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Filtering by Tag: egg

swiss chard + shitake mushroom casserole

Andrea

Amidst the turkey, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, stuffing, and rolls, the color green is often lost on the Thanksgiving table.  I love this casserole as a hearty alternative to turkey for vegetarian guests, cut into small squares to serve as an appetizer, or simply served alongside a nice slice of savory bird. The fried shitake mushrooms are a wonderful touch, lending a nice kick of flavor to the mild greens.  I appreciate that this dish comes together very quickly, and could even be made the day before and reheated in the oven as the turkey is finishing.  Or it would be really easy to transport to another house if you've been tasked with bringing a side dish to a family gathering.  Quick, simple, easily transported, filling, and delicious...what more could you ask for out of one recipe?

I have mixed feelings about swiss chard.  Its fine, really, but that's about it.  However, in this recipe it provides a nice earthy base from which the shitake mushrooms really shine.  I think this casserole would also be lovely with lacinato kale, my favorite hearty green.

Swiss Chard + Shitake Mushroom Casserole
serves 8, from Food & Wine
Ingredients
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • ½ pound shitake mushrooms, stems discarded and caps sliced
  • kosher salt
  • ½ cup panko
  • ¾ cup parmesan cheese
  • 10 large eggs
  • ½ tsp cayenne pepper
  • 2-½ pounds swiss chard, stems discarded and leaves thinly sliced (I like to stack the leaves and roll them tightly, then slice the roll crosswise to make quick work of this task)
Method
  1. Preheat the oven to 350℉ and butter a shallow 9x13 ceramic baking dish. (I altered quantities some and used a 9x9 square dish…it is very easy to divide or double). 
  2. In a large skillet, heat the oil until shimmering.  Add the mushrooms and cook over high heat, turning once, until golden and crisp, about 5 minutes.  Season with salt and transfer the mushrooms to a paper towel-lined plate.
  3. In a small bowl, toss the panko with ¼ cup of the cheese.
  4. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the cayenne, 1 tsp of salt, and ½ cup of cheese.  Stir in the swiss chard and mushrooms.  Scrape the mixture into the prepared dish and bake for about 20 minutes, until the eggs are just set around the edges.  
  5. Sprinkle the panko on top of the casserole and bake for about 10-15 more minutes, until the casserole is fully set and the topping is lightly browned.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

categories eggs, vegetarian
tags casserole, egg, fall, frittata, mushroom, swiss chard

small packages

Andrea

I’d been wanting some of these little tart tins for, oh, at least one year. Its not that I make a lot of tarts and require a variety of vessels for filling...it really comes down to the fact that I love the tiny proportions of the tins themselves.  There's just something very appealing about baked goods in small packages. Although the tins aren’t that expensive, I hadn’t been able to justify purchasing them for their aesthetic appeal alone. I felt that I needed to have in mind a specific recipe that absolutely required the use of such tins. Or perhaps, at the very least, to have gone through some serious experimentation in the full-size tart pan that I already owned to justify my graduation to experimentation with its smaller siblings. Lucky for me, my stepfather came to my rescue and put me out of my indecisive misery. While home for Thanksgiving, Joe took me shopping. For baking pans. Many, many baking pans. So many pans that Brian and I had to reorganize our entire kitchen. I now have my tiny tart tins, a beautiful tube cake pan, additional sheet pans and cooling racks, even some ice cream scoops for balling cookie dough. Suddenly recipe searching has taken on a whole new agenda, with me thinking “oh! I could use my new [insert baking tool here]!”. And so, although things have been quiet on this little blog of mine this last week I assure you, I’ve been busy in the kitchen. And busy shopping. And busy wrapping. And busy writing out holiday cards. But mostly, I’ve been busy enjoying my new toys. I have a few recipes I still want to share with you prior to Christmas Eve and so, in the interest of getting all of the items on my holiday ‘To Do’ list crossed off [and therefore maintaining my own sanity...I'm just a little bit OCD...] I’m going to have to keep posts a bit shorter than usual. I hope you won’t mind.  My guess is, you all are pretty busy too.  :) I was certain that the debut of these little tins would involve sharing something sweet with you all, and so was surprised when the urge to make a savory tart struck me first. The possibilities for fillings are endless, truly, but we were pretty pleased with the results of our first attempt, which I’ve shared below. I think they would be a great addition to the buffet table at a party, easy to pick up with one hand while holding your cocktail glass in the other.

Savory Winter Tarts

makes (6) 4-inch tarts Ingredients
  • 9-inch pie crust dough (the rolled dough, not the kind in the aluminum dish)
  • 1/2 pound bacon, fried
  • 1 medium leek, light green part only, sliced
  • 1 medium red potato, very thinly sliced
  • 4 large mustard green leaves, washed and chopped finely
  • 3-oz chevre, crumbled
  • 2 eggs
  • 3/4 cup whole milk
  • salt + pepper
Method
  1. Thaw your pie crust dough according to the instructions on the package.  Preheat oven to temperature indicated on package.  Roll out the dough until it is 1/8-inch thick, and cut into roughly 5-inch by 5-inch squares.  You'll probably only get 4 squares from this first pass.  You'll want to gather the scraps, ball them up, and roll the dough back out to cut the remaining squares.  Place a square of dough into each tart tin, pressing the dough into the bottom and sides of the tin.  Trim the dough to be flush with the top of the tin.  Place tart shells on a baking sheet covered with aluminum foil and bake according to the instructions on the dough package.
  2. Gather your filling ingredients (other than the eggs, milk, salt and pepper) and set aside.
  3. Whisk together the eggs and milk.  Add salt and pepper to taste.
  4. Remove the tart shells from the oven once they are starting to turn golden brown. Set oven temperature to 400*.
  5. Once the tart shells have been baked and cooled about 10 minutes, you can fill them.  Fill tarts first with potatoes, mustard greens, leeks then bacon.  Do not overfill the tarts, you may not use all of the ingredients.
  6. Carefully pour the egg/milk mixture into each tart, dividing it evenly amongst all 6 tart tins, being careful not to let the custard overflow.  Drop chevre on top of the tarts in bits.
  7. Bake the tarts on the cookie sheet at 400* for 25-35 minutes, until custard is set and toppings are starting to brown.
*Note - Tiny tart tins aren't absolutely necessary for this recipe, (1) 10-inch tart tin will accommodate these ingredients.  But, the miniature tins sure are fun...
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categories baking, dinner, lunch, recipes
tags bacon, chevre, egg, savory, tart, vegetables

a healthy alternative

Andrea

As much as both Brian and I LOVE to cook, there are still nights when we get home from the office and dread stepping into the kitchen.  Sometimes we're lucky enough to have some leftovers floating around in the fridge, other times we resort to ordering steamed veggies and tofu (and maybe some crab wontons, ahem) from the Chinese restaurant down the street.  Even though this happens every few weeks, it has been years since I've ordered fried rice.  I think I had a few too many disappointments with too-old, slightly crunchy, oddly clumping take-out fried rice in the past, and have stuck with steamed for as long as I can remember.  Plus, steamed is healthier, and it makes me feel a little less guilty about the crab wontons I shove in my mouth the minute we close the door behind the delivery boy. rice 1 But recently, we discovered how easy it is to make fried rice.  And that really, when you make it at home, its not that bad for you. Yes, you throw a couple of tablespoons of peanut oil in your pan, but we all know that the right oils in moderation are actually good for you, and when you divide this dish up into four hearty servings  you've got nothing to worry about.  Add the fact that we used brown rice instead of white and threw in some colorful veggies loaded with vitamins and you've got yourself a healthy alternative to take-out.  And I guarantee that you can make it faster than the delivery boy can get the bad stuff to you. rice 2 It does help to have some forethought - you want to have rice already made in order to enhance the texture of the dish and cut down on preparation time. Several Saturdays ago we picked up a couple of beautiful pork chops at the farmer's market from Double H Farm (no website) along with some of their gorgeous eggs.  Pork chops on the grill seemed like the perfect accompaniment to the veggie fried rice I'd been thinking about, so I cooked up some brown rice that weekend and one night after work we put this meal together.  It was quick, simple and incredibly delicious, not to mention colorful.  I briefly thought about healthify-ing the rice even further, by using only egg whites, but when it came time to discard those beautiful orange yolks I just couldn't do it.  I'll leave that up to you, if you wish. rice 4 The flavor of the pork was very good, I'm just not a big pork chop fan.  I ate a few bites and then passed my chop over to Brian, whom I knew would enjoy it far more than I would.  For me, the vegetable fried rice was the star of the show. Vegetable Fried Rice adapted from Gourmet Magazine, via Epicurious makes 4 large servings Ingredients:
  • 2 tbsp peanut oil
  • 1 large carrot, peeled and chopped finely
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped finely
  • 2 tsbp fresh chives or scallions, minced
  • 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 4 cups steamed brown rice, cold (ideally, leftover from the night before)
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 1-2 tsp Asian sesame oil
Method:
  1. Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a wok or large nonstick skillet (12") over medium-high heat.  Saute' the carrot and bell pepper until tender, then remove to a separate bowl and set aside.
  2. Wipe skillet clean, then heat over high heat, until a drop of water vaporizes instantly upon contact.  Add the remaining 1 tbsp peanut oil, swirling to coat pan evenly, and heat until hot and just starting to smoke.
  3. Add eggs, tilting pan and swirling eggs to form a thin, even layer and cook for 30 seconds.  Add rice and stir-fry, breaking up eggs and letting rice rest several seconds between stirs, until rice is hot, about 2-3 minutes.
  4. Add the carrots, peppers, chives or scallions, salt and sesame oil to taste, stir-frying until well combined.
Pork Chop Marinade from Weber's Big Book of Grilling, by Jamie Purviance and Sandra S. McRae enough for 4 pork chops, about 1-1/4 inches thick Ingredients:
  • 1/4 cup plus 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp light brown sugar
  • 1/4 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
  • 1/4 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
Method:
  1. Whisk together all of the ingredients.
  2. Place the chops in a large resealable plastic bag and pour in the marinade.  Press the air out of the bag and seal.  Turn the bag to distribute the marinade over the pork chops.  Refrigerate for 20-30 minutes.
  3. Remove the chops from the bag and discard the marinade.  Allow to stand at room temperature for 20-30 minutes before grilling or baking.
  4. Cook as you wish.  We grilled them, over direct high heat for 12-15 minutes.  Turn them over halfway through.
rice 3 We also whipped together a cucumber salad, to help with our abundance.  It was nice and refreshing on the side, but you really need to like sesame if you're going to enjoy this salad. Asian Cucumber Salad from Vegetables Every Day, by Jack Bishop Ingredients:
  • 3 medium cucumbers - peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, and cut on the diagonal 1/4 inch thick
  • 1 tbsp kosher salt
  • 2 tbsp rice vinegar
  • 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted in a dry skillet until golden brown (we left these out, and the sesame flavor was still really strong)
Method:
  1. Toss the cucumbers with the salt in a colander.  Set the colander in the sink and let the cucumbers sit for 30 minutes to 1 hour, to drain excess liquid.
  2. Whisk the vinegar, oil, sugar and pepper flakes together in a small bowl and set aside, stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves.
  3. Thoroughly rinse the cucumber slices under cold, running water and pat dry with paper towels.  Toss the cucumbers with the dressing and sesame seeds.

other stuff

If you live in or near Charlottesville, the 5th Annual Farm Food Voices Virginia event is this Sunday, August 2nd, from 2:00 - 7:30pm.  Come out to Monticello High School to learn more about current agricultural and local food issues in Virginia.  I'll be there! Food, Inc. has finally opened in Charlottesville! Also, follow me on Twitter!
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categories dinner, grain, meat
tags egg, grill, pork, rice, vegetable

farmers' market frittata

Andrea

Even though we've only lived here four years, Brian and I have fallen completely in love with Charlottesville.  One of the things we enjoy most about this little city is the strong local food movement.  We visit the farmer's market each weekend during the season to gather our meat, eggs and produce for the week (whatever we're not growing in our own garden) and have long conversations with our favorite farmers. We get to see photographs of the chickens who lay our eggs pecking the ground in their grassy field, the cows and their new calfs, and the bee hives housing the bees that are pollinating the plants from which our vegetables grow. fritt merge 1 It is undoubtably our favorite part of the week, and we make sure to leave ourselves with plenty of time to talk to Richard about the problems we are having with our own tomato plants and to gush to Jean about the magic of her hens’ eggs. We have a direct connection to the people who supply the food on our table, something that I think the majority of the world population doesn’t have and may not understand. fritt 3 I know that we're very fortunate, and was reminded of it again last week when I made this vegetable frittata.  As we sat down to eat I realized that every single ingredient, except for the parmesan cheese and olive oil, was locally grown.   The eggs, milk, bell pepper, leeks and zucchini all came from the farmers' market, and the herbs were grown in our own garden.  How cool is that?!? I'm not trying to rub it in, I'm really not, I just had to share with you all the amazing feeling that I had knowing that our dinner was not only delicious, but also supporting our local farmers. fritt 4 With Food, Inc. just out (which I haven't seen yet, gasp!) I've read a lot more chatter in the food blog world about being aware of where our food comes from.  Its exciting, and I'm so glad to see bloggers with serious readership and influence supporting the cause.  To join in, I wanted to share a couple of sites I've recently read about that may help you discover local food providers in your area.  And, for my Charlottesville readers, I've added a new local page to the top bar.  I know that I am probably missing a lot of great resources so if you have any to add, please leave a comment! fritt 5 I challenge you all to make this frittata and try to include at least one local ingredient, even if it is just herbs from pots on your porch.  Every little bit counts! Feel free to switch up the veggies, the recipe is very versatile.  And delicious too, I might add. Farmers' Market Frittata Ingredients:
  • 8 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt (for a silkier texture) or 1/2 cup whole milk
  • 4-5 good grinds of sea salt
  • pinch of freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tbsp fresh chives, minced
  • 1/4 cup fresh parsley, minced
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped to 1/4-inch dice
  • 1 zucchini, chopped to 1/4-inch dice
  • 1 leek, white and pale green part only, halved then sliced thinly
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Method:
  1. Whisk together eggs, salt, pepper and yogurt or milk until smooth.  Add minced herbs and stir well, set aside.
  2. Heat oil in 10 or 12 inch nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Add bell pepper, zucchini and leek.  Cook for 8-10 minutes, until veggies are tender.
  3. Increase heat to medium-high.  Pour egg mixture over veggies evenly.  Cook on medium high for 3-4 minutes, tilting pan and lifting edges of frittata to allow raw egg to run underneath.
  4. Lower heat to low, cover pan and cook for an additional 8-10 minutes, until frittata is mostly set.  Shake pan occasionally while cooking.  Meanwhile, place a rack at the top of the oven and turn broiler on to high.
  5. Remove frittata from stovetop when it is mostly set.  Sprinkle cheese across top and place in oven, under broiler.  Broil for 1-2 minutes, watching carefully to not let it get to brown.  You just want a few spots of brown across the top, and bubbly cheese.
  6. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in pan for about 5 minutes.  Remove to cutting board or large plate, cut into wedges and serve.
fritt 6
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categories breakfast, dinner, lunch, recipes, vegetable
tags bell pepper, egg, frittata, herbs, leek, local, summer, vegetable, zucchini

bella terra: the first to show

Andrea

There have been a few small changes in the garden since my first bella terra post.  The thyme, sage and oregano are starting to show some green.  The blackberry and raspberry vines have tiny bits of new growth.  And the weeds are popping up with a vengeance.  Brian (my hubb) and I have big plans for the weekend.  Some fence repair, re-mulching the paths, weeding and seeding.  In just a handful of days (7-10 to be exact) we should have broccoli, peas, beets, lettuce, kale and spinach poking out of the rich compost.  I can't wait.  :) Here, the blackberry vine... blackberry-1 The very first signs of life I see in the garden each year are chives.   Beautiful green shoots that peek from beneath the blanket formed by last year’s growth, the late-fall crop that laid down their lives with the first hard frost to protect the next generation.  They were already popping up two weeks ago when I ventured into the garden for the first time since fall.  The new chives are thankfully resistant with help from the old - they managed to survive the late snow we had just last week.  When I visited the garden after work one evening to check their progress I was pleased to find that they were ready for me to cut. here, on march 7th... garden-1 see how they've grown? chives-1 Chives are one of my favorite herbs to use in the kitchen because they are so versatile.  Toss them with fingerling potatoes to roast, sprinkle them raw over top of an omelet, fold them into batter to be baked in cheddar biscuits...their mild, onion-like flavor allows for endless possibilities.  I’d bookmarked this NY Times recipe for an herb frittata earlier this month and knew as soon as I spotted those lovely bits of green from over the fence that the time had come to try it. frittata-1 I'd never made a frittata before.  It seemed to me that it would be a difficult task and, having never read a frittata recipe before, I assumed that it would contain whole milk and cheese (similar to a quiche) and not be terribly productive to my weight-loss efforts.  Boy was I wrong, on ALL assumptions.  For one, the process was really easy.  As long as you have a decent non-stick skillet and some patience, this dish really couldn't be easier.  And I used just two dishes to make it...two!  I really like a quick and simple recipe, but add "very little clean-up" to its list of attributes and I am in love. frittata-2 Second, the frittata is much healthier than any quiche recipe I've made.  The main contributor to its healthfulness?  A lack of crust.  That's right...no crust. And...no cheese.  The greek yogurt makes the consistency so creamy that you'll never miss it.  Plus, this particular recipe is loaded with spinach and herbs, not to mention heart-healthy walnuts and yummy mushrooms.   frittata-3 I was so impressed with my first frittata experience that I've already been dreaming up new combos of flavors.  I can't wait until that pile of herbs and spinach pictured above is all home-grown from my garden, maybe with some bell peppers and tomatoes mixed in.  Oh, what a glorious summer it will be... frittata-7 Spinach, Herb and Mushroom Frittata 258 cal, 19g fat, 6g carbs, 1g sugar, 2g fiber, 11g protein  [nutritional info from thedailyplate.com] recipe adapted from the NY Times Ingredients:
  • 12oz baby spinach 
  • 1 cup chopped parsley
  • 1/2 cup chopped chives 
  • 8 fresh cremini mushrooms, cleaned and chopped
  • 8 large eggs 
  • 1/2 cup thick Greek-style yogurt 
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts 
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt, preferably kosher salt (more to taste) 
  • Freshly ground pepper to taste 
  • 1 to 2 garlic cloves (to taste), green stems removed, finely minced 
  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (2 tablespoons if you don’t have a nonstick pan) 
Method:
  1. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil. Fill a bowl with ice water. Add the spinach to the boiling water and blanch for 10 to 20 seconds. Transfer to the ice water to cool for a few minutes, then drain and squeeze out excess water. Chop finely.
  2. Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Stir in the yogurt, walnuts, salt and pepper. Add the spinach, herbs and garlic, and mix together well. Adjust salt and pepper. Let sit for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the mushrooms.
  3. Heat a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and add the olive oil.  Drop a bit of egg into the pan, and if it sizzles and cooks at once, the pan is ready. Pour in the egg mixture, scraping every bit out of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Roll the pan to distribute the eggs and filling evenly over the surface. Shake the pan gently, tilting it slightly with one hand while lifting up the edges of the frittata with the spatula in your other hand, in order to let the eggs run underneath during the first few minutes of cooking. Turn the heat down to low, and cover the pan. Cook 10 to 15 minutes, shaking the pan every once in a while, until the frittata is just about set. Meanwhile, light the broiler.
  4. If the frittata is not quite set on the top, place under the broiler, about three inches from the heat, for one to two minutes, watching closely, until just beginning to color on the top. Do not allow the eggs to brown too much or they’ll taste bitter.  (I wound up leaving it under the broiler for about 4 minutes total, until just starting to brown).
  5. Remove from the heat, allow to sit in the pan for five minutes or longer, then carefully slide out onto a platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.
frittata-5 In the Blog World... Tina at Carrots 'N' Cake has released a call for guest bloggers...how fun!  If you haven't checked out Tina's blog yet you really should.  She's got great daily tips for creating a healthy lifestyle through good eats and exercise.  Guest blogging is a great way to spread your blog words to further reaches, so consider sending her an email with some ideas! Two Spoons made a savory version of my scones!  Yum...the possibilities are endless.  :) Ryan at Chasing Daylight made bella eats enchi-ritos!  So glad you enjoyed them, Ryan! Jennifer and Jessica of Keep It Simple Foods have been enjoying my dark chocolate PB and strawberry breakfast combo...glad you're liking it ladies! Mmmm...a little french inspiration in the morning is a great start to any day!  :) If you've tried a recipe you've found on bella eats, let me know!  I'd love to read your thoughts on it and send others your way.  :)  Who else is THRILLED that tomorrow is Friday?!?!?!?  :)
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categories dinner, garden, recipes
tags chives, egg, mushrooms, parsley, spinach, walnuts

training + groceries + egg drop soup

Andrea

Hello my fellow bloggies!  Have you all had a good Saturday?  Mine started out gloriously...the hubb and I slept in 'till 10:30!!!  I cannot even remember the last time we slept that late!  My alarm went off at 7:30 to meet the training group for a run, but when I rolled over to check the temperature and saw that it was only 16* outside I rolled right back over and fell back to sleep!   We did get up and go for a run once it reached a balmy 25* at 11am.  Brrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!  Today was supposed to be 2.5 miles and I mapped out a nice, although hilly, run for us around campus and some surrounding shopping areas.  When we first started I felt really choppy, like I couldn't get into the groove.  Things finally evened out and felt good after about 1/3 mile and stayed that way until about 1-1/2 miles, but then I got two horrible cramps, one under my ribs and one behind my hip bone.  Wierd, huh?  I had to stop to walk it off and decided to just walk the rest of the way back, so I only got about 1-3/4 miles in.  I was so bummed.  Especially after having such good runs this week.  I know sometimes you just have "off" days that can't be predicted or explained.  I remember even when I was having great 8-mile long runs I would have an "easy" 3-mile run a couple days later that I could barely finish.  What do you other runners do out there when you get a cramp mid-run? Breakfast:  I had 1/2 a banana about 30 minutes before my run, then had two Kashi Go Lean blueberry waffles afterwards. One was topped with 1 tbsp almond butter and the other with 1 tbsp apple butter, both with sliced pink lady apple. 081206-b1 Lunch:  Well, breakfast was kinda lunch since I slept so late, so my schedule was off all day.  I did make the horrible mistake of going grocery shopping while hungry, which resulted in several snacks that you will see shortly. I had the worst Whole Foods shopping experience today.  I'm still bummed out about it.  I've mentioned that we have a tiny store that doesn't carry a great selection of bars etc, but they are building a new store so I've just been hanging in there 'till its finished.  Over the couple of years that the hubb and I have been shopping at this Whole Foods they've taken away several products that I love dearly to make room for new or different products.  Some examples of products I love that I can no longer get at my store are:
  • Clif Nectar Cherry Pomegranate flavor
  • Clif Nectar Cranberry Apricot flavor
  • Newman's Own Salt + Pepper Pretzels
  • Nairn gluten-free Ginger Crackers
  • Nairn gluten-free Oat Crackers
And there are countless other things that other Whole Foods stores carry that mine does not.  Especially infuriating are the items that have coupons in the Whole Deal catalogs they pass out that I can't even get at my store.  So today, I had made a list that of course included Stoneyfield Oikos yogurt on it, but when I got to the yogurt aisle there was NO OIKOS!!!  I thought they must be out, until I noticed that the product's spot on the shelf was filled with something new and that there was no longer a tag for the OIKOS!!!  Incredulous, I asked the first WF employee I could find "what happened to the Oikos?!?!?!?!?!?" and he said "Oh, we started carrying this other product instead".  WHAT?!?!?!?!  I know I gave him the same look that my hubb gave me when I told him I had messed with his No-Bakes.  WHY would they stop carrying OIKOS?!?!?!?!  Its only the BEST YOGURT EVER!!!  I was seriously depressed for the rest of the trip.  It didn't help that my next item on the list was wonton wraps, which live on the dairy aisle just down from the Oikos.  When I got to their usual spot on the shelf there were none to be had.  I asked the same employee about wonton wraps and he said "yeah, I think that was another product that got bumped".  Ridiculous.  Not a wonton wrap to be seen in the entire store.   So, our grocery shopping trip today included three separate stores, Whole Foods, Harris Teeter (for oikos and wonton wraps) and Rebecca's Natural Foods (for dried pears, which are nearly impossible to find!!!).  Here's the loot: groceries-1 groceries-2 groceries-3 Yeah, this was a pricey trip.  Mainly because I had to stock up on some baking ingredients for the holidays and some specialty ingredients for BSI recipes I wanted to try out.  I don't have the energy to list all of the items so pictures will have to speak for themselves...  And I do have to give the nice employees at my Whole Foods credit.  When I went to Customer Service to fill out a form to get my Oikos back (yes, I did that), they offered to let me take a container of the new product that had replaced it to sample for free.  I thought that was mighty nice of them... groceries-4 I am intrigued...has anybody ever heard of  "icelandic style skyr" before?  This product had some amazing flavors, but I wanted to get the plain so I could do a true comparison to the Oikos I'm used to.  However, the Siggi's is a whopping $2.69 per 6 oz container, so even if I love it I won't be buying it.  I had a hard enough time paying $1.99 for Oikos, so $2.69 is out of the question! Oh, and this is what happens when you go to the grocery store(s) hungry: groceries-5 You buy ginger snaps from Whole Foods, apple chips from Harris Teeter and molasses clove cookies from Rebecca's.  All were amazing and satisfied the hubb's and my hunger in the car on the way home... Dinner:  I can only talk about part of the meal because the other part was a finalist in the BSI:Ginger contest this week.  I'm trying out several of the recipes being submitted so get them in ASAP so that I can try as many as possible!  :)  Tonight I made the best Egg Drop Soup ever.  I found this recipe so long ago that I can't even remember where I got it.  But trust me, it is SO GOOD.  If you like egg drop soup then you MUST try this recipe... Egg Drop Soup serves 2  Ingredients:
  • 4 cups chicken or veggie broth, divided
  • 3 quarter-size chunks of fresh ginger or 1/8 tsp ground ginger
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh scallions
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1-1/2 tbsp cornstarch
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 egg yolk
Steps:
  1. Reserve 3/4 cup of the broth, and pour the rest into a medium-size saucepan.  Stir in the salt, ginger and scallions and bring to a rolling boil.
  2. In a small bowl, stir together the remaining broth and the cornstarch until smooth.  Set aside.
  3. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and yolk together using a fork.  Drizzle the egg a little at a time from the fork into the boiling broth mixture.  Egg should cook immediately.   
  4. Once the eggs have been dropped, stir in the cornstarch mixture gradually into the soup is the desired consistency.
  5. If fresh ginger was used, remove the chunks before serving.
081206-d7 081206-d8 It is so easy, so fast and soooooo yummy!  I'll have more pictures tomorrow night showing my whole dinner. I also had a glass of vino. 081206-d1 Ok, its time for bed.  Don't forget to get your BSI recipe in!!!
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categories breakfast, dinner, product review
tags BSI, egg, kashi, soup, wine