What if I told you that I took a Channel design and reworked it just a little bit to fit my shoulders and my smaller waist. Instead of a white belt, I added in a red belt, and suddenly people that like the original design took a second and third look.

That will never happen because I flunked sewing in high school. I got a 67 for a very awful dress using a Sear’s pattern. It was a white, sleeveless shift that burns in my memory because I am the only person in the classroom who was so sewing challenged that I kept ripping out stay stitching. You sewers just laughed out loud didn’t you. Stay stitching is just stitching around the cut pattern, so that threads do not pull. It gets cut off in the end and does not matter. I actually got a zipper in the dress and even wore it out in public once just to salute my own effort. Years later, I purchased a fairly decent sewing machine and had such a hard time threading it, I gave it away unused!

In my own defense I custom made all the draperies in my home, even the ten feet tall ones with lining. No one knows I glued everything together and used that stitching magic. I found a way to get what I want in spite of deficiencies.

The moral of my story is that there is no Channel dress, but there is a designer cookie from Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bakery cookbook, sitting in a pretty dish with just a small enough adjustment to make it my own. I’ve been lucky enough to eat  at the Bouchon bakery  and the Bouchon Restaurant in Napa, so this book is most assuredly on my Christmas wish list. I’ve read nothing but rave reviews of this cookbook and I’m ordering one today. One thing I already know is that Thomas Keller says to throw your measuring cups away and use a food scale, which is more accurate and takes one of the many finicky variables out of baking.

The recipe is fabulous. It’s the right texture, with a crispy outside and a chewy inside. Instead of a mixture of two kind of raisins, I used golden raisins and the most wonderful dried bing cherries I’ve ever tasted, purchased at Costco.  They are so large, they have to be chopped up. They are so sweet, you can cut back on the sugar in the cookies, something I tend to do anyway.

These are my go to oatmeal cookie forever. I saw it the recipe at Eva Bakes. I’m going to tell you right now, go ahead and make a double batch. You can freeze the dough or freeze the cookies, but it probably won’t come to that. You can do what my husband likes to do and add chocolate chips or do what I love to do and add a little bacon.

Print

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, Crispy, Chewy Perfection

The best oatmeal cookie adapted from Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bakery Cookbook, using golden raisins and dried cranberries.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 18 minutes minutes

Total Time 38 minutes minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup + 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour / 144 grams
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon / 7 grams
• 1-1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1-1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 cup + 3 1/2 tablespoons lightly packed light brown sugar / 140 grams for original recipe
• 1/4 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar / 69 grams
• 11 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature / 155 grams
• 1 egg / 62 grams
• 1-1/4 tsp vanilla paste you can use pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups old-fashioned oats do not use instant / 155 grams
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 1/2 cup chopped cherries or cranberries mix the fruit to your preference to add up to 156 grams

Instructions

Dry Ingredients

• Whisk together cinnamon, baking soda, salt flour in a bowl. Set aside.

Wet Ingredients

• Cream butter at medium speed.
• Add in both sugars and mix on medium for 3-4 minutes. See notes.
• Add egg.
• Add vanilla paste or extract.
• Add dry ingredients a little at a time.
• Add in raisins and dried cherries.
• Roll into even sized cookies (about 31 grams).
• Cook for 15 to 18 minutes (check at 15) in oven of 325 degrees. Cool completely.
• You can freeze these cookies. Let them defrost In one layer at room temperature.

The post Dried Cherry Oatmeal Cookies appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

How did brussels sprouts become the major green star of Thanksgiving dinner? Possibly, because the season for them starts in the Fall, but did you know it goes all the way to Spring?

However this came to be, I’m glad it’s Autumn, because I am like so many of the converts that used to hate them and now love them. It was very common for me to say, “I’ll eat anything except brussels sprouts.” If you are still saying that, it probably means you had them overcooked, which released that awful sulfur smell that tarnishes a food to a bad memory. That’s so unfair to the glorious brussels sprout.

The secret is chemistry. Do not overcook. This means do not boil. Brussels sprouts really are a vegetable best prepared roasted and adorned with any number of accessories, such as nuts, fruit and perhaps even some pecorino cheese. Brussels love an acid splash of citrus or even vinegar, which will do wonders to brighten up the slight note of bitterness.

But don’t try too hard because they can dance alone as long as there is olive oil and sea salt.  I posted this recipe for Brussels sprouts made with apples and cashews that still remains a family favorite. I continue to get emails telling me how that post changed their Brussels sprouts life.

This dish will dress your thanksgiving table up with color and texture and convert anyone still hanging onto old overcooked, stinky, mushy memories.

Recipe for Brussels Sprouts with Toasted Almonds, Dried Cherries
I like to roast mine in a cast iron pan and take them out a few minutes early and let them continue to cook and stay warm.

Tips for Cooking Brussels Sprouts

• Cut off the stalk, trim ends and cut in half.
• Try to keep them same size. Some will have to be cut into quarters.
• Use a flavored olive oil or flavored vinegar if you have one to kick up the flavor. Lemon or Orange zest works too.
• Add dried cranberries in last minute of baking.
• Add nuts at the last four minutes of baking.
• Don’t forget to season with salt.
• Loose leaves will happen. Throw them in in the last four minutes with the nuts.

Tell me are you brussels sprouts convert? If not, I dare you to take the plunge. This recipe or any of the recipes below from other noteworthy bloggers might help change your mind.

More Brussels Sprouts Recipes from Spinach Tiger

Print

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with, Almonds, Dried Cherries, Blood Orange Olive Oil

A perfect holiday side dish that will turn anyone into a brussels sprouts lover, roasted with almonds, dried cherries and nuts.

Servings 6

Ingredients

• 1 pound of brussels sprouts
• blood orange olive oil or use zest below and a squeeze of orange
• zest of half of small orange
• 1 tablespoon dried cherries can use cranberries
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds
• splash champagne vinegar or balsamic vinegar

Instructions

• Cut off bottom core of brussels sprouts and rinse thoroughly in cold water.
• If brussels sprouts are small and of the same size, score at opened end with an x. If you purchased on the stalk and sizes vary, cut in half or quarters to attain an even size for roasting. Toss in olive oil. If using unflavored olive oil, see note).
• Season with salt and roast in oven at 375 degrees on flat baking sheet or a cast iron pan for 5 minutes.
• Turn and add in almonds and dried cranberries and bake for another 4 minutes to 6 minutes.
• Remove from oven and add a splash of champagne vinegar and toss.
• Season with salt and pepper.

Notes

If you don’t have a blood orange olive oil, add some orange zest to your olive oil and allow to sit for 30 minutes. Add in a squeeze of juice over the brussels sprouts once you have tossed them in olive oil.

The post Roasted Brussels Sprouts with, Almonds, Dried Cherries, Blood Orange Olive Oil appeared first on Spinach Tiger.

The first food I ever cooked for a crowd without anyone’s help was picnic food when I was 15. I Back in those times, picnic food meant fried chicken and potato salad, both of which I was a master at. But, I haven’t made or eaten either in many years, somehow losing my taste for those heavier choices and casting mayonnaise salad dressings aside for any outdoor gathering.

But, quite by accident, I discovered better more “spinach tiger” picnic food.

A few weeks ago, I made my first chicken roulade taking inspiration from rainbow chard. We didn’t get to eat it until the next day because I needed pictures. And, we ate it cold. And, we loved it. A week later, I made it again, with the plan of eating on the deck with a bottle of wine, fell apart, as inside our crazy life, we forgot to eat dinner and the above platter sat out for almost three hours. And, we discovered it was just as good at room temperature.

Suddenly fireworks went off and I immediately envisioned a sunny day, a coolish breeze and a picnic. I live in a picnic neighborhood, landscaped amidst the Tennessee hills. Our subdivision is surrounded by local farms, historic property that is everything you envision when you think of the romance of Tennessee. We can walk to trails or picnic areas that are designed to capture the landscape. Even the Olympic-sized pool is placed in such a setting as too look like a country club, surrounded by a horse farm, a blueberry farm and a local cow ranch.

I realize it’s a lot more fitting for that good old fashioned southern fried chicken picnic, but the idea of a lighter chicken roulade with grape tomatoes is a picnic I could enjoy a little more often. I’m envisioning a loaf of french bread, fresh berries and some good company.

In the past, roulade never appealed to me. I can only remember eating it at ladies lunches and it never gave me a “culinary moment.” Usually, rubbery, boring and seemingly cheap. I never recall “taste.”

This is different. Firstly, you could eat the stuffing all by itself as a vegetable. And, you probably will steal several spoonfuls while preparing.

Swiss chard never gets slimy the way spinach can, and never overpowers its seasonings. I used onion, pine nuts, dried cherries and berries, balsamic vinegar, and pecorino romano cheese. Usually, On occasion, I’ll add pancetta or bacon. It’s a most flavorful and harmonious combination of ingredients.

Dried cherries, berries, from the Cherry Stop begin are a sweet and tart addition to stuffing.

This recipes will give you future options.

The swiss chard mixture can be:
Served as a side vegetable.
Stuffed into a ravioli.
Mixed with rice.
Served with pasta.
Stuffed into mushrooms.
Further flavored with crumbled bacon, diced pancetta

The chicken roulade can be:
Served over risotto or mashed potatoes.
Served hot or cold.
Served in a roll.
Served in a salad.
Served including a slice of prosciutto, fontina cheese or swiss.

Print

Spring Picnic: Chicken Roulade with Rainbow Chard

Chicken roulade, eaten hot or cold is perfect for a light supper for a spring picnic.

Servings 4

Ingredients

• 2 chicken breasts flattened
• olive oil for browning meat
• flour
• 1/2 large onion or 2 shallots, finely diced
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 2 teaspoons pine nuts
• 2 teaspoons dried fruit golden raisins, cranberries, apricots, dried cherries
• 1 bunch rainbow chard can use optional swiss chard or spinach
• 2 t pecorino romano cheese freshly grated
• Sea salt black pepper to taste
• String

Instructions

• Prepare the chicken breasts by placing inside a large ziplock bag. Using a cast iron pan (or similar) flatten. Meat pounders tend to desecrate meat and make unseemly marks. Flat pots or pans work better and don’t harm the raw meat.
• Salt and set aside. This will give the chicken breasts time to reduce temperature, which will help them cook in the center more easily.
• Prepare the swiss chard mixture: Wash and dry thoroughly. Remove any discolored parts. Trim the ends. Cut the stalks and separate. These need a finer dice than the leaves.
• Cut leaves into small pieces.
• Soak dried fruit in a little water.
• Heat onion and oil in pan at same time. Once onion is softened almost golden, add garlic and cook for about a minute, being careful not burn garlic.
• Add pine nuts to toast, stirring pan.
• Drain dried fruit, dice and add to pan. Add in stalks and cook for a few minutes until softened.
• Add in leaves, continuing stirring pan, incorporating all ingredients. Turn pan off. Swiss chard will continue to cook. Do not overcook. Allow to to come to room temperature.
• Assembly: Sprinkle cheese on chicken breasts. Spread mixture on, careful to not overdo. Roll up as tightly as you can and tie each with three strings. One in middle and one at each end.
• Roll in flour. Pan fry until browned, turning to each side. Finish in hot oven of 375 for 8-10 minutes.
• If eating hot, allow chicken to rest at least 10 minutes before slicing. I used a cast pan to do all parts of the dish. This makes it easy to go from stove top to oven.

The post Spring Picnic: Chicken Roulade with Rainbow Chard appeared first on Spinach Tiger.