Prosciutto and Spinach Farro Salad

So in my "I'm trying to be healthy, y'all" (I don't actually say y'all but here it seems appropriate) kick, I've decided to try new grains. And so I introduce you to farro! If you aren't familiar with the chewy delicious little grain, from Wikipedia: "Farro is a food product composed of the grains of certain wheat species in whole form. The exact definition is debated. It is sold dried and is prepared by cooking in water until soft, but still crunchy (many recommend first soaking overnight). It may be eaten plain, though it is often used as an ingredient in dishes such as salads and soups. It is sometimes ground into flour and used to make pasta or bread."

Basically farro is a bit like risotto meets brown rice. It takes a while to cook, but it has this great chewy flavor. Like al dente brown rice.

So playing off of the farro theme, I thought I'd go Italian. See, I guess that farro used to feed the Roman legions. Yeah, I don't know. But yeah, go Italian. And prosciutto, tomato and mozzarella reminds me of Italy, for seemingly obvious reasons. And I threw in spinach to make it all healthy.

This meal was really good warm, but honestly even better as a cold salad. So if you make this, it will be even better the next day as a lunch or dinner.

So enjoy the ancient farro and all the luscious Italian flavors. And feel healthy and awesome.

Spicy Tomato Soup

So after the holidays come two different thoughts. One is ohmygodIatesomuchfoodIneedtopurge and then I also think itissocoldIwantcomfortfood. And as you can see purge normally =/= comfort food. But soups can be that balance of healthy and comfort food.

On cold nights, I find that smoothly spicy food can be the best treat. And I'm not talking really "scald your mouf" spicy, but that warm your belly spicy. And this soup hits that mark. The spice will hit the back of your throat and warm you through. It is also nice and light. There is no cream or butter in this recipe. But you won't miss it. 

So I hope while you all are recovering from the holidays and all the glorious delicious food that comes with it, you'll enjoy this soup with maybe a salad and call it a great meal and a great night. 

Beef Tenderloin Sliders

So first of all, I have to apologize for the lack of posting lately. Between the technical issues with my pictures, and starting a new job, it's been kind of crazy. But I promise, no more lapses!

Anyway, onto the delicious recipe. It's the holiday season and time for holiday parties! Brett and I decided to have a pre-holiday party party and have a few people over to have some dinner before going out. But I was struggling with trying to figure out what to prepare for dinner.

Turkey? No, way too ornate. Ham? Nah, not in the mood. Brett suggested pizza but I didn't feel like preparing something that took so much time in the kitchen. 

So I sat down nestled in with my new Bon Appetit magazine on my Kindle and waited for inspiration. And I found it. A beef tenderloin with horseradish cream. But I didn't feel like just serving beef. Because then I'd have to figure out side dishes, and also this was a crowd I didn't particularly know well. 

One of the things that I think is Brett's favorite thing to eat are sliders. Sliders with anything on it. And I figured well, beef is good on sandwiches, no? And then I thought well, beef tenderloin sliders sounds fancy and also low key! A perfect combo. 

One thing I have to note though is that beef tenderloin is STAGGERINGLY expensive. Like woah expensive. I don't buy beef tenderloin ever, so I wasn't quite prepared. BUT the 3 lbs of beef tenderloin, when made into sliders, lasts for DAYS. We had it for dinner on Sunday and dinner Monday as well. So while it is expensive, it can span many meals and make it FAR more economical. 

Also, it's delicious. This preparation makes melt in your mouth beef tenderloin and the cream serves as a really fabulous condiment. I also added some arugula to give it a peppery veggie crunch. 

If you're serving a crowd this holiday season I highly recommend making these. They were a huge hit and really easy to do. Plus you don't need to worry about the beef staying warm, because the tenderloin is just as good on sliders cold as warm! So I hope you enjoy!! 

Sausage and Mushroom Calzones

When I was in college, I worked for a couple years at this bar on campus. Okay, not a bar on campus, the only bar on campus. And while it was a fun bar to go to (once you were 21...for real, there was a list of students who were 21 and you had to be on it to get in - small school) the highlight for many people was the food.

Now you could get any type of bar food. Pizzas, buffalo chicken fingers (OHMYGODSOGOODIWANTNOW), and one of the better highlights, the calzones. Now calzones are funny to me. Sauceless pizza pockets. It's like a fancy Italian hot pocket. These calzones though were ENORMOUS. Like, only if I was super drunk could I eat the whole thing big (don't judge). But having a hot calzone and dipping the slices into marinara sauce brings me straight back to Kenyon.

So this weekend I decided to replicate the calzone goodness. But I decided to make them a bit more reasonably sized. I had intended for them to be "mini" but they're more like "reasonable for 1 person" size. Unless, of course, you're my husband and eat 1 and a half. I also made them more "healthy" - aka chicken and turkey sausage rather than full fat delicious pork sausage.

Turns out with the help of Whole Foods pizza dough (for real peeps, this stuff is awesome and unlike frozen dough requires very little foresight or planning) these suckers are easy. If you're an overachiever, you can make your own pizza dough. Truth be told if I had thought of this recipe more than an hour before I planned to start cooking, I would have made my own. But I am a terrible terrible planner.

You can use this recipe to stuff whatever you want into the calzones. I had planned on making some sweet ones with apple, cinnamon, sugar and marscarpone. But I was too full after we had our first round of calzones. So I'll have to figure out what to do with all that marscarpone.... Maybe it can be incorporated into a Thanksgiving desert hah!

So enjoy these calzones. These would be an awesome family night dinner, as you can pick and choose what to put in the 'zones.

Shrimp Rolls

Sometimes when I make food for football weekends, it's about this time of year that the food selection become monotonous. Chili, wings, repeat. So this weekend I decided that mix it up. No chili, I say! Nay! We shall have something different!

However, I was also in a lazy mood. Heavy cooking all day long for a noon Michigan game? Uh no. So I poked through my freezer and fridge and thought about what I could make with the ingredients that I have already. 

And then I came across the shrimp. I had bought frozen pre-cooked shrimp a while ago and hadn't used them yet. Then it came to me. Why not make shrimp rolls, like lobster rolls? I've made lobster rolls plenty of times, and have always seen shrimp rolls on menus, but hadn't eaten them that much. But I figured hey, how different from lobster rolls can they be?

Well the adventure in shrimp rolls was a success. Brett declared that he liked these better than any of the lobster rolls I've made. It's a simple mix of mayo, greek yogurt, chives, celery, shrimp and some spices. And made into little mini rolls but cutting the hot dog buns in half, it's a perfect grab and go dish to serve to the masses. 

Sweet and Smoky Bison Chili

So we're deep into fall football season, yet in DC it hasn't gone much below 60 degrees. But when I realized that 12 people would be at my house for college football Saturday, I thought well, guess it's time to pull out the chili! Chili always reminds me of the fall, cold autumn nights, and college football. Or football in general.

There are many ways to make chili. Some believe it should never have beans. Some like it spicy. Some like it sweet. Some like it with ground beef, while others like turkey or sausage.

Well this chili has a little bit of everything for everyone. Although I will say that if you don't like heat, I wouldn't try this. It's not super spicy by any means but if you don't like a somewhat spicy chili, then I'd suggest making the chili I make in my chili half smokes recipe. Just omit the half smokes.

This chili combines bison meat, cannelli beans, kidney beans, guajillo peppers, and a bunch of other surprises to make a rich and deep chili. It does require a bit of cooking time to really get all the flavors going, but that's how it goes with all good chilis.

I recommend serving this with some good cornbread (I made some but failed to take pictures....will do next time) and shredded cheese. Oh, and beer. And football. If you are into those things, like our household.

Shrimp and Grits

So this week we went to Charleston, SC to see my beautiful cousin and her now husband get married. They've been dating for a long time and live in DC, so I've had a chance to get to know them well as a couple and as people over past years.

We arrive to the house we were staying, just outside Charleston on the Isle of Palms. Coincidentally, I've been here many times. Brett's family does a family reunion on Isle of Palms every year. I highly recommend going if you have the chance!

Anyway, back to the whole story. So we arrive at the house and there is this big beautiful welcome basket waiting for us. And inside? Three big ol bag of grits.

So obviously, I decided to cook with them. And I mean, we were in low country, so obviously I had to make shrimp and grits! Now, I've never made shrimp and grits before. Yeah, yeah, I'm not a northerner at heart.

I searched the internet for inspiration because yeah, that's what I do. And I came across this recipe for Crook's Corner Shrimp and Grits. I made some modifications. Used skim milk rather than half and half. And I used all cheddar rather than the parm and cheddar. But basically the same recipe. And I will say it is absolutely amazing. The whole family chowed it down.

So if you're in the mood for low country cooking, shrimp and grits done this way is great. (Note: if you're looking at the portions when I'm cooking and thinking, this looks more than mine, it's because I doubled the recipe for all of the guests.)