FMW Foodies

Smores Cake!

2008-06-16T16:21:00.000-07:00

So father's day hit me a little by surprise this year, and since I had a cake mix around the house, I decided to bake a cake! But of course, I can never just make a normal cake, so...
Introducing- the Smores Cake!

It was delicious.

Ingredients:
-1 box yellow cake mix + eggs and oil (or whatever your mix calls for)
-marshmallows
-chocolate bars
-graham crackers
-chocolate frosting

Directions:
-Make yellow cake according to directions on box. Bake batter in two 8 inch round cake pans. Take one cake out of the pan and let cool.
-Take the second cake out of the cake pan, and place it on a baking sheet. Place sliced marshmallows and chocolate all over the top. Place it in the oven on broil- and broil your toppings until they look nice and toasty like a smore.

-Take the 2nd cake out of the oven and let it cool. When cooled, gently move the cake to whatever tray/dish you want to present it on. A giant grilling spatula works well for this. Place the 1st cake on top of the second cake.
-Frost the layered cake.
-Crush graham crackers into small pieces, and sprinkle over the top of your cake. You're finished!

Love, Nicole B.

Super easy chinese tofu! (or whatever your meat preference)

2008-04-24T11:04:00.000-07:00

We've been neglecting this poor blog...

So Bird's Eye, and several other vegetable companies have made it super easy to whip up a tasty, and healthy Chinese meal!

Bird's Eye Steamable brown rice
Bird's Eye Steamable Asian vegetable medley
I usually use Teriyaki sauce mixed with a little honey (I like sweet teriyaki), but I've also used Sweet and Sour sauce
Extra Firm tofu
Sesame oil

First chop up your tofu into little cubes.
Sautee them in a little sesame oil until the edges are a golden brown (you can use any oil, I just like sesame for chinese dishes)
Steam your veggies in the microwave.
Mix veggies with tofu, and pour in your sauce. Heat together in a pan.
Steam your rice in the microwave.

Voila!

You could do the same thing with any other meat- chicken and shrimp would probably work out really well!

Love,
Nicole B

The LB Orgasm

2008-01-20T13:30:00.000-08:00

by bryn

Laura and I "invented" this. And it is awesome.

*1 packet Nestle butterfinger hot chocolate (yes, it must be Butterfinger!)
*1 cup hot H2O.
*1 shot (in theory... in practice more like 2 or 3) Buttershot or butterscotch schnapps.

Margaret's Swiss Cheese Fondue

2008-01-20T12:48:00.000-08:00

Margaret's Swiss Cheese Fondue

*1/2 pound emmentaler, grated

*1/2 pound appenzeller, grated

*1/2 pound gruyere, grated

*1 cup of white wine, plus extra

*about half a shot of Kirsch (I believe they sell bottles of this. I had gotten a bunch of little bottles in Germany so I just use though. They're about half a shots worth. Whatever variety works fine).

*1 onion, chopped

*3 garlic cloves

*3 tablespoons of rosemary

*2 tablespoons of olive oil

*loaf of bread, baked (I usually use rosemary rolls, but something like ciabatta would work as well)

*pepper to taste

*Pre-heat oven to 350. Once heated, put the bread in the oven for maybe 5-10 minutes (or however long you think it'll take to heat up the bread and make it hot and crispy). Cut into small cubes once cooled.

*Start by heating the olive oil in a medium sized saucer. Keep the heat low the entire time. Once heated, add the onions and garlic. Saute for a few minutes, then gradually add the white wine. Bring to a slight boil and then start gradually adding the cheese. Add extra wine if needed. I usually whisk it together, it mixes better that way. Once mixed together, continue stirring and add the kirsch, rosemary and pepper. Mix together for a couple minutes, then transfer to the fondue pot.

Cod with Tomato Ginger Sauce

2008-01-20T10:56:00.000-08:00

by bryn

1 Tablespoon cooking oil
1 onion, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1 3/4 cups canned crushed tomatoes in thick puree
*I've found chopping up a real tomato and using Trader Joe's Tomato and Roasted Red Pepper soup tastes a lot better than canned stuff.
3/4 teaspoon salt
4 (8 oz.) fillets cod or scrod
1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped cilantro or parsley

In a large deep frying pan, heat the oil over moderately low heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to soften (about 3 minutes). Stir in the ginger; cook, stirring, 2 minutes longer. Add the tomatoes and salt; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and cook, covered, for 10 minutes.
Add the fillets and black pepper to pan and cook, covered, until just done (10 or 12 minutes longer for 1-inch thick fillets). Stir the cilantro or parsley into the sauce.
Serve the fish topped with the sauce.

Makes 4 servings.

I love cod and this is incredibly easy to make. If cod or scrod isn't available, or you've found it to be ridculously overpriced (I'm looking at you, Chicago... no higher than $6.99/lb!), any light-tasting whitefish should do. Atlantic and Alaskan-caught cod work best, avoid it if the fish was shipped in from China (will taste unnaturally salty and fishy).

Bryn's Lentil Curry Stew

2008-01-20T10:34:00.000-08:00

1/2 of a spanish onion, diced
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 medium red potato
1 1/2 cups lentils, rinsed
6 cups H2O
4 vegetarian bouillon cubes
1 piece from the brick of a Java Curry block, or 2-3 bricks from other brands
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
2 cups carrots, thinly sliced

a.) In a large soup pot, cook onions in hot oil until tender.
b.) Add H2O, lentils, bouillon cubes, rosemary, potato, and carrots. Cook for approximately 40-45 minutes, or until lentils and carrots are tender.
c.) Add curry bricks approximately 20-30 minutes in and reduce heat. Curry will thicken the stew.
d.) Allow to simmer, no longer than 20-30 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

Very savory and great on a cold day. The lentils and potato balance out the curry so nicely even people who don't like spicy food will enjoy the stew. Rosemary's the absolute key, so don't skimp. It brings everything together and gives you that fuzzy-warm-full-naptime feel.

Chocolate Covered Cherry Cookies

2008-01-20T10:18:00.000-08:00

by bryn's Mother

Cookies:
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
48 maraschino cherries

Topping:
6 oz. chocolate chips
1/2 cup condensed milk
4 teaspoons cherry juice (from the maraschinos)

Dough:
Stir together flour, cocoa, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
Beat butter and sugar until fluffy.
Add egg and vanilla.
Gradually add dry ingredients. The batter gets pretty stiff, so by this time I usually discard the beater and knead the dough with my hands. How so much dough ends up in my mouth I've no idea.
Shape into 1" balls then press your thumb in the center and put in a cherry.
Cover each cherry with 1/2 teaspoon of chocolate (or whatever looks good).

Topping:
Melt chocolate.
Add condensed milk and cherry juice.
If the mixture seems too thick, add more cherry juice.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

*soy vanilla yogurt and margarine may be substituted for condensed milk and butter, respectively, if you want a non-dairy version of the cookie.

Nicole B's Tempeh Wraps!

2008-01-19T11:09:00.000-08:00

This is inspired by, but a little different than the tempeh wraps at Seva. These are super easy to make, and sooo good.

1 Package of Tempeh- sliced into thin strips, and sauteed with olive oil and soy sauce. (1 package will make between 4-6 wraps, depending on how much tempeh you like in your wrap)
Hummus
Tortillas (to make it healthier and more flavorful, try whole wheat or spinach tortillas!)
Pepperjack cheese- sliced thin
Tomato slices
Lettuce
Sprouts (any kind you like)

Spread the Hummus down the middle of the tortilla, layer the rest of your ingredients, and wrap it up like a burrito! Seriously, this is sooo good.
-Nicole B

And... a lovely photo of some tempeh:

Dirty Cunt Punch

2008-01-18T14:57:00.000-08:00

The title of this Drink Recipe originated because the group of hardcore bitches that i used to run with recieved endearing title of "The Dirty Kendall Cunts." I might also add that the original recipe included Jagermeister (which did infact make it look dirty, as well as make it taste nasty) But the revised Version is actually quite good.

-JACZ

Dirty Cunt Punch

1 Bottle Pineapple Juice

1 Bottle Pink Champagne (You could really use any kind you want, I recommend pink)

1/2 Pint Vodka (or more, if you're a lush! cherry or raspberry vodka add a nice fruity twist)

apx. 1 Jigger Whiskey or Dark Rum (yes, you could also add more of this as well)

1 Jigger Grenadine

(if you want to make it a little less Booze-y, try mixing in some cherry 7-up)

Mix in a Punch Bowl w/ Plenty of Ice.

Garnish w/ a dusting of cocoa powder, and some cherries if desired.

Nicole's Chicken Veggie Pasta Salad

2008-01-18T11:05:00.000-08:00

Nicole's Chicken Veggie Pasta Salad
This one's super easy and I usually make enough so I can have it for lunch all week. I think altogether, the ingredients cost about $10. I'm not sure how original it is, but it's definately a favorite of mine:)

* Chicken breasts - about 3 (turkey or tufu would work really well too)
* 1/2 red onion
* Broccli (approx. 3 large stalks of broccili)
* Tomato (1 large ripe one)
* Paul Numan's oil and vinegar dressing (or if you want to throw in your own oil and vinegar)
* 1 small box whole wheat pasta
* garlic (to taste)
* basil (to taste)

Start oven at 350 degrees and chop all veggies while it warms up. Once the oven is ready place 3 unfrozen chicken breasts in small glass pan with olive oil and vinegar dressing poured over top for flavor (bake for approximately 1 hour).

Add all veggies in bowl, boil pasta (chill cooked pasta before adding to bowl of veggies). Add basil and garlic to bowl (a pinch of each). Cut chicken into small pieces and cool.

Once chicken is cooled, add all to bowl with oil and vinegar.

Feeds approx. 12
Dish is served best with white wine

Happy eating!

Margaret's Mediterranean White Fish

2008-01-18T09:33:00.000-08:00

Margaret's Mediterranean White Fish
This I actually made just last night and it turned out really good. Chris said it reminded him of a similar Maltese dish (which he made once with orange roughy... it turned out horribly wrong and way too salty!).

*2 Fillets of any type of white fish (I used catfish which went great with it... I'm not 100% sure that you can even find them in the Mediterranean or not, but whatev. It worked!)
*1/2 cup of red wine (I used a Marquis de Riscal, which worked nicely. But whatever kind of red you have sitting around works too)
*1 small onion, chopped
*1 cup of black olives, sliced
*2-3 tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
*2-3 tablespoons of capers
*2 cups of fresh spinach
*3 cups of salad greens
**Serves 2

Start by heating the olive oil in your skillet. Once it's heated, place the fish fillets in the skillet. Cook thoroughly. Once fillets have been cooked, place on a plate and cover with tin foil to keep warm.

In the same skillet, there should be some olive oil left over, saute the chopped onion for a couple of minutes. Once browned, add the wine. Cook together for about two minutes. Add the olives and capers and cook for about three minutes. Finally, add the spinach and cook until wilted, about three minutes.

Once the sauce is all cooked together, turn the heat off. Place the salad greens on two plates and place the fish on top of the greens. Spoon the sauce over the fish. The dish is served best with red wine.

Happy Eating!

Margaret's Pasta Puttanesca

2008-01-18T07:09:00.000-08:00

So this is probably one of my favorite dishes to make, just because it's so easy and we always have this stuff lying around. I had heard that this dish originated in Italy (obviously) and was just kind of a mixture of stuff that people had sitting around in their kitchens (since most of the ingredients are big in th Meditteranean anyhow, it makes sense). Wikipedia offers this story though, which I think is much better!: "The name originated in Naples after the local prostitutes, Pasta alla Puttanesca meaning "Pasta in the way a whore would make it". The reason why the dish gained such a name is debated. One possibility is that the name is a reference to the sauce's hot, spicy flavour and pungent smell. Another is that the dish was offered to prospective customers at a low price to entice them into a brothel."

Margaret's Pasta Puttanesca:
*Olive Oil
*1 Red Onion, chopped
*2-3 Garlic Cloves (depending on your taste), minced
*Basil (fresh is always good, but how many people actually have fresh laying around at all times? Trader Joes has frozen-fresh basil in mini ice cube form which is great. Dried basil always works in a
*About 5 Anchovie filets (I usually chop these up)
*One can of chopped tomatoes (I usually get one of the big cans. They're rather inexpensive and you'll definitely be left with lunch for the next day!)
*Olives (black, green and mostly kalamata). I honestly don't really measure out, I just kind of put in what I need.
*Capers
*Hot Peppers can be used to add a kick to it and sometimes are. It's of course optional depending on taste (I usually don't add anything like this to mine).
*Whole Wheat Spaghetti (you can also use whatever kind of pasta you like... though it's traditionally served with spaghetti)

Drizzle about 2 tbsp of olive oil (EVOO!) into a skillet. Once the oil is heated, add the onions and garlic. Saute for a couple minutes. I usually like to add some basil half way through. Once the garlic and onions have browned a little, add the anchovies and olives. Once those have sauteed nicely for a couple minutes, add the tomatoes. I usually like to get the chopped tomatoes because it makes the sauce really thick. If you get the whole canned tomatoes, just chop them up before putting them in. Once that is all mixed together, add the capers (however many you'd like... usually a couple of tablespoons).

While everything is simmering together, get your water up to a boil. Some people like to salt the water before putting the pasta in. That's totally up to you. Once your water comes to a boil, go ahead and put in the desired amount of pasta (I'm sure we've all done this before). Once the pasta has boiled, drain it (obviously). I usually try to save a little bit of the pasta water just in case.

Mix the pasta in with the sauce in the skillet. I usually like to add some extra basil, and as always, salt and pepper to taste. If the sauce is too thick, add some of the pasta water.

This dish can be served with garlic bread and some pecorino or parmesean cheese grated on top.

Happy Eating!

Welcome!

2008-01-16T13:57:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the first installment of the FMW Foodies. Nicole and I (Margaret) have started this blog in order to share our recipes with one another (since we all love food so much and all seem to love cooking as well)! If you're interested in posting something on the site, please let us know and we will give you the information to do so.

Happy Eating!!