Make pudding with almond milk!

You may have noticed a small notice on the back of instant pudding boxes warning users that instant pudding can't be made with soy milk. The internet tells me this is because something in cow's milk it what causes the pudding to set up.

I unfortunately noticed this little moniker after coming home from the grocery store, intending to use almond milk to make pudding for dirt cake. There was no way I was going back to the store.

Enter cornstarch.

You can make instant pudding (I made butterscotch) with almond milk! This is what you need:

1 (small) package instant pudding
2 tsp corn starch
1 1/2 cups almond milk

Mix the corn starch in with the pudding mix and slowly add the almond milk while whisking all of the ingredients together. Allow the pudding to chill.

Update: this has become one of my most popular posts of all time. Tell me, what are you making with your pudding/almond milk? How is it working for you?


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Scallops in white wine sauce

My infatuation with Asian cooking did not seem to last long, I'm back to the Mediterranean! Though, I am still planning on giving Pad See Ewe at try (even though everything I've read says you need a commercial gas oven to make it taste right) and something with peanut sauce.

Anyway I randomly bought some bay scallops (ie the little ones) a while back. In the US it seems we eat a lot more jumbo scallops, normally grilled, but in Italy they would show up in the delicious seafood medley pasta dishes with very light wine or butter sauces. Heaven? Heaven.

I thought, I could do this. I make mussels in a wine sauce, why not some scallops? Earlier that day, I was looking at my garden, specifically the rosemary and it seemed like it might just go nicely in this sauce. Plus the parsley at the grocery store was looking pretty sad that day.

Ingredients
Bay scallops, 8 oz
linguini, 6oz (~1/2 box)
2 cups white wine
5 Tb of butter, separated
3-4 sprigs of fresh rosemary (remove leaves from stem)
1 tomato, diced
Garlic, to taste
Salt to taste

Heat 1 Tb of butter in a large sauce pan on med-high to high heat. When the pan is hot and the butter melted add the scallops and sear for 1-2 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside.

In the same pan, add the remaining butter and the wine. Stir occasionally until the butter is melted and add the tomatoes, rosemary leaves, garlic and salt. Simmer on med-high heat and reduce the sauce for about 20-25 minutes or until it reaches desired thickness (should reduce by about half).

When the sauce has been reducing for approximately 10 minutes, begin preparing pasta according to the package directions (ie start boiling water around this time or the sauce won't be reduced enough). When the pasta is al dente, drain it and put in the sauce pan with the wine sauce and add the scallops. Toss the pasta and scallops in the sauce and allow to simmer for 1-3 minutes (this will give the pasta a nice flavor and heat up the scallops a bit). Serve immediately. Makes two adult-sized servings.

In the photo you will notice I had a bunch of scallops, I actually made this with a 16 oz package and the ratio was just too much, so I scaled it back.

Also, you don't want leftovers from this dish - it just won't be that great the second time around, mostly because re-heating will over cook your scallops and make them chewy. They cook very quickly - don't over do it, really a minute or maximum two is plenty.

One final note, this sauce is a basic wine-butter sauce and almost exactly like this one for mussels - try it on both pasta and mussels and expand your repertoire!

Enjoy!

Urban Gardening: Update!

I'm just getting started getting things planted in the garden. I was surprised how late the last frost in DC is! I also did not want to plant things right before I left on vacation, so I had to wait. It was torturous passing all the plants Home Depot had on display every day on my way to and from work.

But now, I have plants. And a growing awareness that I don't have a clue what I'm doing. I felt a tiny bit overwhelmed surveying all of my options for pot sizes, tomato varieties and potting soil.

By the way does anyone know if there is a USDA standard for organic potting soil? I could not figure out if there actually was a difference looking at the package. I'd rather use something the compost-derived nitrogen than petroleum. Please let me know if you have any information.

I decided to start small, I bought two pots which I hope are big enough (the next size up looked huge) a cherry tomato plant and a red pepper plant. I felt that I was most interested in these vegetables and they would take longest to fruit, though why I thought that I have no idea. I took my plants, soil and pots home and set to work. I gingerly placed my plants in there new homes on top of lots of soil. I sent my sister, an avid gardener, a photo of my accomplishment.

Later, when her and I were talking on the phone, she basically told me I screwed it all up. Apparently, I should've broken up the roots when replanting them, so that they take better to their new home. Apparently, there are also varieties of tomatoes bred for growing well in pots and I should have looked for one of those. Oh well, good thing I only started with two plants. Hopefully, they will still turn out alright.

Urban gardening

One thing I'm really looking forward to in the new place, is starting my garden. I'm having a hard time resisting buying plants, especially since I walk past Home Depot, which has lots of little plants on display outside, every day on the way to and from work. Unfortunately, the weather is still a little unstable (ie cold!) in DC to get started. Some lettuces could have already been planted but most things have to wait until the end of April or beginning of May.

Since I live in a condo, and not a house, gardening takes a little more planning to make sure I maximize my limited space. I will putting some pots out on my balcony, which is thankfully bathed in sunlight most of the day. This is a lot more restricted then if I had a yard to work with, but it's most space I've had to use yet in DC and I'm hopeful that I will fresh veggies and herbs to use in my summer cooking! If you don't have a lot of space, don't let it discourage you from planting vegetables! You just have to think about it a little.

What am I planning to plant?
-Cherry tomatoes, I could also plant the regular variety in a pot but I like the cherry ones better so I'm going that route.
-Bell peppers, these are a pricier veggie, so I'm hoping to get a lot from my garden and not have to buy any at the store.
-Cucumbers, normally you need a big space for cucumbers because they vine all over the place! However, my step-dad told me there is a kind of "bush cucumber" that I can plant in a pot, so I'm going to check that out.
-Basil, there is nothing better than fresh basil! I'm starting out with a plant this year, because my past attempt at growing basil from a seed was a dismal failure.
-Rosemary, hopefully I will be able to keep this over the winter as rosemary is pretty cold tolerant.

I also want to check out the options for more organic home gardening. Using produce in my kitchen that I grew myself is undoubtedly as "local" as food gets but I wonder about all of these packages of Miracle this-and-that at the store. Plus I spend way more time than the average person reading about the impacts of agricultural runoff on marine environments, soil degradation and pesticides. If you have any experience with organic home gardening, please let me know!

Are you gardening in a small space? I'd love to hear about what you are planting and to share ideas!

Dusted off the crock pot - squash casserole

Friday morning I awoke bleary-eyed and late. I had neglected to set my alarm the night before. I also had a 9am meeting. Not a good day to get up late.

Furthermore, I had slow cooking aspirations for that day (well the day before I did not so much at 7:30). I had been browsing around the archives of A Year of Slow Cooking to see what gem I could pluck from Stephanie's blog. Since any recipe I've tried from somewhere else have all failed, ok there were only a few attempts but still.

I dusted off my crock pot - literally, it sits out on my counter and it's been so long since I used it, I had to wash it off first. And I began chopping squash to make a kind of crock pot casserole. Did I have time for this? No. I looked at the clock when almost done and had to toss in the rest of the ingredients and run out the door, puffy eyed and makeup-less for work (this was after I got bits of frozen spinach all over my kitchen). So beware, if you're doing this in the morning, it will take 20 minutes of prep-time!

Cheesy Squash Casserole (inspired by no-noodle lasagna)
2-3 yellow squash
15 oz (small container) of ricotta cheese
??? oz jar of pasta sauce
1.5 cups Shredded Italian blend cheese
4 slices provolone cheese
2 cups froze spinach, thawed
Italian seasoning
Garlic

I had intended to mix an egg and the seasoning in with the ricotta, which I do when I make lasagna but when I took the eggs, I've been meaning to use (for a while...) out of the fridge the sell by date was July 31st (and I did not have time).

Layer the ingredients in your crock pot (mine is 5 quarts), starting with sauce on the bottom, squash, ricotta (I smeared this on the squash before I put it in), sprinkle of spinach, seasoning, cheese slice and shredded cheese, until you reach the top or run out of ingredients. Rinse the pasta sauce jar with a small amount of water and pour it in before the final topping of shredded cheese.

See why this took 20 minutes? Well, really I should have thawed my spinach and chopped the squash the night before.

So was my mad dash out of the apartment worth it when dinner time rolled around? It's lovely to walk into the house to dinner. However, do NOT make this if you will not be home in eight hours. By the time my commute time was factored in it was cooking for close to ten hours...not good. I ate it for dinner and it was ok, I think it would be better if it hadn't cooked so long. Also, next time I need to check my eggs. Mixing it with the ricotta help it to have a less chunky texture, it just cooks much nicer. I ended up eating it for dinner that night but when I went to reheat some of it, it was not good and I threw the rest away. The added cooking from reheating was just too much. Finally, I think fresh spinach would be the way to go, might have been worth a trip to the store.

Won ton ravioli!

I finally got to make my ravioli this weekend. I had complications this week because of a 3-day power outage. Yes, three days without electricity during a DC summer heat advisory no less. Sigh. So after throwing out just about everything that was in my refrigerator, I went to the store and bought new ingredients to make my ravioli. Frankly, I'm surprised I was that motivated to make anything.

But my perseverance paid off, using won tons to make your own ravioli might just be genius. I concocted my own basic recipe for the stuffing and read numerous posts online about people's experiences with the technique. Some complained that the won tons don't taste exactly like pasta leading to a slightly "off" flavor, but I personally found them to be an excellent substitute. I know the picture I took makes them look less than fantastic, but I was pretty impressed with them.

Many people also said they freeze very well, I don't have any to freeze to test this because I had a very hungry dinner guest but maybe next time I can give it a whirl and let you know how it turns out.

Spinach & Artichoke Ravioli

12oz ricotta cheese
1 egg
1 egg yoke
2 cups chopped frozen spinach (thawed)
1 jar marinated artichokes
1Tb Italian seasoning
1 package of won ton wrappers

Chop marinated artichokes into small pieces. Mix ricotta cheese, whole egg, spinach, chopped artichokes and Italian seasoning in medium sized bowl to make stuffing. Boil a large pot of water. Prepare a work surface (I used a large cutting board) and lay out 6 won ton wraps. Place a small mound of stuffing (circa 1.5Tb) in the center of each wrapper, spreading it out slightly but leaving about a quarter inch border around the edge. Using a pastry brush, smear a small amount of the egg yoke around each side of each won ton. Lay another won ton on top of each one on your work surface taking care to line up the edges and not to let the stuffing leak out. Press around the edges with your finger and then again with a fork to ensure that it is sealed. Boil for approximately 3 minutes. Repeat until all the ingredients are used.

I had two that kind of "blew up" in the water when I was trying to remove them, I think they were filled a little too full and boiled a little too long. Try to keep the water at a soft boil to prevent the ravioli from being pushed around too much while cooking. Some people online suggest steaming them to get them to stay together better, but it wasn't really a big challenge, easier than I was expecting based on my past experience with won ton wraps at least, boiling worked pretty well over all.

The recipe above makes about 24 ravioli, perfect for two hungry people or to put some in the freezer for later.

Organics - do you or don't you?

In honor of Earth Day, the 40th anniversary of Earth Day no less, I'm positing on organics.

When it comes to buying organic produce, I have good intentions but very little follow through. I want to buy them. I feel that they are better for the environment and in turn, better for me. But I have a really hard time justifying the cost. When fruits and veggies are 2-3 times more expensive, I just can't do it. I tell myself that when I make more money, this is something I'll spend it on.

So I compromise and I compare. I look for places where I can do something good for the environment and myself, without spending significantly more.

Things to consider buying organic:
-Salsa (similar cost)
-Carrots (similar cost)
-Apples (lots of pesticides)
-Bell peppers (lots of pesticides)
-Milk (I think it tastes better, and hormone use)

When considering what meat to buy, if you don't want to pay big bucks for organic beef, eat more poultry and pork. USDA regulations prohibit the use of hormones and growth promoters in pork and poultry, so while you might not be buying organic at least you will be getting hormone-free meat. Note that the packages will most likely not say "hormone-free" because since all poultry & pork is raised without hormones in the US, it can't be stated on the package unless it also says that the USDA prohibits hormone use for these products.

Update April 29th, 2010: I just found a list of the produce "dirty dozen" on Yahoo! Green, click here to see the fruits and veggies that have the highest pesticide use.