emily audette.com

quinoa with brussels sprouts and pumpkin | Sassy Radish

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 21:10:56 -0600

quinoa with brussels sprouts and pumpkin | Sassy Radish:

I made this for dinner tonight because I was craving brussels sprouts. I know what you’re thinking, “who craves brussels sprouts?” Me apparently.

Anyway, the recipe is absolutely amazing, you should try it. I only made a few substitutions/changes:

Regular quinoa for red quinoa
3/4 t paprika + 1/4 t cayenne pepper for Aleppo pepper

Note that the recipe makes 8-10 servings. I definitely should have halved it!

By the way, for those keeping track (no one) I am down to only 2 squash + 1 giant pumpkin squash mutant left in my pile of squash!

Sweet & Spicy Pumpkin Seeds

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 17:20:00 -0600

These seeds were so good I had to stop what I was doing to tell you about them. Addictive. Amazing.

Here’s the recipe adapted from Cooking Light magazine:

1 cup unsalted pumpkin or squash seeds
1 T canola oil
3/4 t agave nectar
1/2 t cumin
1/2 t chile powder
1/4 t salt
1/4 t cinnamon

1. Heat the pumpkin seeds in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook for 6-10 minutes or until toasted. Stir constantly so they don’t get burned.

2. Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl, add seeds and coat. Cool on a paper towel lined baking sheet.

…and then I found out I’m allergic to agave nectar! Aye aye aye, at least it’s not a deadly allergy. Next time I’ll sub honey or maple syrup instead of the sugar which was originally in the recipe.

New Layout thanks to Consumer Demand

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 22:35:25 -0600

You may notice my blog looks different. Hopefully you like this better. Hopefully it’s more “consumer” friendly. It’s just for you my friend.

My New Favorite Cracker

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 22:30:00 -0600

I have a new favorite snack. It’s the best cracker on the planet (bold statement I know). It’s all good ingredients, nothing bad or overly processed. Plus it fits perfectly with my renewed dedication to eating clean!

Enough anticipation, my new favorite cracker is…

FLACKERS!

Ok, so I suppose technically they are not a cracker. What qualifies as a cracker anyway? These babies are flax seeds smashed together with nothing but spices. Sounds weird, but they are utterly delicious.

Here comes the bad part: they are holy expensive! $5 a box, and a box only contains 18 crackers which is 6 servings. Yikes. But in this case it’s definitely you get what you pay for: amazingness. They have been on sale for $3.50 a box at Whole Foods all month which is what led me to finally try them. I had been admiring them on the shelf for awhile. Since trying them I’ve been picking up a box every time I’m in the store (about once a week, sometimes more) since they’re still on sale.

This evening I was reading the box while I was waiting for my pot pie (clean from scratch) to bake and I noticed they are made in Minneapolis. ”Huh that’s cool.” I thought, BUT THEN I had a mini panic attack. What if they don’t sell these in Tennessee?! What am I going to do? I had to go grocery shopping tonight anyway so I picked up 2 boxes instead of one. I should chill out and not be a hoarder right?

Ohhhhh no. I looked up their website just now and they most certainly are not in distribution near Nashville! Well there’s 4 days left in the month with the sale still on so I know what I have to do.

The movers are going to take one look at my cupboard and say “man this girl is crazy (and maybe a hoarder)!”

Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do. And you gotta try these!

PS: I got so wrapped up in my soon to be distance from flackers I forgot to tell you what they’re great with: peanut butter (soynut in my case), hummus, cheese, plain, you name it.

New Year's Resolution 2012

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 21:39:06 -0600

I have a new year’s resolution for you: how about trying a new fresh veggie or fruit once a month? Sounds fun to me, I’ll do it with you!

This month (ok today) I bought a fresh pomegranate for the first time. I love pomegranate arils, but they are expensive and seem to spoil quickly. I was surprised how easy it was to seed the pomegranate, and it had a zillion arils! I’m definitely going to begin eating pomegranate arils all winter long, what a treat!

I used them tonight for this Quinoa, Fennel, and Pomegranate salad from Bon Appetite. It was quite delicious. The fennel roasted up nicely in my cast iron skillet. Maybe fennel is a new veggie for you to try? It was new last year for me.

As for my real new year’s resolution I plan on being a better friend. I’m terrible at keeping in touch and remembering birthdays (I don’t look at birthdays on facebook, sorry). I promise to get better this year! In fact, send me your address now so I can actually surprise you with a birthday card!

xoxo happy 2012, I feel like it’s going to be a good one!

Dutch Oven-less

Wed, 04 Jan 2012 21:30:17 -0600

Remember how much I loved my mustard colored dutch oven from Macy’s Martha Stewart line? I blogged about it and all the awesome things you could use it for.

Well it’s gone now. Macy’s recalled the dutch ovens because apparently the enamel coating could crack under high heat and explode in the oven. That doesn’t sound like a safe product to me. I hauled my well-loved dutch oven back to the store and got a $75 refund since they weren’t offering replacements. To be honest I just wanted a new dutch oven, but I guess $75 (which is probably more than I paid to begin with) will have to do.

I think I might save up for a bit and just go for the real deal with a Le Creuset in cobalt to be exact. But at $250, ugh! I tell myself it will last forever, but still.

In the meantime I have a new love: my new (old) cast-iron skillet! While I was home for Christmas my mom was giving up on her various cast iron skillets and let me have what I wanted. Obviously, I could only bring back one in my carry-on since they are so heavy. I chose the 9” skillet and intend to go back for the others someday!

I’m using the cast iron skillet for everything: eggs, roasting vegetables, reheating leftovers, veggies, and more veggies. It’s so fun, gives the food a nice sear and color, and other than the over easy egg I tried to make for Emily doesn’t stick one bit! And who doesn’t love a pan you don’t really have to clean?

Get yourself one, better yet steal one from a family member that’s not using theirs. The best part about that is that it comes already seasoned with years of cooking. For me that probably included lots of savory meaty cooking flavors which I could never reproduce (since I don’t eat red meat).

How to re-heat leftover pizza so the crust is nice and crispy!...

Mon, 02 Jan 2012 21:19:53 -0600

How to re-heat leftover pizza so the crust is nice and crispy! It uses a non-stick pan on the stove and is much faster than the oven. This is potentially life-changing information people.

Spaghetti Squash With Avocado and Parmesan

Mon, 02 Jan 2012 21:17:29 -0600

Spaghetti Squash With Avocado and Parmesan :

I had this for dinner tonight, it combines a few of my favorite things. It’s a great quick meal when you use leftover spaghetti squash (which I currently have a lot of).

Roasted Chicken Hash

Sun, 04 Dec 2011 10:21:00 -0600

The wonders of a fully-stocked fridge struck again this morning. Due to last week’s cooking fever that over took me I was left with lots and lots of leftovers which all need to be eaten by tomorrow!

How to eat all these leftovers by tomorrow with a full freezer? My first idea was to just eat leftovers for breakfast so that it’s one extra meal. Then this morning I had a stroke of genius. Yesterday I went out for brunch at Barbette and got the roast chicken hash. It’s good, but not quite as flavorful as I expected. Why not re-create it at home with all my leftovers?

For the record, in case anyone randomly has these same leftovers at home here is what I created. I have to say I liked it more than the hash from Barbette! Somehow I had just the right ingredients in my fridge!

Roasted Chicken Hash, serves 2

2 cups leftover roasted potatoes and squash
1/2 cup chopped red peppers
1/2 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup leftover roasted chicken
pinch of lemon zest
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 T chopped parsley

Directions: Using a medium frying pan (not non-stick) cook onions and red peppers in a small amount of olive oil (I used my Misto) until soft. Add leftover roasted potatoes and squash, chopped up into smaller pieces if needed. Hopefully your leftovers have plenty of butter/oil to add to the pan because your veggies probably need it. Add chopped chicken, cook for a few minutes on medium low while you prepare the eggs. Cook 2 eggs over easy or try poached eggs if you know how (which I don’t). Finally add the lemon juice, pinch of lemon zest and some extra herbs. I tossed in some dried rosemary and sage. Stir and cook for another minute until the juice is absorbed. Serve in a bowl topped with an egg, sprinkle parsley over the top.

You can tell a few things from this photo. #1 I did not remove my eggs from the pan very elegantly. #2 I did not properly arrange my hash so that you could see all the various things mixed in. #3 I don’t care it was amazing.

Slow-Cooker Moroccan Turkey Stew

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 20:24:00 -0600

I tested out my new “fancy” slow-cooker with a really great slow cooker recipe. Moroccan Turkey Stew. It’s got some of my favorite foods, including squash!

Check out the recipe from the Food Network Magazine here. One big thing to note: the recipe amount is enormous! It will not fit in your slow cooker until you have a GIANT one. I halved the recipe and it filled my 5 quart slow cooker to the brim. The leftovers freeze really well and are also good in wraps as the recipe suggests.

PS: I said my new slow-cooker is fancy because it switches to warm automatically after a designated cook time. Fancy! But it still only cost $10!

A Reflection on My Cooking Beginnings

Sun, 27 Nov 2011 20:14:14 -0600

I just pulled a roasted chicken with potatoes out of the oven. While I’m waiting for it to rest I started thinking about how far I’ve come with cooking.

It will be 5 years ago this coming January that I began to teach myself to cook. I graduated college and started my first full time job in the summer of 2007. By the winter I had a few extra pounds around my waist and asked for the You on a Diet book for Christmas. After all, If Oprah and Dr. Oz say it works, I’m in.

I read it from cover to cover over Christmas break. It teaches the basics of healthy nutrition while explaining how your body works and reacts to certain foods. And there’s recipes and meal plans in the back. I decided to try a meal plan and the recipes word for word at least for 2 weeks. By then I realized I needed to learn to feed myself. What had I been feeding myself the past few years? I still don’t really know, lots of oatmeal, pasta, and frozen meals for one.

At this time I still didn’t like vegetables. So I ordered myself to buy all the veggies and ingredients listed and just try it. Somewhere in my mind stuck the tidbit that you sometimes have to try a new food more than 10 times before you like it. Then I followed directions. That’s all. The first week I made chili, lentil soup, even salmon (for a girl that didn’t like fish either!).

I don’t know how I eventually went from that book to where I am now. Somewhere along the lines I subscribed to Cooking Light magazine after reading my new friend Alison’s copies. Then a few years ago I started reading the blog the Kitchn which really expanded my knowledge of some of the basics like making your own stock and cooking dried beans. It’s hard to believe that simple book is what started it all. Now 5 years later I love veggies, I love cooking, and I can hardly imagine going back to not cooking. I still make some of those You on a Diet recipes. The veggie chili is my standard chili recipe. I use the veggie soup as a starting point when I’m inventing my own soup.

Moral of the story: if you want to learn something just try. You’ll get there eventually.

My Cozy Cowl

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 20:32:33 -0600

This post is long overdue as I finished this gorgeous cowl a few weeks ago. And have been cozying up with it ever since.

I worked on it during my many many hours of layover and flight time to Portland and back. I think it turned out really well!

Here’s a link to the pattern on Ravelry if you’d like to make it yourself. It’s very easy and only requires knowledge of knitting and purling. Nothing more complicated than that!

Tahini Dressing

Sat, 05 Nov 2011 19:07:54 -0500

While I was in Portland I picked up this little book called Very Salad Dressing. It’s a book of entirely salad dressings. I like making my own but most of the time make it up. I figured I could use a little structure.

I’m sharing this dressing because I know Al will love it. Try it out, it’s delicious.

Tahini Dressing

1/3 cup canola (or other vegetable oil)
3 T lemon juice
2 T tahini
1 garlic clove, minced
dash of tabasco sauce
freshly cracked salt and pepper

Combine and mix. Keeps for 2 weeks in the fridge.

Project #2

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 21:38:05 -0500

Hey guys, what do you think? Here’s my second sewing project. A little pin cushion! It was super easy and quick, much faster than the first tea towel.

You can hardly tell from this photo, but I need some real work on my hand sewing. As my mom always (annoying reminded me) says “practice makes perfect!”

Galapagos Islands Lodge to Lodge - Adventure Travel Trips from REI Adventures

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 22:43:38 -0500

Galapagos Islands Lodge to Lodge - Adventure Travel Trips from REI Adventures:

You may know that I’ve been dreaming about going to the Galapagos Islands ever since I heard that you could actually go there.

Check this out I read about it in the newspaper today. Apparently one of the best ways to see the islands is to stay on land because everyone else does the cruise option. Which is awesome because the cruise option does not appeal to me at all!

It’s about $2500 in total for 5-6 days. Who’s going with me?!

Note to Self

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 19:47:30 -0500

Dear Lazy Emily or “Too Busy” Emily (notice how that’s in quotes),

You are not too lazy or too busy to go to the Shed. In fact, you love the Shed. It makes you so happy to be there. You’ll get really sweaty then laugh because you’re so gross and sweaty. But then you’ll feel GREAT! Like, I don’t feel so bad about having 3 lattes this week, or an extra cookie, or a dairy queen run. Because I’m so awesome.

Here are some things that might happen if you go to class:

you’ll get sweaty icky (see above)
you’ll laugh at kent
you’ll laugh at yourself
you’ll sing in your head, oops was that out loud?
you’ll learn a new song
you’ll remember how funny and adorable kent is
you’ll say to yourself “mannnnn I love this!”
you’ll yawn and say this is boring (HIGHLY UNLIKELY)
you’ll be in pain tomorrow and think “I’m so awesome, I hurt so bad, this is great!”

Remember: you can always run that errand later, you have a freezer full of food for dinner, and you’ll never regret working out.

PS: this applies to morning class too. Get out of bed and eat a banana.

I ordered these shoes from J. Crew today in black. They look...

Sun, 23 Oct 2011 20:38:14 -0500

I ordered these shoes from J. Crew today in black. They look more awesome in person.

And NO I did not pay $180. How does $45 sound?! Heck yes! A little trick you should try: if they have something you like in store but they don’t have your size use the red phone to order it from the catalog. They’ll give you the in store price and ship it for free. These were $60 in store plus 30% off for final sale.

Rockin’.

My First Sewing Project

Sun, 23 Oct 2011 20:25:28 -0500

I finished my first sewing project tonight! I made a tea towel. Ok, basically a glorified rectangle with seams. But hey, a girl’s got to start somewhere.

Here’s my setup (notice the hot pink thread) with my pretty machine:

The tea towel was to practice all the different stitches on your machine and practice seams. I promise I’ll do something more interesting soon. Here’s my pretty towel:

Little Dragon - Ritual Union You guys really need to check out...

Sun, 23 Oct 2011 10:12:24 -0500

Little Dragon - Ritual Union

You guys really need to check out this song. It’s awesome and it might get stuck in your head if you listen to it on repeat for several hours. Thanks Emily.

Worst of This Winter's Cold Aimed at Minneapolis

Sat, 22 Oct 2011 21:35:55 -0500

Worst of This Winter's Cold Aimed at Minneapolis:

Check it out guys: this winter is going to be even colder than normal! Hurray. I guess I better get knitting right now.