farmers market potatoes

June 25th, 2012 | Posted by admin in RECIPES | Side Dishes - (0 Comments)

After a perfect morning of farmers market shopping I took the great items I had bought and made the potatoes, mushrooms, fresh thyme, and green garlic.  I also found the lemon oil at the market… it’s a great addition to pasta, veggies, and fish or chicken.  There is nothing better for cooking inspiration than a trip to the market.

 

 

 

 

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recipe: armenian pilaf & lahvosh

April 18th, 2012 | Posted by admin in RECIPES | Side Dishes - (3 Comments)

Most American dinner tables accompany a meal with a starch… usually potatoes of some kind.  The staple side dish in our home was pilaf.  We had pilaf with our “lamb burgers” not fries!  It is quick, easy and delicious.  I always have these ingredients in my pantry for a side dish.  The bread is an Armenian flat bread.  My grandmother would make this, stacking flat rounds of bread a foot high each in the pantry.  I purchase the bread from “Valley Bakery” in Fresno, CA.  They call the bread Valley Lahvosh, original Armenian Sesame Seed Cracker Bread.  This is the closest bread I have found to my Grandmother’s.  You wet the bread with a spray of water and then wrap it in a clean dish towel.  As kids we had our sandwiches on this softened bread.  I was always slightly embarrassed by my Persian cucumbers and nontraditional sandwich bread, but it was so good.  It also comes in a whole wheat version.  You can order a case and it lasts a while… but in my house it doesn’t last too long!

 

RECIPE: Armenian Pilaf

INGREDIENTS:
• 1 cup of egg noodles
• 6 tablespoons of butter
• Dash of kosher salt
• 2 cups of Uncle Bens white rice.
• 4 cups of chicken broth

 

DIRECTIONS:
• In a medium sauce pan Sauté egg noodles in butter till brown.

• Then add the chicken broth and rice… bring to a boil then turn to low heat and cook until     rice is fluffy approx. 25 minutes.  Keep a close watch.  When you lower the heat keep         pan covered.

 

 

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A night out with good friends, all great cooks, is always the best way to spend an evening.  My dear friend invited us over for a casual meal and basketball games!  As usual our small group seemed to keep growing which just makes the evening all the better.  A group effort, the menu started with steamed artichokes, hummus and veggies.  The crock pot barbecue beer chicken sliders were accompanied by sweet potato fries, kale salad and fruit salad.  I have to note that martini’s, wine and vodka were another side special.  We finished with two different brownie recipes, one a deep chocolate cake-like brownie, oozing with melted morsels, and my best ever Alice Medrich’s chocolate, almost caramel like fudgy,             classic brownies.

 

 

RECIPE: Sweet Potato Fries

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

• Slice and cut three large sweet potatoes into fries.

• Place on cookie sheet, do not overlap fries.

• Drizzle with canola or olive oil and kosher salt.

• Bake for 15 minutes, then toss fries to get all sides crisp… when they look cooked on all     sides remove from oven.

 

 

RECIPE: Kale Salad  (Click to Read)

 

RECIPE: Best Brownies Ever  (Click to Read)

 

RECIPE: Crockpot BBQ Beer Chicken  (Click to Read)

 

 

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