I am not shy about my love of Cooking Light magazine. Their recipes are what got me started on my cooking journey. Not only are their recipes on the healthier side, but most are also great for weeknight meals. This recipe for Dijon Herb Crusted Salmon with Creamy Dill Sauce is no different.
Seafood in general is a great weeknight option because it tends to take less time to cook. If you haven’t noticed, I’m a big fan of seafood, particularly salmon; I have almost 40 recipes for salmon alone on this blog!
So when I spotted a new salmon recipe in my most recent Cooking Light, well, I had to make it.
One of my favorite parts of this blog is challenging myself to use new and different ingredients and/or new and different techniques. So when I was contacted to participate in CFE’s International Saltfish Blogger Recipe Challenge, I jumped at the chance.
So what exactly is saltfish? It is fish, typically cod, pollock, or other white fish cured with dry salt to preserve it. This method of preservation dates back centuries, as it helped preserve fish without refrigeration.
CFE International offers a number of brands of salt fish: Buena Ventura, Cristobal, BacalaRico, and Isla Brisa. For this challenge, I was sent some Isla Brisa Salted Alaska Pollock Fillets to use in a recipe. (You can find these brands of saltfish in your local Cousins, H-Mart, Jetro, Price Chopper, and Price Rite supermarkets.)
I decided to do a spin on Brandade (Whipped Salt Fish Spread), a salt fish spread popular in Mediterranean countries. It’s also known as Brandada in Spain, and Baccala Mantecato in Italy.
The spread is whipped salt fish, potatoes, olive oil, and cream with seasoning and is served with crusty bread. My version below adds in some roasted garlic, caramelized onions, and horseradish to add new layers of flavor.
You can never have too many weeknight meals, especially chicken recipes! For this dinner, I combined two Cooking Light recipes (Pesto Chicken with Blistered Tomatoes and Orzo and Herb Pilaf) to make one dinner, and served it with a simple salad on the side.
Any recipe that uses pesto is a winner in my book. This particular pesto uses spinach, basil, and parsley to deliver a more complex flavor.
NOTE: I was sent some blood oranges and cara cara oranges from The Limoneira Company to use in a recipe. All opinions are mine.
It’s pretty obvious that I love citrus, I use the juice and zest of lemons, limes, and oranges in most of my recipes, so I’m excited to share this recipe for Frozen Blood Orange Margaritas.
So when The Limoneira Company contacted me to help spread the word about their new offerings, I jumped at the chance. Limoneira is traditionally known for its lemons, but recently began expanding their orchards to include more specialty citrus, including Cara Cara and Blood Oranges.
Blood Oranges have a slightly less acidic taste than regular oranges, and their bright red color makes for some really beautiful dishes. I wanted to showcase their color, so I decided to make blood orange margaritas.
As much as I am trying to will it to be spring, it is still pretty cold in Philadelphia, so this version has a bit of cinnamon to add a bit of warmth to the flavor.
This recipe for Arepas Pabellón is inspired by a visit to an absolutely delicious Venezuelan restaurant. Last week, I checked out one of Philly’s newest restaurants: Puyero Venezuelan Flavor.
source: puyeroflavor.com
Located just off of South Street on S 4th, the restaurant serves Venezuelan street food including arepas, patacones and tequenos, plus yummy desserts like churros.
The 22-seat restaurant is vibrant and colorful, very welcoming. I enjoyed reading a selection of Venezuelan sayings that decorate one of the walls; my favorite: “Más hambre que piojo en peluche” or “I’m hungrier than a tick on a teddy bear.”
Owned by brothers Simon and Gil, and Gil’s wife Manuela, the restaurant has a very “homey” feel to it. The entire menu is available for lunch and dinner, with brunch options coming in the spring. You can also order delivery through Caviar (which I’ve totally already done. Hence the photos below, showing my delivery food).
While there, I tried quite a few menu items, but my favorites were the tequenos, white cheese wrapped in deep fried dough, and arepas pabellon, which is an arepa filled with shredded beef, black beans, fried sweet plantains, and white cheese.
I wanted to try to make Arepas Pabellón for myself at home. This recipe can be made ahead of time, reheated, and assembled when ready to eat.
Shredded Beef:
garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup crushed tomatoes
4
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tablespoon hot sauce
Arepas:
1 1/2 cups masarepa (a type of cornmeal found in the international section of most supermarkets. white or yellow is fine)
Chelo Kebab or Chelow Kebab is a Persian dish made with steamed saffron rice and kebabs. This version parboils the rice which then browns in a large pan, covered with a cloth, and steams with a little bit of butter to deliver a crispy, golden crust.
The lamb kebobs are marinated for hours to lock in flavor. The result is probably one of my favorite dishes I’ve made recently; it’s well worth the morning prep to have an amazing dinner!
Ingredients:
Kebab:
2 onions, very finely chopped (or pureed)
2 garlic cloves, minced (or pureed)
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 pounds boneless leg of lamb, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
We’ve been pretty lucky weather-wise in Philadelphia recently, but are back to it feeling like actual winter. Blah.
I’ve been dreaming of warmer weather (and warmer weather recipes)! I must not be the only one, because the Florida Keys & Key West are hosting an awesome event tomorrow night to help the Philadelphia area dream of the sun and sand.
Tomorrow, 24 of Philadelphia’s top food writers and influencers are getting behind the stove to face off “Iron Chef style” at Walnut Hill College. The influencer who creates the best Keys-inspired dishes within the time limit will win a trip to the Florida Keys and be named an honorary Keys Chef. Guest judges from the Keys will include Chef Bobby Stoky and Philadelphia’s favorite son Pat Croce. The sold out event includes an evening of food, cocktails, fun and friendly competition.
How awesome would it be to win a trip to the Keys? The Florida Keys are a string of tropical islands off the southern tip of Florida and are known for their awesome fishing, snorkeling and scuba diving. In fact, the Keys have the only living coral barrier reef in the U.S., not to mention awesome food and drink. The most well known dish from the Florida Keys is Key Lime Pie.
I was bummed that I wouldn’t be able to attend, but still wanted to get in on the fun, so I decided to make a spin on Key Lime Pie — Key Lime Pie Cupcakes!
Key Limes are smaller than “normal” limes and are a bit more tart. These little guys don’t give off a lot of juice though, so it takes quite a bit to make this recipe. Key Lime Pie is made with key lime juice, egg yolks, and sweetened condensed milk to make a smooth, tangy pie filling with a graham cracker crust.
Ingredients:
Crust:
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
My husband and I (obviously) love trying new and different recipes. Living in Philadelphia, we are lucky enough to have a pretty solid restaurant scene, covering quite a range of cuisines. So my interest is always peaked by a recipe I haven’t tried before that comes from a different part of the world and I can make at home, like this recipe for Cape Malay Curry.
Cape Malay Curry comes from Cape Town, South Africa. Beginning in the 17th century, slaves from Indonesia and Southeast Asia were brought to work the farms of Cape Town, South Africa. Known as Cape Malays, the name “Cape” is derived from the Cape of Good Hope and “Malay” refers to the community’s Indonesian, Malaysian and Singaporean ancestry.
The Cape Malay community has had a lot of influence on South African foods, particularly with the introduction of certain spices, hot sauces, and curries. This chunky beef stew is a sweet and savory curry dish, which reminds me a bit of my husband’s favorite meal, Slow Cooker Chicken and Chickpea Tagine, so I had a feeling we’d like this recipe.
This is definitely a weekend meal; it simmers on the stove for 2 hours. However, it could easily be multiplied to make a large batch and frozen for future meals.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 teaspoons ground turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons canola oil
2 cups chopped onion
1 1/2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
2 bay leaves
1 garlic clove, minced
1 pound beef stew meat, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 1/4 cups less-sodium beef broth
1 cup chopped green bell pepper (about 1 medium)
1/3 cup chopped dried apricots
1/3 cup apricot spread
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1/4 cup low-fat buttermilk (or coconut milk to make dairy-free)
This blog post has been compensated by Borden® Cheese. All opinions are mine alone. #BordenCheeseLove #CollectiveBias #Ad
As I’ve mentioned in the past, pasta night is a very important night in my house. Both my husband and I come from (partially) Italian backgrounds, so pasta once a week is basically a necessity.
There is something about pasta dishes that is so comforting. It’s the meal that my grandmother would make for me every time my sister and I visited, and it’s the meal we most look forward to when visiting my husband’s parents. Pasta dishes always feel like they are cooked with love, don’t they?
I also have quite a love of cheese, so baked ziti ranks pretty high on my list of favorite pasta dishes. Pasta + love + cheese = the perfect comfort food!
Food, especially cheesy food is one of the best ways to show love for those who are special to you. This weekend, I made a super cheesy, meaty, baked ziti for my husband and me, with the help of Borden® Cheese. This casserole-style dish is the perfect way to know you’ll have leftovers for later in the week, or to feed a large (or hungry) family!
This baked ziti is tossed in a ricotta-tomato mixture with ground meat. It is then topped with Borden® Cheese Mozzarella Shreds, which results in a wonderfully gooey, cheesy dish.
I found my Borden® Cheese at my local Acme, but check out this store locator to find Borden® Cheese near you. Borden® Cheese has a bunch of tasty cheese options, including Borden® Cheese Finely Shredded Four Cheese Mexican Shreds that I also picked up to use for tacos later in the week.
Note: I was sent some products from Bob’s Red Mill, including Orca Beans. All opinions are my own.
There are some ingredients that catch your eye, and you just know you have to use them in a recipe. Orca beans are definitely one of those ingredients. Luckily, Bob’s Red Mill sent me a bag of their orca beans, which are grown in Moses Lake, Washington exclusively for the company.
Orca beans, also known as calypso beans, are black and white splattered, and keep their cool coloring even after cooking. This heirloom bean is high in fiber and iron, and work great in any recipe where you would normally use beans.
But. They are so darn pretty I wanted to let them stand out by using them in a very colorful dish.
Cowboy Caviar seemed like the perfect way to show the orca beans off. Typically made with black eyed peas, cowboy caviar is a bean salad / salsa that is great as a party app, on top of grilled chicken, or just on it’s own!
You can never have too many festive cocktails to help you celebrate this time of year, don’t you think, especially one that uses in season fruit, like these Pomegranate Margaritas!
This recipe for Pomegranate Margaritas makes a beautiful drink, perfect for small gatherings!
I made my own juice for this recipe (instructions below) but you can just purchase pomegranate juice at your grocery store to make this a super quick recipe.
I still have plenty of pomegranate recipes for you, which is great timing because they are in season right now! Here’s a recipe for Slow Cooker Pomegranate Baby Back Ribs!
This recipe for Pomegranate Baby Back Ribs is based on a Martha Stewart Recipe for short ribs. My husband loves baby back ribs, so I decided to adapt the recipe to use them instead. And because I love using my slow cooker, I made it a slow cooker recipe!
Ingredients:
5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 lb baby back ribs, cut to fit in your slow cooker
Note: I was sent a holiday cookie decorating gift basket from De’Longhi, and one to give away. All opinions are mine alone.
With the holidays upon us, it’s always nice to find extra ways to give back. This season, De’Longhi, an international leader in household appliances, is helping to give back by donating 10% of its delonghi.us sales site-wide until December 20th to Cookies for Kids’ Cancer. Cookies for Kids’ Cancer is a national non-profit organization dedicated to funding research for safer, more effective treatments for pediatric cancer, the #1 disease killer of children in the U.S. For the first time, CookiesforKids’ Cancer has launched a Challenge Gift Campaign where all of the money raised from now to December 31st will be matched, dollar for dollar, up to $250K. Visit Delonghi.us to purchase products and see all of the great holiday gift ideas De’Longhi has to offer. Visit Cookiesforkidscancer.org for more information on ways to donate!
To help spread the word, De’Longhi sent me a holiday cookie decorated gift basket to help make some yummy cookies which included The Cookies for Kids’ Cancer Cookbook.
The gift box includes:
set of holiday cookie cutters
3-pack of holiday colored icing
pair of cappuccino glasses
coffee
Cookies for Kids’ Cancer: Best Bake Sale Cookbook
I decided to make the cookie that started it all, a recipe for Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies that was developed for Cookies for Kids’ Cancer’s first bake sale.
This recipe is legit. They are the perfect balance of chewy, buttery, and chocolately. It’s no wonder the recipe is so popular!
De’Longhi was generous enough to also make a holiday cookie decorating gift basket for an I Can Cook That reader! More details on the giveaway after the recipe.
Ingredients:
1/2 lb (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
