef is cooked through. Add in tomate paste and wine and gently simmer until the beef mixture thickens.

Cook pasta according to directions. You want to make it al dente. Do not overcook. Preheat oven to 375°F.

In a separate saucepan, heat the margarine on medium until melted. Add in remaining minced garlic and sliced mushrooms and saute until the mushrooms turn slightly brown. Whisk in the flour and gently pour in soy milk. Whisk till the sauce thickens. Add in grated nutmeg, some freshly ground black pepper and salt to taste. Turn the heat down to low. Add in chicken broth until the bechamel sauce reaches the consistency of melted cheese.

In a baking dish, layer half the cooked pasta, add on the bechamel sauce, top with remaining cooked pasta and finish off with the meat sauce. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes and sprinkle with chopped parsley.

Behold it's Fall: Cranberry and Apple Muffins

I've just realized that the last time I updated this blog was a week ago. Since starting school again for my PhD program, I haven't been able to do much cooking and have resorted to easy meals (like salmon steaks) that I chuck on the grill. I'm lucky though, to be living with someone who isn't as fussy about food, and who makes good Phad Kee Mao for those days when all I want to do sit in front of the TV and not move.

One of the terrible things (the are uncountably many of them) about having to attend lectures in the morning is that if I have several classes in a row, I get insanely hungry and sleepy. I find that munching on something along with a thermos-full of coffee usually helps. I guess that explains why when I was taking more classes two years ago, I was much chunkier.

Muffins are the best things to bring with you and works for a lunchtime dessert as well. You can leave the muffins at room temperature for 3 days, and freeze the rest for up to two weeks. But I'm pretty sure it will all be gone by then. As fall is now officially on its way, I've decided to use some lovely Washington-grown Gala apples for a batch of muffins.

Cranberry and Apple Muffins
Makes 15 muffins

3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unbleached all purpose flour
3/4 cup old-fashioned oats
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 tbsp grated orange peel
1 tbsp ground flax seed
1 tsp allspice
2 tsp grated nutmeg
4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup canola oil
1 egg, beaten
1 cup applesauce
3/4 cup soy milk/skim milk
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 large gala apple, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch cubes
3/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries

Oat streusel (optional)
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1/4 cup light brown sugar
4 tbsp butter or margarine

Cut the butter into the oats and sugar using a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbles.

Preheat oven to 425°F.

In a food processor, pulse 1/2 cup oats for 10 times.

Combine processed oats, flour, sugar and spices together in a large bowl. Make a well in the center and pour in beaten egg, applesauce, canola oil, milk, lemon juice, vanilla extract and orange peel. Stir gently for about 6 -7 times with a large spatula.

Add in cranberries and chopped apples. Stir again until all the ingredients are just combined, about 15 stirs. Be careful not to over mix batter. Spoon into lined muffin tins until it almost reaches the top of the mold. Sprinkle the oat-butter-sugar mixture on top.

Bake muffins at 425°F for 5 minutes then turn heat down to 395°F for about 20minutes until a knife or skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove muffin tins from oven and set over a wire rack for about 10 minutes. Turn the muffins out and cool completely on wire rack.

Orange and Cranberry Banana Bread

I never understand how people can voluntarily get out of bed at 6.30 in the morning, prepare breakfast and coffee and bounce to work. I have to be practically dragged out of bed and beaten with a stick before I eventually crawl out of bed and sulk at the bathroom mirror. But anyway, my point is that most days I like thinking about breakfast the night before (yes, dreams of cake and muffins and all sweet goodness). In that way, all I have to do in the mornings is brew some coffee and cut a slice of **insert baked good here**.

This recipe is a take on the old fashion banana bread which I've spruced up with some cranberries and orange peel (I feel inclined to preach the message of Microplanes, but I won't). Banana breads in general tend to be a little too sweet for my liking, so for this recipe I used less sugar. If the bread turns out to be a little bland for you, you can always serve it with some honey or maple syrup. Minimal oil was also used in the recipe as both mashed bananas and applesauce gives the bread a soft, moist texture.

Orange and Cranberry Banana Bread
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsp orange peel
1.5 tsp baking powder
2 large eggs
1/2 cup applesauce
1.5 cup mashed bananas (about 3 bananas)
2 tbsp canola oil
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries
1 tbsp rum (optional)
2 tbsp milled flaxseed (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

In a small bowl, whisk eggs, rum and vanilla extract. Mix flour, sugar, orange peel and baking powder in a medium bowl. Make a well in the center and pour in the egg mixture, applesauce and canola oil.

Add in the mashed bananas and cranberries. Mix all the ingredients until just moist.

Lightly rub a 9x5in loaf pan with butter or non-stick spray. Pour in the mixture, scatter milled flaxseed on top and bake in preheated oven for 45 - 50 minutes until a skewer inserted in the middle of the loaf comes out clean.

Dairy-free Chewy Oatmeal Raisin and Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I usually, on most days, try to steer clear of cookies. I recently bought a pack of coconut macaroons to use in a pineapple tart recipe, and found myself munching away on almost half the packet - two cookies = 170 cals, which is just really disasterous if you're on a diet or if you're trying hard (like me) not to look like an inverted mushroom.

Having the macaroons reminded me of how much I really like cookies, and why most cookies are really bad for you. A compromise had to be reached - I would make a cookie that could serve as a meal and to offset the cookie urge.

This oatmeal raisin cookie recipe uses no butter or eggs, and relies solely on applesauce and canola oil to keep it moist and chewy. I added chocolate chunks to give off a sense of "decadence" but really, I think these cookies are almost as good as an energy boost as Clif or Luna bars. I'm not a huge fan of vegan baking, but every once in a while, these things really are yumtastic and healthy! Unfortunately, because the cookies are vegan, they won't keep as well, so it's best eaten on the day you bake them and no more than two days later.

Dairy-free Chewy Oatmeal Raisin and Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Makes 10 jumbo sized cookies

2 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup applesauce
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup Thomson raisins
1/2 cup dark chocolate chunks (dark chocolate bar broken into pieces)

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl, cutting through with a spatula until the dough is moist.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and ladle 1/4 cup of batter on to parchment sheet. Press down to about 1/2 inch thick, and 5 inches in diameter. Bake cookies for about 20 mins until the edges are browned but the center is still soft. Cool on cookie sheet for about 10 mins before transferring to wire racks to cool thoroughly for about 30mins.

Note: If you make smaller cookies, 10mins in the oven will do

Marmalade and Raisin Coffee Cake

The past couple of days have been regretfully hectic, and since the end of my defense two days, I've been eating out and sleeping in, letting my body catch a momentary whiff of calm and peace. I spent most of yesterday traipsing Post Alley in downtown Seattle to look for more nuts and herbs and mugs at World Market and Sur La Table. Yes, people know me there. I've also been particularly unmotivated with my culinary escapades mostly because my true nature has set in - I'm as lazy as a goat.

This coffee cake makes for a wonderful Sunday morning breakfast, paired with some hot coffee or tea infused with orange slices, a pat of butter and some fresh fruits. I want to say it's quite like fruitcake for the lazy, but I won't. I used Seville Orange marmalade which I picked up at Safeway for a sudden want of marmalade goodness. It was surprisingly good, and I am a self-proclaimed marmalade fanatic. Marmalade made from Seville oranges are slightly more bitter than the regular "orange jam", but apparently this is the way real Scottish marmalade tastes and I rather quite like it, thank you sirree. Combining the jam with raisins and icing sugar help even out the bitterness. If you don't like marmalade (I'm sorry we can't be friends!), you can always use regular low sugar orange jam.

Marmalade and Raisin Coffee Cake

1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 tsp baking powder
2 tsp grated lemon peel
1 cup soy or skim milk
2 eggs, beaten
2 tsp vanilla essence
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
3 tbsp margarine
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 tbsp marmalade
3/4 cup raisins
1 tbsp powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a smaller bowl, combine the beaten egg, vanilla, milk and vegetable oil.

In a large bowl mix together dry ingredients, lemon peel and nutmeg. Make a well in the center and gently pour in the egg mixture. Stir with a spatula until just combined.

Cut in the margarine, and add in the raisin. Stir gently. It doesn't matter if the margarine is still lumpy.

Pour half the batter in a 9in. x 5in. loaf pan. Spread the marmalade on top using your spatula. Top off with the remaining batter.

Bake in oven for about 45 - 50 mins until skewer inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. Cool on wire rack, sprinkle with sieved powdered sugar and slice with serrated knife.

Banana, Oat and Raisin Wholewheat Muffins

And once again it's the weekend, which means a heart-healthy (or is that health-hearty?) breakfast. I decided this morning that I wasn't going to be terribly liberal with the pounds, fat and dairy, so I made some rather filling banana muffins (oof!) that will last me through the latter part of morning, and hopefully straight through lunch.

I'm still wondering if I should head down the Seattle Center and catch Bumbershoot, where at least two of my favourite bands are playing today AND they have a show called "Apocalypse in Coney Island: A Bumberlesque Cabaret" (how can one miss that?!). While I ponder, have a heart-healthy, health-hearty muffin recipe.

And in case you haven't noticed, I'm trying to improve on my food photography, because I apparently suck at it; my food looks like it's been thrown together for a bunch of hyenas (bad food composition, wtf), and I suffer from Parkinson's disease (blurry shots, unsteady hands etc). So if you have any suggestions, like: STOP COOKING! or STOP SPAMMING FOODGAWKER! or YOU BLOODY NEED A TRIPOD!, let me know.

Banana, Oat and Raisin Wholewheat Muffins
Makes 4 large muffins

1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup old fashioned oats
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp milled flaxseed
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp vanilla essence
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1 banana, pureed
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup raisins
1 tbsp rolled oats for sprinkling
1/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl with a fork. Set the oven at 425°F. Puree 1 banana in a food processor.

In a separate medium bowl, beat the egg until fluffy. Add in the oil, milk, banana puree and vanilla extract. Mix well.

Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and gently pour the egg mixture into the well. Using a spatula, fold the ingredients together. Do NOT use a mixer. After folding the batter about 7 times, add in the raisins and nuts. Fold again for another 13 times to make up 20 times that you stir the batter.

Line a regular muffin tin with paper cups. Spoon the batter into each cup until it is almost full, leaving only about 1/8 of an inch from the batter to the top of the muffin paper. This will give the muffin the domed shape. Scatter the remaining rolled oats on the top. If you're using a 6-muffin tin, and making only 4 muffins, fill the empty cups with water.

Bake the muffins at 425°F for 7 minutes. Turn the heat down to 395° for another 20 - 25 minutes until a skewer inserted in the middle of the muffin comes out clean. Cool on wire racks.

Superfood Cranberry and Chocolate Chip Muffins

Most mornings I wake up and barely have time to sit down for breakfast; mostly because when the alarm goes off at 7, I snooze-smack it three times so that when I finally kick the covers off and roll out of bed sullenly, I have only 20 minutes left to get ready. That usually means breakfast and coffee on the go. On-the-go breakfasts can be terrible for you (and terrible for taste); I hate poptarts so I usually just resort to a banana and some buttered toast.

Recently though, I've taken to trying to find something that I can grab in the mornings very quickly, that will be good for me and that will taste pleasant with a cup of my favourite hazelnut coffee.

Therefore, behold the perfect cranberry and chocolate chip muffin, a superfood that will fight cancer and promote weight loss - I kid you not. Cranberries have antioxidant properties that help prevent cancer (and apparently cholesterol) while flaxseed has Omega-3 that may help promote weight loss. Almonds contain a high level of protein and also has that cholesterol busting property. A recipe made with no butter helps keep you trim and lean. And yes, I should start working for Weight Watchers ... but does that mean I have to stop using eggs altogether?

Perfect Cranberry and Chocolate Chip Muffins
Makes 12 muffins

3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp milled flaxseed
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
1 cup applesauce
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup skim milk or soy milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup slivered almonds

Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl with a fork. Set the oven at 425°F.

In a separate medium bowl, beat the egg until fluffy. Add in the oil, milk and vanilla extract. Mix well.

Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and gently pour the egg mixture into the well. Using a spatula, fold the ingredients together. Do NOT use a mixer. After folding the batter about 7 times, add in the cranberries, chocolate chip and almonds. Fold again for another 13 times to make up 20 times that you stir the batter.

Line a muffin tin with paper liners. Spoon the batter into each cup until it is almost full, leaving only about 1/8 of an inch from the batter to the top of the muffin paper. This will give the muffin the domed shape.

Bake the muffins at 425°F for 7 minutes. Turn the heat down to 395° for another 20 minutes until a skewer inserted in the middle of the muffin comes out clean. Cool on wire racks.

The muffins should keep for about 3 or 4 days if you cling wrap and refrigerate them. To serve, sprinkle some water and microwave for about 10 seconds. Serve with butter and marmalade or jam.

The Biscotti Madness

Yesterday I made more biscotti using the Almond and Cranberry recipe, but substituting the almonds with pistachios. I swear, biscottis will be the death of me. It's consuming my breakfast, lunch, dinner and bedtime snack. I intend to try out every single biscotti recipe ever known to mankind - even that dubious sounding parsley and parmesan one. And yes, that's me in the background with my point-and-shoot low tech camera because I've spent all my money buying nuts for biscotti making.

Almond and Cranberry Biscotti

The boyfriend is due to leave for South America in a few days. He'll be gone for more than two weeks, which means that I will be spending most of time making ihazcheezcake and everything else that is gooey and yummy and laden with whey and lactic acid. But in the meantime, I thought I'd keep myself in his thoughts by making some crunchy biscotti for him and his family to savour over coffee and morning chatter (OK Erik, I know biscotti is molto girly, so I made you some manly butter cookies as well).

The recipe originally called for pistachios, but I had none in the pantry, so I substituted it with almond slices and it turned out wonderful. It wasn't brittle, with just the right amount of crunchiness that melts as you dip it into a cup of hot coffee. This is my first time making biscotti, and I think it turned out just mediocre, not a great success -- there's something about the cutting that gets to me. My biscottis seem to mock my self-imagery. They're short and fat... which is highly disturbing.

Almond and Cranberry Biscotti
Makes about 20 - 25 slices

2 cups all purpose flour, (IMPORTANT: MUST BE SIFTED)
1/4 cup white granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 large eggs
5 tbsp olive oil
1.5 tsp baking powder
1.5 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp grated lemon peel
1/2 cup slivered unblanched almonds
3/4 cup dried sweetened cranberries

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a medium bowl, mix sifted flour, salt and baking powder.

Using an electric mixer whisk oil and sugar together. Add in one egg at a time and beat until fluffy. Mix in lemon peel and vanilla. Gently beat in flour mixture until just incorporated. Dough should be sticky, but not too stiff.

With a spatula, stir in cranberries and almond, fold until the berries and nuts are just mixed. Use 1/4 cup flour to lightly powder your working surface. Turn the dough out onto the floured surface and divide into two equal portions, about 12in(L) x 4in(W)x 1in (thickness). Space the logs 3 inches apart on a parchment lined cookie sheet. You can also use a lightly greased aluminum foil on top of the cookie sheet.

Tip*: The biscotti dough will be extremely sticky. Use two plastic spatulas coated with flour to shape your dough logs instead of your hands. Smash the sides together with the spatula to mold it into a rectangle, then pat the top to flatten it.

Bake for 35 minutes. Remove from oven and cool logs on baking sheet for about 10 minutes. Transfer to cutting board.

Use a serrated knife and cut logs slightly on the bias in 1/2 inch thick slices. Put cut slices back on cookie sheet and toast in oven again for about 9 minutes each side, until they become as crunchy as you want!

A variation for the biscotti is that half of it can be dipped into a dark chocolate glaze.

Easy Chocolate Glaze
2 oz 100% cacao chocolate squares (I usually use Ghirardelli's)
2 tbsp butter
1/4 cup milk, room temperature
1/4 cup powdered sugar

Use a double boiler or place a bowl into a pot that has been filled quarter-way with water. Once the water comes to a gentle boil, bring the heat down all the way to low. Put in the chocolate squares and butter and slowly melt it in the bowl while the water bubbles gently. Use a spatula to stir gently. As the chocolate mixture melts, put in the powdered sugar tablespoon by tablespoon. Don't forget to keep stirring. Add in the milk, a little at a time until it reaches the desired consistency. You can always add in more powdered sugar if you like your glaze a litte sweeter.

Note: I only buy 100% because these are dairy free and I can mix it with Nucoa margarine to yield a dairy-free glaze. 100% cacao is only suitable for baking, and you HAVE to add butter/margarine and sugar. Otherwise 70% dark is fine.

Cinnamon Loaf Cake

We've been having a rough week lately and I felt inclined to make something to offset this doldrummy times. The boyfriend loves cinnamon - cinnamon toast crunch, cinnamon cupcakes, cinnamon latte... this gave me the idea to make a cinnamon loaf cake for breakfast when we can sit together in the mornings with some butter, the Sunday Times and a cup of hazelnut coffee.

Cinnamon Loaf Cake
Recipe from Taste of Home

2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/4 cups sugar, divided
3 teaspoons baking powder
3-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
1-1/4 teaspoons salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 tablespoons butter, melted

Directions:
In a large bowl, combine the flour, 1 cup sugar, baking powder, 1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon and salt. In another large bowl, combine the eggs, buttermilk, oil and vanilla; stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.

Pour half of the batter into a greased 9-in. x 5-in. x 3-in. loaf pan. In a small bowl, combine the remaining sugar and cinnamon; stir in butter. Sprinkle with half the cinnamon-sugar mixture; cut through batter with a knife to swirl the topping. Repeat.
Bake at 350° for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Yield: 1 loaf.