Author: jan greco

take comfort with a shepherd

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I love leftovers, perhaps I’ve mentioned that before. Another delicious meal with half the effort… yes please. In fact sometimes I intentionally cook more than I know we’ll eat in a single meal just to insure there will be something yummy leftover. Mashed potatoes are the perfect example. Why mashed potatoes of all things you may ask… Well for shepherd’s pie of course!

I happen to be a fan of casseroles (well maybe not tuna noodle, but certainly turkey tetrazzini) primarily because of the minimal effort they require to turn simple ingredients into a “May I have seconds please?” dinner. My family seems to agree since one of their all time favorite meals has to be shepherds pie. They can demolish one of these babies in the blink of an eye and even when I double the recipe, the leftovers that remain are often little more than a single serving. But really who could blame them, it is after all one of the most comforting of one pot meals going— snowed in, bummed out or tired beyond belief… shepherd’s pie to the rescue!

Shepherd’s pie could be considered the marinara sauce of casseroles, everyone has their own way of making it and everyone thinks their recipe is the best. My version calls for ground turkey instead of beef or lamb and to make it the perfect busy week night dinner I use frozen vegetables rather than fresh. As a rule I don’t like frozen vegetables primarily because they tend to turn out soggy, however in this case I think frozen veggies work beautifully; perfectly diced, cooked in a flash and as easy as it gets. Throw in some lovely leeks and diced onion, a bit of fresh thyme and a few spices, smother everything in gravy and top it with a lovely crust of mashed potatoes and holy cow deliciousness. So I guess I can’t blame by family for their voracious appetites… I mean seriously, how could I expect anything less?!?

Turkey Shepherds Pie
Depending on my mood I either make one big casserole, two small or several individual ones. The choice is yours but regardless of the size they’re delicious!

shepherds pie4

3 tbsp. olive oil
1 medium leek, halved and sliced thin
1/2 small onion, diced small
1 1/4 lb. ground turkey
1 tbsp. flour
2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning
2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves, minced
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1 1/4 cups chicken broth
2 cups frozen mixed vegetables
2 cups frozen corn
1 cup frozen peal onions
3-4 cups leftover mashed potatoes

  1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Heat oil over medium heat in a large sauté pan. Add the leeks and onions and cook until transparent, about 5 minutes. Add the turkey and cook, breaking up any large chunks, about 6-8 minutes or until just cooked through.
  2. Stir in the flour, garlic, poultry seasoning, thyme, salt and pepper and cook 2 more minutes. Stir in the chicken broth and all the frozen veggies and stir to mix thoroughly. Bring to a simmer and cook until slightly thickened, about 5-7 minutes.
  3. Grease a deep ceramic baking dish and add to it the turkey mixture. Top with the mashed potatoes and bake until browned on top and the mixture is bubbling, about 15-20 minutes. If the potatoes have not browned enough turn on the broiler for a few minutes to crisp them up. (Alternately to really make this a one pot meal you can sauté everything in a ovenproof skillet, top it with the mashed potatoes and slide the whole thing into the oven to bake.)
  4. Let the casserole sit for 10 minutes before serving.

guilt-free eggnog

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It’s Christmas Eve, can you believe it? I know me neither. The weeks of planning, quietly executing and subversive measures will all culminate in a few hours and then Christmas 2013 will become just another memory. Sure the gifts (the ones not returned anyway), credit card bills and expanded waistlines will still be there to remind us of the big day, but all the real Santa fun will be over in the blink of an eye. Sigh. But back to Christmas Eve…

Christmas Eve would never be considered complete at our house without several things happening first: Marshmallows must be roasted in the fireplace. Swedish meatballs with lingonberry sauce must be one of the appetizers. Crack and carrots must be left for Santa and the reindeer. And finally egg nog must be the final cocktail of the evening.

In the past I’ve served store-bought egg nog that I boozed and spiced up to my liking, but this year I thought I’d try to make it from scratch instead. When I started researching recipes I couldn’t get over the calorie stats I was reading. I’m all for enjoying the holiday but come on… 375+ calories in one cup seems like a bit much even to me! So I decided to look for a lower fat (yet still delicious) recipe and Cooking Light magazine was my first stop. Their recipe looked like just the jumping off point I needed to create a classic Jan Greco tweaked up low-fat eggnog recipe. And so I did just that, I tweaked and taste tested and I came up with an eggnog recipe I can really feel good about (or that really makes me feel good, or perhaps a little of both) and now I’m ready to pass it along to my lovely and loyal readers. Think of it as my gift to you.

From my kitchen to yours, happy holidays!

Guilt-free Eggnog
This is a rich, creamy egg nog that doesn’t taste remotely like something “light”. If you would like yours a little less boozy feel free to cut back or even omit the brandy and bourbon.

eggnog3

3 1/2 cups 1% milk
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/8 tsp. salt
2 large egg yolks, beaten
3 tbsp.- 1/4 cup bourbon
3 tbsp – 1/4 cup brandy
2 tsp. vanilla extract
additional ground nutmeg, for garnish

  1. Whisk together the first 6 ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently.
  2. Place the beaten egg yolks in a medium bowl. Slowly whisk half of the hot milk mixture into the egg yolks and continue whisking until fully combined. Add the milk/yolk mixture back to the pan with the remaining hot milk and cook over medium heat 2 minutes or until slightly thickened, whisking continuously.
  3. Pour the bourbon, brandy, and vanilla into a large pitcher and set aside. Allow the egg nog to cool for 5 minutes in the pan then add to the pitcher, whisking to blend.
  4. Refrigerate the egg nog at least 4 hours, until fully chilled. Before serving give a final stir then pour into glasses and garnish with additional nutmeg. Bottoms up!

*adapted from cooking light

a saucy cranberry christmas

Published on by jan greco1 Comment

“One individual informed me, that the rosy complexion of the women had been attributed to their consumption of this article [cranberry sauce].”
~Letters on the Eastern States; Memoir on Cranberry Sauce, 1821

I know cranberry sauce is typically thought of as strictly a Thanksgiving side dish here in North America, however it’s in fact traditionally served with Christmas dinner in the UK. Personally I think it’s perfect for either meal, particularly if it’s homemade. We’ve all suffered through that can shaped log of purple jelly that goes directly from can to plate—belch—and based on that experience most of us claim to not like cranberry sauce. Well I’m here to hopefully change that opinion and to set things a few things straight. 1. Real cranberry sauce is nothing more than fresh cranberries, sugar and a bit of spice— so simple to make that even the least experienced of cooks can successfully pull it off. 2. Because of this perviously stated fact cranberry sauce should never come from a can. NEVER. 3. Very few people make their own cranberry sauce, regardless of how easy it is. Therefore if you do your guests will think you are a total culinary rock star; which is always a good reason to get in the kitchen!

My cranberry sauce recipe is the perfect combination of tart and sweet, so perfect in fact that my children actually fight over who gets to lick the spoon every time I make it. (I guess that tells you something!) Since cranberry season is such a short one (mid-September to mid-November) I make a point of always buying a bag or two around the holidays to keep in the freezer. Then when the mood strikes, simply defrost and rock n’ roll. I often serve it along with roasted turkey or beef, use it as a condiment on Blue Cheese + Chive Biscuit mini sandwiches or spoon it over a slice of pound cake or a scoop of vanilla ice cream— delicious! So go ahead and give homemade cranberry sauce a shot for your holiday dinner (or dessert) and tell me you don’t end up loving it too.

Triple Citrus Cranberry Sauce
This recipe is so easy and so delicious you won’t believe you ever considered dinner complete without it.

cran.sauce3

1 12 oz. bag fresh cranberries
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup orange juice
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
zest of 1 tangerine

  1. Add the first 5 ingredients to a small saucepan. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the berries begin to soften.
  2. Increase the heat, bring to a simmer and cook uncovered 2-3 minutes longer until the sauce begins to thicken and nearly all of the berries have popped.
  3. Allow to cool slightly in the pan before adding the tangerine zest to the sauce. Transfer to a glass jar and store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

homemade “nutella”

Published on by jan greco1 Comment

The baking countdown is on! Each Christmas I make scores of homemade goodies, some to share with family and friends and some just to enjoy here at home. In the past I’ve made pounds of Fudge, gallons of Chocolate Sauce, mountains of Crack and oodles of Chocolate + Nutella Shortbread cookies. And when time has allowed I’ve also been known to whip up a batch of biscotti or simple sugar cookies that the kids help decorate. Now that I’m a working girl it’s going to be a bit tricky to pull-off this amount of goodies, but I still plan to try. I intend to make a few batches of crack (it wouldn’t be Christmas in our house without it), I’ve decided to give a Swedish spice cookie a whirl and just to take this years chocolate shortbread sandwich cookies a smidge over the top—I’ve decided to make them with homemade Nutella.

Nutella is one of those foods that people either just don’t get or love to the point of obsession. I have a girlfriend who keeps a jar in her office desk drawer, for when the need strikes. I on the other hand am not particularly a fan. Don’t get me wrong, I love the flavors of dark chocolate and hazelnut together but there’s something about the viscosity of the jarred stuff that bothers me, it reminds me of silly putty. Anyway it turns out that homemade Nutella is pretty easy to make and the results are truly outstanding. It’s not as smooth and gloppy as the Nutella you’re familiar with (which is fine by me) and not surprisingly, it’s way tastier than the other stuff. Delish on toast. Fantastic sandwiched between cookies. Outrageous right off the spoon.

So far and with complete confidence we can say that homemade Nutella is absolutely here to stay.

Homemade “Nutella”
Enjoy this spread just as you would the jarred stuff, which would include right off the spoon.

nutella cookies

1 1/2 cups skinned hazelnuts
1/4 tsp. granulated sugar
8 oz. quality semi-sweet chocolate
1/2 cup heavy cream
4 tbsp. salted butter, cut into pieces
1/4 tsp. real vanilla extract

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread the hazelnuts out in a single layer in an ovenproof skillet and toast them until they are a golden brown, stirring frequently. Pour them into the bowl of a food processor and allow to cool. Once cool, add the sugar and process to a smooth, buttery paste.
  2. Melt the chocolate over medium-low heat in a medium bowl set over a pot of simmering water, stirring often. Remove the bowl from the heat and stir in the cream, butter and vanilla then add in the hazelnut paste and stir until fully blended.
  3. Pour your nutella into a glass jar (it will thicken as it cools). Refrigerate and bring to room temperature before using.

*adapted from canal house cooks

Chocolate + Nutella Shortbread Sandwich Cookies
These cookies are amazing on their own, but add some homemade Nutella and you’ve got one decadent cookie!

2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 small jar homemade Nutella (or store-bought)

  1. In stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, mix confectioners’ sugar, butter, granulated sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla, and salt on medium low speed until creamy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the flour one cup at a time. Continue to mix on low until the flour is completely integrated.
  2. Form the dough into a ball (it will be a bit dry) and divide in half. Wrap each half in plastic wrap, flatten into a disc and refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.
  3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
  4. Take the dough out and sandwich it between two sheets of plastic wrap. Use a rolling pin to roll it to 1/4-inch thick. Use cookie cutters to cut into desired shapes and place on baking sheets. Bake 8 minutes, or until firm.
  5. Repeat with remaining dough but cut the centers out of the second batch, making sure you have equal numbers of tops and bottoms. (If dough becomes too soft pop it back in fridge for a few minutes to firm up.) Let the baked cookies cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet before transferring to a cooling rack.
  6. Once cookies have fully cooled spread a thin layer of Nutella onto each of the cookie bottoms. Sandwich together with the top cookies and serve or chill for a later date.

*adapted from serious eats

Simple Sugar Cookies
This is standard sugar cookie recipe, perfect for decorating with icing or using as a vehicle for your homemade nutella.

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
2 tbsp. milk
2 tsp. vanilla
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt

  1. Cream together the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, milk and vanilla; beat well. Stir together flour, baking powder and salt in small bowl; gradually add to sugar mixture. Knead the dough into a ball and flatten into a disc. Wrap with saran wrap and chill for an hour.
  2. Preheat oven to 375°F and line two cookie sheets with parchment. Cut the dough in half and on well floured surface, roll the dough into a circle roughly 1/4-inch thick. Use cookie cutters to cut into desired shapes. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned at edges. Allow to fully cool before decorating.

*adapted from domino sugar

blue cheese + chive biscuits

Published on by jan greco1 Comment

Happy Thanksgiving weekend! Are you still recovering from a day full of over-indulgence coupled with way to much Black Friday shopping and topped off with a few lingering house guests? Yeah me too. And while the best part of this post-Thanksgiving weekend is undoubtedly the leftovers, it somehow feels a bit too easy to just pop open a few Tupperware containers and call it dinner. Instead I try to offer a little something freshly made along with those leftover holiday favorites. But let’s be honest, the best part about Thanksgiving leftovers has to be the sandwiches and while any type of bread will do, Blue Cheese and Chive Biscuits are my favorite. They can turn a simple turkey and leftover cranberry sauce sandwich into something truly outstanding.

I make these biscuits fairly frequently (if you’ve ever been to our house for smoked ribs then you’ve definitely had them) because they’re delicious right out of the oven, they’re fantastic toasted alongside eggs for breakfast and they take simple leftover Thanksgiving turkey (or Easter ham) and turn it into something you could proudly serve guests.

I know hosting for the holidays is a big undertaking… but next time consider doing it for the leftovers!

Blue Cheese + Chive Drop Biscuits
These biscuits are wonderful anytime… along side your morning eggs, as an accompaniment to your summertime bbq or as the vehicle for an amazing turkey sandwich. But the fact that they can be made ahead and frozen really makes them stellar.

t-day sandwich4

2 1/4 cups white whole wheat flour
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. sugar
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
6 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
4 oz. buttermilk blue cheese, crumbled
1 large bunch fresh chives, finely chopped
1 cup light buttermilk

  1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a bowl, then blend in butter with your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in blue cheese and chives. Add buttermilk and stir until just combined.
  2. Drop dough in 10-12 equal mounds on the cookie sheet. Bake until golden, about 16 to 20 minutes.

*To make and freeze: Follow the instructions above, drop them onto the baking sheet and slide the baking sheet into the freezer. Once the biscuits are firm, place them in a freezer bag or airtight container until you’re ready to bake them. They can be baked straight from the freezer, just add a few minutes to the baking time.

turnip vindication

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If you’ve visited a farm market recently you’ve no doubt noticed that the sweet tender fruits of summer have been replaced with an array of sturdy greens and root vegetables. Glorious carrots and parsnips still damp with soil, beets in every golden and crimson shade imaginable, giant heads of cabbage, lush bunches of collards and chard, squash and gourds of every shape, size and color and of course one of my all time favorite root vegetables… turnips. Turnips are one of those vegetables people claim to either love or hate. They’ve gotten a considerable amount of bad press over the years but I’m here to say that if you think you hate turnips, it’s because you haven’t tried the right recipe. Luckily I happen to have a recipe that’s guaranteed to convert you.

I won’t deny that turnips have a strong flavor, in fact the larger and older the turnip the stronger the flavor, but if you look for small young ones and balance out their inherent bitterness with some sweet onion and smokey bacon—you won’t believe you ever dared to slander the lovely turnip! In an effort to do right by this most maligned of vegetables, to make amends for the years of unfounded shunning and to give a boost to the turnip farmers of America… I offer you a challenge. I would love for each and every one of my readers to add this mashed turnip recipe to their Thanksgiving menu. (Unless of course you already have a killer recipe of your own and then— hi-fives all around!) Here’s how I see it… if we were all to serve one really amazing turnip recipe at this years holiday dinner we could be well on our way to having a nation full of turnip eating converts by days end. Imagine, “More candied sweet potatoes? No thanks. But pass the turnips please!” The very thought makes my head spin.

So give this challenge of mine a bit of consideration and by all means let me know the results if you do undertake it. Think about it, not only will everyone consider you an amazing cook for making “turnips” delicious, you’ll also be making up for years of turnip snubbing. And seriously, don’t you owe turnips a little public relations payback anyway?!?

Mashed Turnips with Bacon
I prefer yellow turnips over white and I like to buy a few small ones rather than one large one. Not only do the smaller ones tend to be sweeter, but they’re easier to handle as well.

turnips2

1 3/4 lbs. fresh small turnips
1/2 cup finely diced raw bacon
1 small sweet onion, finely diced
1/8 tsp. black pepper
2 tbsp. butter
1-2 tbsp. 2% milk

  1. Peel and dice the turnips and add to a large pot of cold well salted water. Bring the turnips to a boil, uncover and allow to cook until the they’re extremely tender, about 30-40 minutes.
  2. While the turnips are cooking sauté the bacon it a large pan until it’s crisp and has rendered some of it’s fat. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the diced onion to the pan and sauté until the onion is soft. (If your bacon is particularly lean and hasn’t rendered much fat add a bit of olive oil to the pan.) When softened add to the reserved bacon and set aside.
  3. When the turnips are cooked through, drain and return them to the pot. Add to the hot turnips the black pepper, butter and milk and with a potato masher, mash the turnips to a smooth consistency. (I don’t like my turnips perfectly smooth so I purposely leave them a bit chunky.)
  4. Stir in the reserved bacon and onion, adjust seasonings and serve.

not so ordinary butternut squash soup

Published on by jan greco1 Comment

It’s hard to believe it’s already mid-November, which means Thanksgiving is basically right around corner (I know, just typing that gives me palpitations.) Naturally I’ve been thinking about my dinner menu for a while now, in fact being the list-maker that I am I already have the menu (the current version of it anyway) taped to a cabinet for me to consider and reconsider as the big day approaches.

I try to serve a mix of “never had for Thanksgiving before” appetizers and side dishes along with everyone’s “must-have to qualify as Thanksgiving” favorites. In past years we’ve started off the day with things like baked brie with honey and almonds, homemade smoked salmon and mini bean piroshki— all delicious but not necessarily good enough to become tradition. In our house tradition dictates that we always start the meal with butternut squash soup, locally cured kielbasa, an array of cheeses and of course shrimp cocktail. Followed a bit later by deep-fried turkey, mashed potato casserole, either collard greens or brussels sprouts, cornbread stuffing and finally pecan pie. I know, I need to loosen my pants just thinking about it, but oh man is it good! To my mind Thanksgiving is not about skimpy, restrained or I’ll just have a taste— No Thanksgiving, more than any other day of the year, is all about prolonged indulgence and second-helpings.

I mentioned that I make butternut squash soup every Thanksgiving and while I realize you can’t swing a horn o’ plenty without hitting a squash soup recipe this time of year, my Coconut-Curried Butternut Squash Soup is not just any other recipe. It’s incredibly flavorful, tastes holiday-appropriately indulgent and is the perfect toasty warm start a chilly Fall day. Oh and did I mention that it’s also healthy and low-fat. I know, delicious, satisfying and low-fat… clearly a Thanksgivukkah miracle!

Anyway I encourage you to give this soup a try then sit back, relax, enjoy the day and offer up a few words of thanks for elastic waist pants.

Coconut-Curried Butternut Squash Soup
You can garnish the soup with a bit of toasted coconut or roasted pumpkin seeds if you like, but it’s just as delicious plain.

butternut squash soup2

1 large butternut squash (about 2 lbs)
1 medium onion, diced
1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. coconut oil (or olive oil)
4 cloves garlic, grated
3 tbsp. fresh ginger, grated
2 tsp. Thai Red Curry paste
2 tsp. Madras curry powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
3 cups chicken broth
1 14 oz can unsweetened light coconut milk

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Cut the squash in half lengthwise and remove the seeds. Brush the cut sides of the squash with oil and place cut side up in a roasting pan. Add a little water to the bottom of the pan, cover with aluminum foil and roast for 30-40 minutes or until a fork easily pierces it. When the squash is done and has cooled enough to handle, use a spoon to carefully scoop out the flesh and set aside.
  2. Heat the coconut oil and butter over medium heat in a large dutch oven. Add the onion, ginger and garlic and sauté until soft and translucent. Add the curry paste, curry powder and salt and cook for a few more minutes.
  3. Stir in the chicken broth, coconut milk* and squash. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes, stirring and breaking up any large chunks of squash.
  4. Remove from heat and puree with an immersion blender and serve.

*To make this soup ahead follow the directions but omit the coconut milk. On the day you’re going to serve the soup add the coconut milk and bring the soup back to a simmer. Serve and enjoy.

i’ve got nothin’…

Published on by jan greco2 Comments

In almost two years of blogging I’ve never once missed a week, seriously— never. Even when we were in Disney I gave you the House of Mouse, so imagine my dismay when it dawned on me this past Tuesday that I didn’t have anything prepared for this weeks post. You see I recently went back to work and while it’s only part-time, working a few days a week has altered my free-time, big-time! I’m thrilled to be earning a paycheck again, to be valued for something other than my mothering skills and to get the chance to routinely flex my creative muscles (that’s my cluttered desk below). But…

work desk2

As a result there are always baskets of laundry waiting to be folded, the fridge is never fully stocked and I have far less time to whip up that recipe I’ve been meaning to try. Believe me I’m not complaining, just trying to explain why I don’t have much to offer you. I really do apologize. So instead of my typical rambling tales and a tasty recipe, this week I thought I would instead share with you a brief list of lessons I’ve learned over the past two years as a food blogger. Okay, ready? Here goes…

  • If you think about, cook and enjoy good food 24/7 you’re bound to gain weight. Get over it, donate those skinny jeans and go grab yourself a snack.
  • Wet dish towels conduct heat far better than dry. I know this. I know this. I know this.
  • When you accidentally omit a key ingredient in a recipe and only realize it when it’s too late to fix, do the following: Proceed as if nothing is wrong. Admit your mistake to one person and one person only. (A true crime always requires an accomplice!) And if anyone questions the “correctness” of the dish simply claim that you were experimenting with a new recipe. They’ll continue to think you’re a cooking genius, talented enough to go all avant-garde with the meal.
  • There is no shame in boxed cake mix or jarred pasta sauce as long as your meal is being made with love.
  • If you happen to be taste testing cocktail recipes and start drinking gin in the afternoon, plan on ordering out for dinner.
  • Everyone enjoys being cooked for, even food bloggers. So if you know and love one don’t forget to make dinner for them once in a while.

And there you go. Until next week (hopefully)…

indian summer lavender-lemon muffins

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We may have just celebrated Halloween but I still have overflowing pots of herbs happily growing on my back steps. I’m thinking about turning some into herbed salt, freezing a bit and making a little chimichuri with a bunch, but really I’d prefer to use as much as I can right now while they’re still fresh. Sage, basil, tarragon, thyme and rosemary are a real no-brainer, you can throw those herbs into just about any savory dish and come out with a winning meal, but what about the lavender? Lavender flowers have a gazillion uses, but recipes using the fresh leaves are much more limited. Lavender, lavender, lavender… what should I do with you?

While I was recipe hunting I found a few recipes for rosemary and lemon shortbread. While I did briefly consider making cookies I thought muffins would be more fun and instead of rosemary I decided to use that elusive fresh lavender. The resulting Lavender-Lemon Muffins were a huge hit, fresh with a subtle lavender flavor and a lovely pop of sweet from the lemon glaze on top. They have quickly become another Greco family favorite and perhaps they’ll become one of your families favorites as well.

Lavender-Lemon Muffins
The lavender in these babies is subtle not overwhelmingly perfumey. They’re really pretty delicious.

lavender-lemon muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tbsp. finely chopped fresh lavender
zest of one lemon
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup low-fat milk
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 whole eggs + 1 egg white

1 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp. lemon juice

  1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners and lightly coat with cooking spray. In a large bowl combine together the flour, lavender, lemon zest, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
  2. Place the sugar and remaining ingredients (through eggs) in a medium bowl; beat with a mixer at low speed until smooth. Add the wet mixture to the dry and beat again until blended.
  3. Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
  4. Combine the powdered sugar and lemon juice. Stir until smooth and set aside.
  5. When the muffins are finished baking allow them to cool completely on a wire rack before drizzling with lemon glaze. Let glaze set and enjoy!

matzo balls + divine intervention

Published on by jan greco6 Comments

There’s a kosher deli not far from our house that my family loves to go to. They’ve got killer pastrami, fantastic chopped liver, an open face turkey sandwich that makes my daughter swoon and some of the finest matzo ball soup around. Just thinking about it makes me what to jump in the car and head there…PRONTO!

As you know by now we eat a lot of soup in our house. Anything from Red Lentil, Homemade Wonton or Smoked Chicken & Corn Chowder to Curried Carrot & Parsnip, Creamy Broccoli & Kale or nothing fancy but always delicious Chicken Soup. When I make chicken soup I typically serve it with some sort of noodles and a healthy sprinkle of grated cheese on top (I guess that’s the Italian in me). One recent afternoon I returned home from the store with a meaty chicken destined for the pot, only to discover a package from Cooking Light sitting in my mailbox. It contained two copies of their latest cookbook “Lighten Up, America!”. One copy for me to add to my collection and perhaps try a few recipes from and one to offer to my readers as a giveaway. Nice right?

Lighten Up, America! is filled with all the classic down-home recipes you’ve come to love, tweaked up a smidge to make them less of a guilty indulgence and more of an everyday option. Bacon and Corn Chowder with Shrimp, thickened by pureeing some of the soup rather than with loads of cream. Pound Cake that replaces the butter in the batter with canola oil that’s been flavored with a vanilla bean and Green Goddess Dressing that substitutes Greek yogurt and canola mayonnaise for traditional mayo and sour cream. Sounds good, doesn’t it? Anyway back to the soup… As I was flipping through the book trying to decide which tasty recipe to try first I discovered a recipe for matzo balls. I don’t know about you, but it struck me as a bit of divine intervention that a cookbook with a matzo ball recipe should arrive on my doorstep the very same day that I intended to make chicken soup! Seriously, how could I possibly ignore that kind of direct message from the universe… And so I made matzo balls.

I may not have grown up eating my Grandmas matzo balls (she was a tiny meatballs and pastina in her soup kinda Grandma) but I have eaten enough matzo ball soup in my time to say that this recipe was pretty darn good. The matzo balls were light and fluffy, fresh and flavorful, easy to make and a lovely change from the typical noodles. My family may still prefer to go the noodle and grated cheese route, but I’m a girl who likes variety and is quite happy to now have a matzo ball card up her sleeve!

“Light As Air” Matzo Balls
This may not be the most traditional of recipes, but its a pretty tasty one all the same.

matza ball

1 tbsp. canola oil
2 large eggs
1/4 cup club soda
2/3 cup matzo meal
2 tsp. chopped fresh dill
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

  1. In a medium bowl whisk together the oil and eggs. Stir in the club soda, matzo meal, dill, salt, and pepper; chill 30 minutes.
  2. Wet your hands, gently scoop out a bit of the mixture and shape into 8 equal sized balls.
  3. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, reduce to a simmer. Gently drop the uncooked matzo balls into the simmering water, cover and allow to cook for 25-35 minutes or until matzo balls are tender and cooked through. (To test doneness insert a toothpick in the center of a ball, it should easily slide through.)
  4. Serve in a bowl of chicken soup or cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

*adapted from lighten up, america!

Now onto the giveaway… To enter to win your own copy of Lighten Up, America! please leave me a comment telling me what your favorite food indulgence is and if you’ve ever considered making/eating a lighter version of it.

lighten-up-america

What food do I find impossible to resist, that’s easy— potato chips. If there’s an open bag in the house I can’t keep my hands off them! I actually have considered trying to make a healthier baked version but honestly, I’d rather just eat a handful (or two) of real chips now and again rather than healthy ones all the time. So how about you, what food makes your resolve to eat healthy a distant memory? Is it a peanut butter and bacon sandwich? Pizza loaded with extra cheese and pepperoni? A triple scoop hot fudge sundae? Whatever it is I’d love to hear about it!

Please leave your comment between Monday, October 28, 2013 and midnight Monday, November 4, 2013. One comment per person please, US residents only. Entries must be left via the comment form at the bottom of this post. A winner will be selected using Random.org. on Tuesday November 5th and will be promptly contacted.

So please leave a comment and then feel free to…

  • Follow @beetsbluecheese on Twitter.
  • Become a beets and blue cheese follower via e-mail
    (you’ll find the “follow me” button at the top of this page).
  • Like beets and blue cheese’s facebook page.
  • Share this giveaway with your friends on Facebook and Twitter.

Good luck!

st. anthony’s + the spani-queen

Published on by jan greco3 Comments

As a blogger I work very hard at self-promotion. This doesn’t come entirely naturally to me but, if I want an actual audience to read my weekly type written blood, sweat and tears then I have no choice but to promote myself at every opportunity. However sometimes the audience actually finds me all on their own. And once they find me and read what I’ve been rambling on about they actually contact me to say “We like your sassy style and pithy prose, please join our posse!” And so I do…

I was recently invited to join in the preparations for St. Anthony Orthodox Church’s 37th Annual International Festival. Every November St. Anthony’s in Bergenfield, N.J. hosts a three-day event featuring a variety of homemade Greek, Middle Eastern, Slavic and Eastern European foods. In the weeks leading up to the festival the parish gathers together to make the vast array of foods that will feed hungry festival-goers. I’m never one to turn down a good culinary opportunity, so when invited to join the food prep fun I wholeheartedly agreed. The night I went to help they were making spanakopita, mountains and mountains of spanakopita.

I’ll be honest with you, prior to joining the crew at St. Anthony’s my experience with spanakopita was strictly limited to eating, but Master Spani Chef Jim Bogris wasted no time introducing me to the secrets of the perfect spanakopita. Jim’s recipe is based on his mother Angela’s, who as it happens was the festivals “Spani-Queen” for twenty plus years prior handing the reigns over to her son. She still lends a hand in the assembly but leaves the heavy lifting and stirring of an enormous caldron of spinach mixture to the younger folks. (Smart lady!) According to Jim what sets his recipe apart from others is the amount of fresh herbs he uses and the three cheese; Pecorino Romano, ricotta and feta. Oh and he has a motto that goes something like this “There is no such thing as too much butter. If you think you’ve used enough, use a little more.”

I think I need that printed on a shirt…

Yai-Yai’s Spanakopita
This recipe has been handed down through generations of the Bogris family. I wouldn’t think of tweaking it and honestly, it doesn’t need a thing changed anyway.*

group2

1 lb. #7 phyllo dough sheets
3/4 to 1 lb. clarified butter (homemade or store-bought)
1/2 cup olive oil
1 bunch scallions, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 bunch dill, minced
1 bunch parsley, minced
1 lb. crumbled feta cheese
1/2 lb grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 lb. ricotta cheese (whole milk)
6 eggs, beaten
3 lbs. frozen chopped spinach (thawed, drained and squeezed dry)

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. In large pot heat olive oil, add scallions, onions, dill, parsley, and sauté until soft.
  2. Add spinach to pot and sauté another 10-15 minutes (mixing continuously so it doesn’t stick).
  3. In a large bowl mix crumbled feta, Romano cheese, ricotta cheese and eggs. Add to pot and mix thoroughly.
  4. Butter the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan and cover with a sheet of phyllo. Continue layering sheets of phyllo and buttering each layer with pastry brush, placing on the bottom a total of 8 buttered layers of phyllo dough.
  5. Top the phyllo layers with the spinach mixture.
  6. Cover with 8 more layers of buttered phyllo dough (again, buttering each individually while tucking in the sides.
  7. Score the top two layers of phyllo in triangles or squares, being careful not to cut into the mixture.
  8. Bake for 45 minutes or until golden brown on top.

*courtesy of st. anthony’s church

*According to Jim the spanakopita can be made ahead, wrapped in foil then plastic wrap and frozen for several months. Allow it to defrost in the refrigerator overnight and bake uncovered for 45-50 minutes at 350°F.

pumpkinpalooza

Published on by jan greco3 Comments

As far as seasonal food trends go the pumpkin-spice craze has got to be the biggest one around. Each Fall the world seems to be overrun with all things pumpkin: pumpkin spice pasta, pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin spice marshmallows, pumpkin spice beer and vodka, pumpkin spice potato chips, pumpkin spice body lotion, pumpkin spice bagels to go with pumpkin spice cream cheese and of course pumpkin spice room freshener (a must for every seasonally appropriate home). Whew— thats quite a list, but it doesn’t stop there. We’re so off our rockers over this spicy combination that even the beloved M&M isn’t safe from it. Thats right folks, Pumpkin Spice M&M’s available exclusively at Target and completely sold out when I recently looked for them. It would appear that we’re treading dangerously close to a world-wide state of pumpkin spice hysteria.

Not wanting to be left out, I too decided to make friends with pumpkin. It is after all high in fiber, a cup of puree contains a day’s worth of vitamin A and more potassium than a banana, it’s rich in beta-carotene which is good for your eyesight and lowers the risk of developing cancer or heart disease and the seeds contain chemicals called “phytosterols” which help reduce LDL. So really whats not to love about it, right? If you recall I already use it for my devil dogs Pumpkin-oatmeal dog biscuits and in the past I’ve substituted it for butternut squash in soup, but the weather was cool and I felt like baking…

Last Fall I gave you my coveted Cranberry-Orange Muffin recipe and while I still maintain it’s muffin perfection, I decided to play around with the recipe just the same. A few spices, some pumpkin puree, a little yogurt and one crumble topping later a new Greco family seasonal favorite was born.

Pumpkin-Cranberry Crumble Muffins
These muffins are the perfect way to enjoy the flavors of the season.

pumpkin-cranberry muffin4

Crumble:
3/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
3/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/8 tsp. salt
3 tbsp. butter, melted

Batter:
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
a pinch of nutmeg
12 oz. bag fresh cranberries
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. Angostura bitters
3/4 cup canned unsweetened pumpkin
1/4 cup plain Russian kefir yogurt (or Greek)

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners and spray with cooking spray. Set aside.
  2. In a small bowl combine the oats, flour, brown sugar, ginger, salt and melted butter. Use a fork (or your fingers) to blend the mixture until it’s crumbly, breaking up any large clumps. Set aside.
  3. Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl, gently stir in the cranberries.
  4. In a medium bowl combine all the wet ingredients. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until well blended (the batter will be thick). Spoon evenly into the lined muffin cups, top with a generous amount of crumble and bake for 30 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  5. Remove from the oven and allow muffins to cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then place on a wire rack for remainder of cooling

*recipe makes 12-16 muffins