Back to the Crockpot

We have had a busy start to our spring with some new activities - Little got moved up to competition team in gymnastics and we watched her compete in Ontario & San Diego.

Middle played softball for the first time and while she may not continue, it was a good learning and good team experience.  I love that my kids go to a school where they can try new team sports even at 13 years old.

Big continues to sing - she's in the spring musical and an audition choir that meets at 7:15 every morning.  If you know much about her, you know this means she really loves to sing to sacrifice all that sleep.  Two of her school's choirs sang in Palo Alto at a choir festival and she sang with both groups.  They won first place!  I got to travel up there, visit my sister, and hear Big perform which was a lot of fun.

I have also had a long term substitute job for about 6 weeks so our afternoons & evenings are busy.  I was looking for something that I could put in the crockpot right when I get back from work at 3 and put on the table quickly after a softball game or musical rehearsal.  Everyone loved this - it has been a good answer to the "what's for dinner?" question.

Some recipe notes:  I usually boil the pasta noodles al dente around the time I start the crock pot and leave them in the refrigerator (or colander) until later.  You could boil them right before serving but my issue is having time at the end of the evening.  I made it once and didn't really season the chicken / sauce part in the crockpot and it was a little bland.  Don't skip that unless your sauces are super flavorful.  You can also top the whole thing with shredded mozzarella and let it melt before serving but our family has some dairy issues so I usually don't.

Crockpot Creamy Chicken Pasta (serves 4ish)

1 jar Alfredo sauce

1 jar marinara sauce

2 chicken breasts

1 pound pasta noodles (cooked)

shredded mozzarella (optional)

Seasoning suggestions: salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes

Parmesan cheese (to serve)
 

Dump the two jars of sauce into the crockpot, stir, and add the chicken breasts.  Season with the suggested seasonings.

Slow cook on high for 3 hours.  Take two forks and shred the chicken in the pot.  Add the cooked pasta noodles.  I usually start with about 3/4 pound and see how it looks - my kids like it more saucy.

You could top it with the shredded mozzarella and let it melt but I usually skip that part.

Serve with parmesan cheese & red pepper flakes.

Pavlova

This week, our basketball season comes to an end - I love watching my girls play and in this house, we root for #25!  

Like I've said in previous posts, Middle's curiosity about new recipes has led us to some new favorites.  Both of my younger daughters really like the show "Bluey" (Disney+) and I find the family & sibling dynamics very relatable - definitely written by a parent.  In one episode, the sisters want to eat a pavlova so we talked about what a pavlova is and found a recipe to try.  

A pavlova is (from the bottom up), a layer of meringue, whipped cream, fruit, and sauce.  The first time through, there was a bit of a learning curve.  Middle learned why you use three bowls to separate egg whites, what "firm peaks" look like in a meringue, how to fold other things into your meringue, and how she prefers to have the meringues shaped.  The second time through, she did it 100% on her own with awesome results.  We just separated eggs for our third time making this recipe.  

It's delicious . . . we all loved it and it's actually a really simple concept with ordinary ingredients.  The contrast of textures is particularly enjoyable, in my opinion.

Recipe notes:  This whole process takes awhile - I didn't initially comprehend the part where it just sits in your warm oven for a long time.  Our first time, the meringue was still a little gooey in the center so depending on your oven, you may want to increase the temperature to 200 degrees.  The sauce yields quite a bit so you will have leftovers.  You can add sugar to sweeten your whipped cream, but we liked it with just some vanilla as a contrast to the sweet meringue and sweet sauce.  Any kind of berries will work on top - use what you like!

Pavlova (serves 4)

adapted from Ina Garten

First, make the sauce:

1 half pint fresh raspberries

1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam

1/4 cup sugar

1 T cointreau or framboise (optional)

Place the raspberries, sugar, and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil.  Lower the heat and simmer for 4 minutes.  Add the liquer if using and stir for about 1 minute more.  Pour this mixture into a food processor or blender and add the jam.  Process until smooth and then chill in the refrigerator until you're ready to assemble the pavlova.

Then, make the meringue:

4 extra large egg whites, room temperature

pinch kosher salt

1 cup white sugar

2 tsp. cornstarch

1 tsp. white wine vinegar

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 180 degrees.  Place a piece of parchment paper on a sheet pan.

Place your egg whites and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer and using the whisk attachment, beat on high speed until firm, about 1 minute.  With the mixer on high, slowly add the sugar and beat until it makes firm, shiny peaks, about 2-3 more minutes.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and sift the cornstarch over the beaten egg whites.  Then, add the vinegar and vanilla and fold lightly with a spatula.

Pile the meringue in the middle of the parchment paper and smooth it into a disk, approximately 9 inches. We also sometimes make 5 or 6 small discs for individual meringues.  You want the top to be somewhat smooth and flat.

Bake for 1.5 hours.  Turn off the oven, keeping the oven door closed, and allow it to cool completely in the oven, about 1-1.5 hours.  It should be crisp on the outside and soft on the inside.

When you're ready to eat, make the whipped cream & assemble:

Whip 1 cup of cold heavy whipping cream in the bowl of a mixer with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer.  When it starts to thicken, add 1 teaspoon of vanilla and beat until firm.

Spread the whipped cream on the meringue, top with berries and drizzle with the raspberry sauce.
 

Chicken Tikka Masala

Curry is something my whole family agrees on and enjoys.  I really like the yellow curry simmer sauce in a bottle from Trader Joe's for an easy weeknight dinner (I add cooked chicken & a can of chickpeas and serve it over rice with some cilantro on top) but I wanted to make a tikka masala as something a little different.  I'm glad I tried this recipe -  it was a hit.  

I haven't made my own curry paste before and I liked the flavor of this one a lot - it was super easy and I made a couple of recipes with it (used it in a Thai soup as well).  You can make that ahead of time and then add it to the marinade & curry sauce in this recipe and it will last for awhile in the refrigerator.

Chicken Tikka Masala (serves 4-6)

recipe from Half-baked Harvest

Chicken

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into chunks 

½ cup plain Greek yogurt (whole milk) full-fat plain Greek yogurt

1 can (14 ounce) unsweetened coconut milk (not "lite")

6 oz tomato paste

¼ cup chopped cilantro

Cooked rice (for serving)

Curry paste (recipe below or you can use store-bought yellow curry)

In a gallon-size zip-top bag, combine 2 tablespoons of the curry paste, the chicken, and the yogurt. Seal the bag and massage the mixture into the chicken to cover completely. Marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes or refrigerate up to overnight.

Heat a large, high-sided skillet over medium heat. Add ¼ cup to 1/2 cup (your preference) of the curry paste and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the chicken, coconut milk, and tomato paste. Cover and cook until the chicken is cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the lid and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, about 5 minutes more.

Stir in the cilantro and serve the chicken over rice.

To make your own curry paste:
1 medium yellow onion, quartered

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1 shallot, halved

6 cloves garlic

2 (1-inch) pieces fresh ginger, peeled

3 tablespoons garam masala 

2 teaspoons ground turmeric 

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Zest of 1 lemon

To make the curry paste. In a blender or food processor, combine the onion, shallot, garlic, ginger, garam masala, turmeric, salt, red pepper flakes, and lemon zest. Pulse until a smooth paste forms, about 1 minute.  You can store this in the refrigerator for about a month.

Peach Galette

This girl . . . she keeps growing (one inch in the last month) and I love this age with the juxtaposition of almost adultlike abilities, childlike humor, and a body somewhere in the middle.  She has the best sense of humor and is always cooking up something new.  Her obsession with slime continues so I see remnants of her slime experiments in the garage sink but sometimes she channels that energy into things we can eat. 

She tried to make homemade boba for her cross country team and rolling all those little boba balls was incredibly tedious and time consuming but she stuck with it.  The end result disappointed her a little because she didn't realize the right way to make it ahead of time and serve it later, but I love that she had a vision and tried to make it happen.

One day in September, my friend traded me some late season peaches for fruit from my mother in law's farm and Middle immediately wanted to make a peach pie.  This turned out amazing and she did it all.  I like the style of galette because it's a lot less fussy than other pies with the same delicious taste.

Peach Galette

1 pie crust (your favorite recipe or a premade one)
3-4 peaches
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 T lemon juice
2 T cornstarch
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/8 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup water

Wash and slice your peaches and set aside.

In a large saucepan, combine the vanilla extract, lemon juice, cornstarch, sugar, cinnamon, and water.  Bring it to a boil and stir it frequently until it starts to thicken - about 2-3 minutes.

Add the peaches to the mixture and stir to completely coat.  Let it simmer for about 5 minutes.  You  want the peaches to soften but not become mushy.  If your peaches start out firm, this may take slightly longer.  If your peaches start out really soft, this may be less than the 5 minutes.

Roll out your dough into a big circle and place the peach filling in the center, leaving about 2 inches of dough all around the edges.  Fold the edges in, leaving the center exposed.  Brush the edges with the beaten egg (add maybe 1/2 T water to the beaten egg), and sprinkle with a little sugar.

Bake at 325 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until the filling is bubbly and the pie crust is cooked.

Fall Update

It's been a busy, fun-filled fall for our crew.  Here are some highlights & what we've been up to. 

National Charity League - volunteering & cultural events with Big & Middle

Substitute teaching at the middle school and high school (mostly to hang out with my kids)

Going to all the assemblies & field trips - Little was Molly Pitcher in Walk Through the American Revolution

Spectating all the fall sports . . . Middle did awesome as the number 1 runner on her middle school cross country team and team MVP.

Little continued gymnastics and joined the Running Club that I started this fall.  I think maybe I'm having the most fun out of all these awesome kids.

Big & her tennis team went to CIF semi-finals and had a great season - I loved every minute of living vicariously through her tennis team matches.

I wanted to share a versatile recipe / cooking method for fish.  The idea came from Half Baked Harvest and I've made it with both salmon and halibut.  One key for success is to make sure your fish filets are all similar in size / thickness so they cook evenly since it's hard to check on them when they are wrapped in the parchment packets.  You can substitute the packet ingredients - I have made them with shredded Brussels sprouts on the bottom instead of the thinly sliced potatoes.  Your picky eaters can even customize their own packets with what they prefer to eat.  I think the addition of the feta, dill & arugula at the end really make the dish delicious.

Baked Fish in Parchment Paper (serves 4)

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

juice of 1 lemon

2 tsp smoked paprika

1 T fresh dill (plus more for serving)

1 small russet potato very thinly sliced into 1/4 inch rounds

1 small zucchini thinly sliced

4 fish filets, skin removed (6-8 oz each) - we like salmon or halibut

1 lemon thinly sliced

1/3 cup pitted Kalamata olives

crumbled feta cheese

fresh arugula for serving

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  In a small bowl, combine the olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, chopped dill, paprika, and one pinch each of salt & pepper.

Tear off 4 pieces of parchment pieces about 12-16 inches in length.  On one half of the packet, arrange one -fourth of the potato slices in an even layer (about the size of your fish) and season with salt and pepper.  Layer on the one-fourth of the zucchini slices and season with salt and pepper.  Place one fish filet on top of the zucchini and drizzle with the olive oil mixture and top with two lemon slices.  Scatter a few olives around the fish.

Repeat that layering with the remaining parchment & ingredients.  To seal the packets, fold the bare half over the fish & fold the open edges twice.  Place packets on a rimmed baking sheet.  Bake until the potatoes are tender, 18-20 minutes.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven and transfer packets to plates.  Open carefully & serve with crumbled feta, arugula, and more dill on top.

Cheesecake for the Birthday Girl

 

Well, my oldest daughter turned 16 this month!  The years have flown by . . . one of the best parts of this blog is that it's helped me document family life and my kids growth in one place.  I'm not consistent about journaling, scrapbooking or anything else like that and I'm grateful to have a space where I can look back and reflect.

For her Sweet Sixteen, she wanted a day at the beach with her friend group and it turned out to be a blast.  From a picnic and pictures in sundresses to huge waves and a beach slip and slide, it was a memorable day that turned out (almost) like she had been planning.

The day before her birthday, we had a small celebration at home with friends & family and for her birthday dessert, she chose cheesecake.  I hadn't made one in awhile, but this recipe is tried and true and turned out great.  We had fresh figs on our tree so I made a fig sauce to go with it (and sliced strawberries for the people who aren't fig fans).

Recipe notes:  It takes a LONG time so plan ahead.  The link below to the original recipe has a lot of troubleshooting information (cracks, water bath, underdone cheesecake).  I leave off the sour cream topping but if you want to make that, again look at the original recipe.

Happy birthday sweet girl!  Your mama loves you :)

Perfect Cheesecake

recipe from Simply Recipes

Ingredients:

Crust - 1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 15 graham crackers)

            2 T sugar

            pinch salt

            5 T unsalted butter, melted

Filling - 2 lbs cream cheese, at room temperature

              1 1/3 cups sugar

              pinch salt

              2 tsp vanilla extract

              4 large eggs, at room temperature

              2/3 cup sour cream, at room temperature

              2/3 heavy cream

To prepare the crust, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Pulse the graham crackers in a food processor until finely ground.  Put in a large bowl, stir in the sugar and salt, and stir in the melted butter.

In a 9 inch springform pan, press down the crumbs into an even layer.  I used a measuring cup to help press the crumbs down and give a little bit of an edge going up the pan.

Bake for 10 minutes, remove from oven, and let the crust cool.  While the crust cools, you can lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees and put your oven rack on the bottom of the oven.  Then, start making your filling.

Beat the cream cheese in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed for 4 minutes or until soft, smooth, and creamy.  Add the sugar and beat for 4 minutes more.  Add the salt and vanilla, mixing until just incorporated.  Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs, one at a time.  Scrap down the bowl paying attention to any thicker bits of cream cheese that may have stuck to the bottom of the mixer.  Add the sour cream on medium speed and mix until incorporated.  Change the mixer to low speecd and add the heavy cream.

Once the pan is cool, wrap it in a triple layer of foil.  Boil some water in a kettle to prepare your water bath.

Scrape the filling into the crust, place the springform pan (wrapped in foil) in a large roasting pan, and carefully add water to the pan so that it goes about halfway up the side of the springform pan.  Place the roasting pan in the oven.  

Bake at 1 1/2 hours at 325 degrees.  Then, turn off the oven and crack the oven door and let it sit there for another hour.  After that, cover the top of the cheesecake with foil (don't let the foil rest on the cheesecake - make a tent), and chill in the refrigerator for a minimum of 4 hours (overnight is fine).

Serve with toppings of your choice - we like whipped cream and some sort of fruit.

Another Island Inspired Fish Dish

 One night on the Big Island, we enjoyed an amazing meal at Meridia with some excellent company (and delicious freshly baked bread).  When we got home, I asked my husband what he wanted for dinner one night and he said "a mediterranean fish dish" and I came up with this meal inspired by what Middle and I shared at Meridia.  Hope you enjoy!

Some recipe notes:  If you have the time, marinate the fish for about 30 minutes - 1 hour before you make the rest of the meal.  This sheet pan method will work with other combinations of protein (chicken thighs are great) and vegetables.  I have had bad luck when I use too much of the marinade/vinaigrette because the veggies are also going to release some liquid and when it all sits in too much liquid, it's mushy.  Leave out anything your people don't enjoy, add other vegetables, whatever - it's very versatile.  The feta gets melty of you sprinkle it on during the last 5 minutes of cooking but I have picky people so we put it on the side.

Mediterranean Halibut (serves 4)

4 halibut filets (mine did not have skin)

Marinade/vinaigrette ingredients:
1/2 cup olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp oregano
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

Vegetables:
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
yellow bell pepper, sliced
1 small zucchini, cut into smallish pieces (see photo)
asparagus
1 cup kalamata olives, drained
1 can garbanzo beans, drained

For serving:  
feta cheese
arugula

Start by heating your oven to 425 and whisking your marinade ingredients together.  Divide the marinade in half and put half in a pan and add the halibut.  Put the other half in a large bowl and add your chopped vegetables, beans, and olives.  Stir to combine.  

Remove the vegetables from that bowl with a slotted spoon and spread them in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet.  On another baking sheet prepared with olive oil spray or foil, place the halibut.  Put it all in the oven for 10-12 minutes.  If you have thicker vegetables, they may need to stay in a little longer but your halibut should be just cooked through in that amount of time.  Adjust cooking times according to your preference of how "done" you like things.

We like to eat the fish and veggies over a bed of arugula and with a sprinkle of feta cheese on top.