Lactose Free Cottage Pie

I happened to have cauliflower in my fridge...And the guest that I had over evidently was not a fan of this vegetable - as well as being lactose intolerant.  So I figured I'd blend two and two together and make it so that the guest could NOT figure out that there was no cauliflower and no milk products in this cottage pie.

So I boiled some yellow potatoes and the cauliflower together...Added some rice milk and vegan butter then proceeded to blend the potatoes and cauliflower into 

I then used my cast iron skillet, that still had residual duck fat on it (as I had cooked duck breasts on it not too long ago), browned a meatloaf mixture of beef and pork and added onion and garlic seasoning to it (as I had no actual onion or garlic on hand...And didn't think about it til much later).  While it browned I heated the frozen vegetables and put in Pomi's strained tomatoes and as well as some worcestershire sauce.

I then placed the meat mixture on the bottom and topped it with the cauliflower-potato mixture and heated the oven for approximately 350 degrees for about half an hour or until the crust got a nice tan color to it.

Outcome?  The guest loved it.

Listed below are the ingredients.

Residual Duck Fat

Cauliflower

Rice Milk

Vegan butter

white potatoes

Meatloaf mixture (beef and pork)

Frozen vegetables

Soup Season

I'm a sucker for soup.
Granted I could have soup in all kinds of seasons, however fall and winter is where it is most appreciated...Considering the chill in the air and the slow turning darkness of the days.

Recipe inspired by The Wicked Noodle

Considering I didn't measure...

I used approximately:

1/4 Onion chopped
2 cloves garlic
Thyme (eyed it out)
2 cups homemade pumpkin puree
Veggie stock (approx 1/2 pint)

In a soup pot, I used olive oil....Tossed the onion til it was opaque, followed by the garlic.
Poured in the soup stock and the pumpkin puree....Added the thyme, garlic and pepper.

Of Fall and Chili

Growing up in an Asian household chili was something I was never introduced to until I was in my teens......And that same would go to pumpkin as well.  The older I've become the more appreciative I have become of both, as the people that I have grown with throughout the years will not go without pumpkin, apples, chili or mac and cheese that comes with the slight chill in the air and the brisk wisp of the falling leaf.

I made chili fairly recently, in fact it was my first.  However I did not bother with doing the whole blogging thing with it.  I also made mac and cheese too.....Also with no post.

I got this recipe from Seriouseats with a few revisions.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup chopped onion (I used 1/2 1 large onion)
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 (4 ounce can) can chopped green chiles (I used a very small handful of Serrano peppers...chopped, cleaned of seeds)
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 pound ground turkey (I used 1 lb chicken instead)
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (14.5 ounce) can red kidney beans (I skipped the beans...As I am not a fan)
2 cups (1 14.5 ounce can) pumpkin puree
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 tablespoon cumin
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
cayenne pepper to taste (at least 3 good shakes)
sugar (to taste)

Directions
1.  Heat oil in a large skillet or dutch oven over medium heat
2.  Saute the onion, both bell peppers, chiles, and garlic til tender.

3.  Make room in the center of the skillet for chicken and brown.
4.  Stir in tomatoes, and pumpkin
5.  Add the seasonings
6.  Reduce heat and simmer at least 20 minutes.
7.  Eat!

Simple Cauliflower Soup

I must say, I've never been a huge fan of cauliflower.  Then again, I've never despised it.  To me it was just...a vegetable.  I had ended up using half for a saute and I had no clue what to do with the other half.  I decided to make a very simple cauliflower soup.  While making this I had recalled two of my guy friends proudly talking to me about how they made their cauliflower soup.  I don't think there's a set way to making it to begin with.

Considering I had winged this recipe there will be no exact measurements involved.

1/2 cauliflower
3/4 yellow onion
1 green onion
16 ounces (1 lb) veggie stock
a dash of milk (which can be replaced w/ half an half or heavy cream...OR you can have the choice to not use the milk at all)....

While I waited for the oil to get hot in the pot, I had diced the onion, cleaned and took apart the florets of the cauliflower.   Once the oil was hot I threw in the onions until they turned iridescent.  I poured in the veggie stock and the florets...While they were cooking I diced and chopped the green onion.  Once it had appeared that the florets were cooked through, I had poured everything into the blender...And eyed out how much more milk I would add to the mix.  I blended it to my taste...Then poured everything back onto the pot to reheat a bit.

Comfort in a bowl.

Cottage Pie

Since I had an access of vegetables I had decided to utilize what I had and decided to make Cottage Pie.
What I like about Cottage Pie is that you can easily mix anything in it.  Normally I would add frozen mixed vegetables.  But since I decided that I would utilize what I had to save money...I went a different route.

Ingredients I had were

celery
carrots
onions
half a napa cabbage
garlic
1 lb 80% ground beef
red potatoes
garlic
worcestershire sauce
a few slices of Gruyere cheese.
button mushrooms
milk
room temperature butter

So what I did first was prepare the vegetables.  I grabbed a few stalks of the celery as well as a few carrots and cut those down to smaller pieces.  Cleaned and sliced the mushrooms.  And sliced the napa cabbage.

I then pulled out my food processor and grated the vegetables till they were a fine bits (much like you would find in making pot stickers).  Once that was completed, I sliced the onion till they were all equal pieces, and crushed the garlic.

I put the oil in the pan, put the onion in, and cooked till it was translucent.  I then added the chopped garlic.  Shortly after that I added 1 lb ground beef and cooked till brown, then added the grated vegetables...Stirred it around...Let it sweat, then added salt, pepper and the worcestershire sauce.

After that was done cooking, I put them into two individual loaf pans, leaving just enough room for the mashed potatoes and put it in the fridge.

I had cooked this in two steps as I had run out of milk a few days ago.

The next day I then proceeded to boil the potatoes.  I used 6 red potatoes and boiled them for approx 36 minutes.  I then drained the potatoes from the pot, put them back in the pot, added butter and milk and mashed over stop top...Nearing the consistency that I had wanted, I then added the Gruyere cheese and mashed (and added milk and butter) til desired consistency.

Once it is at the consistency that it is desired you top the mashed potatoes on the ground beef mixture that was sitting in the loaf pans....And let me tell you, I think I may have added just as much cheese as potatoes in this concoction as this was the cheesiest mashed potatoes I've had.

After I was certain that the potatoes and the meat were about room temperature in the loaf pan, I then heated it for approx 35 minutes at 350 degrees (preheated).

This is by far the most 'veggie-filled', cheesiest, Cottage Pie I've made.

And fact of the matter is, it's still good.

Croque Monsieur - Grilled Ham and Cheese Sandwich

I've never been a fan of sandwiches.

Grilled sandwiches on the other hand I was more in favor for.

Then I came across the Croque Monsieur that was featured in the movie "It's Complicated"...Ok, it wasn't the feature.  But it had an appeal.  My curiosity for this sandwich grew.  So when the

Croque means to "crunch" and Monsieur meant "mister".  The first written record of this sandwich was in Parisian Cafe in 1910 (wikipedia).

I looked at a few sites and for the most part I had followed Simply Recipe's.

This is by far the most filling grilled sandwich I've ever had.  Will I make it again?  Heck yeah!

Croque Monsieur (from Elise Bauer)

INGREDIENTS

• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp flour
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• A pinch each of salt, freshly ground pepper, nutmeg, or more to taste
• 6 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated (about 1 1/2 cups grated)  *You also have the option to use Swiss, or Fontina.*  
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (packed)
• 8 slices of French or Italian loaf bread *I had used sour dough loaf bread.*
• 12 ounces ham, sliced
• Dijon mustard

METHOD

1 Preheat oven to 400°F.

2 Make the béchamel sauce. Melt butter in a small saucepan on medium/low heat until it just starts to bubble. Add the flour and cook, stirring until smooth, about 2 minutes. Slowly add the milk, whisking continuously, cooking until thick. Remove from heat. Add the salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir in the Parmesan and 1/4 cup of the grated Gruyère. Set aside.

3 Lay out the bread slices on a baking sheet and toast them in the oven, a few minutes each side, until lightly toasted. For extra flavor you can spread some butter on the bread slices before you toast them if you want.

(Alternatively, you can assemble the sandwiches as follows in step four and grill them on a skillet, finishing them in the broiler with the bechamel sauce.)

4 Lightly brush half of the toasted slices with mustard. Add the ham slices and about 1 cup of the remaining Gruyère cheese. Top with the other toasted bread slices.

*I chose to grill the ham slices as separately from the toasted bread with Gruyere Cheese, Then placed the ham on top of the toasts slices with cheese* 

5 Spoon on the béchamel sauce to the tops of the sandwiches. Sprinkle with the remaining Gruyère cheese. Place on a broiling pan. Bake in the oven for 5 minutes, then turn on the broiler and broil for an additional 3 to 5 minutes, until the cheese topping is bubbly and lightly browned.

If you top this sandwich with a fried egg it becomes a Croque Madame.

Makes 4 sandwiches.

Affairs Of The Heart

Photo credit to http://alexrushmer.com/

Love and food go hand in hand, as in my experience, I 'show' my love through food.  Nevermind that I love food to begin with but I love to share it with the people I love.  But what do you do when you just hit that emotional wall that just stops you from doing what you love?  Or stopped you from what you once loved?

I remember a few weeks ago that the boyfriend and I were at an apple orchard and we were talking about cooking.  You see, his father left his mother when my boyfriend turned 18 and she turned into a bachelorette for the next 15 or so years.  

His mother used to cook a lot when he was growing up and he enjoyed her cooking, as every child tends to love their parent's cooking.  But when his father left her.....  She stopped cooking.  Or specifically speaking....According to the boyfriend...She stopped cooking well.  She lost her touch.  Even though she has a new boyfriend...Things just weren't what the were.

I know that I'm 28 and I have much to learn.  I have hit that wall before.  I couldn't cook the way that I wanted to, and I couldn't work out without breaking down.  What do you do when you put your heart and soul into...Say a relationship....And you lost your touch?

I know, that when I had hit that low (although not quite at the same level), it took me a lot of time to regain myself.  To build myself up again.  What was the first dish you cooked?  I know for me it was my macaroni and cheese.  

That was probably the dish for me because that was one of the very first dishes I had made.  No, I'm not talking from the box.  I'm not talking about using Velveeta either.  I use real cheese, and every version is never the same.  I had used Fannie Farmer 13th Edition Paperback by Marion Cunningham as a general guideline in making my macaroni and cheese.  

I hope to never lose my touch with cooking.  I hope to always have it with me through all of life's instances.