Black bean florentine enchiladas, or "What should I do with this spinach?"

My mother, always strongly opinionated, has a very firm stance on wasting food.  During my Catholic upbringing, we were always taught it was a sin, right up there with stealing or coveting your neighbour's toys.  Granted, in a house of six, it was pretty easy to get rid of leftovers before they were past their prime.  In my new single-person dwelling, however, this has proved a little more difficult.  I will spare you any pictures.

This picture, on the other hand, shouldn't be too offensive

I do look for ways to use up perishable foods in the fridge before buying new goods.  This is what led to the following recipe: black bean florentine enchiladas.  Yup, florentine.  Spinach.  Not exactly what comes to mind when you think Mexican food, but I had a bag of baby spinach that was looking less-than-prime, at least for crisp salad applications.  I also had some tortillas in need of some lovin'.  I wanted something tasty, low fat, and high fibre with at least a couple servings of veggies... mission accomplished!

Mmm.  Melty goodness.

I basically decided to alter my standard hummus recipe by adding black beans instead of chickpeas, lime juice and zest instead of lemon, and tomato paste instead of sesame paste (tahini).  Olive oil and cumin stayed the same.  The enchilada sauce is based on Rachel Ray's original 30-Minute Meals book (published before her widespread fame), and is a staple for me.  I added the fresh baby spinach to both the sauce and the filling (I had quite a bit to deal with), and topped it all off with low-fat cheddar cheese.  Mmmm!!!  It seems like a lot of steps, but everything comes together quickly (particularly if you start the sauce before blending up the filling).

I call this one, "Enchilada cross-section, with cilantro and lime".

Black Bean Florentine Enchiladas

Cobbled together by me, for once!

Makes 4 servings (trust me, one enchilada at a time will do ya!)

• 19 oz. can black beans
• 2 Tbsp olive oil (more as needed)
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• Juice and zest of 1 lime
• 1 Tbsp ground cumin
• About 1 1/2 to 2 cups of baby spinach
• Small handful cilantro (if you like it)
• About 1 Tbsp water (I just fill one of the juiced lime halves with water and chuck it in)
• 1/2 to 1 tsp Sriracha hot sauce (or your favourite kind, to taste)
• Salt and pepper, to taste (OR, add one packet of OXO beef bouillion.  Gives that nice beefy flavour without the actual meat)
• 4 large whole wheat tortillas (or your favourite variety)
• Enchilada sauce (either store-bought, or made as below)
• About 3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I used low fat)
• About two green onions, sliced thinly

1. Set your oven to 450ºF
2. Stir together everything up until the salt and pepper and using an immersion blender or food processor, process until smooth.  Add a little more olive oil if the mixture is too stiff or dry.
3. Divide the bean mixture into four portions.  Add to tortillas and roll up.
4. Put a small layer of enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9x13" pan.  Place your rolled-up tortillas in the pan, and top with remaining sauce (save some for another time if it gets to be too much).  Top with green onions, then cheese (in that order, to prevent burnt onions).  
5. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or so, until cheese is melted and filling is heated through.

Florentine Enchilada Sauce:

• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 small white onion, grated
• 1 28 oz can pureed tomatoes
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• Pinch of ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• Coarse salt, to taste
• About 1 cup baby spinach leaves (or omit, for a more authentic version)

1.  Heat garlic in olive oil in a pot over medium heat until it starts to sizzle.  Add the onion by grating it directly into the pot.  Cook onion and garlic for about 2 minutes.
2. Add pureed tomatoes and seasonings.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low.  
3. Add the spinach to the pot and stir until it wilts in.  If you want, you can puree it up further with an immersion blender or food processor; some people like to have the full leaves in there.  Keep at a simmer until enchiladas are ready to top.

 

So, I'll be the first to admit that the green spinach leaves made the sauce and filling look a bit... funky.  At least in terms of colour.  But honestly, I was just happy knowing I was getting Popeye-approved nutrients without the foremost flavour being the spinach.  Also, if I'm not much mistaken, this dish is pretty green-light!  Low fat, high fibre... hooray!  A feel-good meal all around.

Off to do some healthy jogging before delving into decidedly unhealthy peanut butter brownies (more on that later!)

-Honeybee

Chocolate, hazelnuts, and a new tradition

Just as I feel I'm settling in Winnipeg, it arrives: the dreaded "Sign your life away for the next year, or get out of our apartment building" notice.  So, I'm about to uproot myself again and move within the city to something more affordable (and less lavish.  Does anyone truly NEED a pool, hot tub, gym, and car wash in their parkade?  Probably not).

Despite changes in living conditions, though, I'm laying down roots in other areas.  Specifically, I've started a new tradition (though I've alluded to it before).  I have become the official birthday cake baker for my lovely friends/coworkers.  Last week, I made an absolutely gorgeous (in my modest opinion!) chocolate hazelnut cake for my wonderful colleague Linda, with the help of my (now-famous) birthday cake quiz.  Here's the result!

This cake doesn't contain any flour.  It also contains a whole (400g) jar of Nutella.  How can you go wrong?!

As per Linda's quiz, I decided Skor would be a nice addition to this tasty treat.  There's one food-processed bar in the cake itself, and two more decorating the top.  Mmm!

Happy moment in my life: realizing I can get buttercream icing from a GIANT TUB at Bulk Barn :)  Makes a nice contrast for decoration with the Skor, hazelnuts, and chocolate ganache, no?

I don't often quote that 1970's rug-chested Englishman... but YEAH BABY!!

Deb in my office, holding the last piece on a very classy brown paper towel.  See how hard I work on Tuesday afternoons, handing out cake to all and sundry?

Overall I was EXTREMELY pleased with how the recipe turned out.  My coworker even asked me for the recipe to make for her own Hubs, since he loves Nutella.  I love getting ideas from other blogs and tweaking them slightly.  I suppose this is as good a time as any to formally thank my favourite curvy British food goddess Nigella Lawson, who originally published the recipe.  She may try to turn her recipes into some sort of strange erotic experience on her shows, but MAN that woman makes good food.

Thinking this was a good encore following my "Third Wheel" (PB, Nutella and banana) crèpe at Kawaii,
-Honeybee

Triple Decker Grilled Cheese

Laying the foundation...

Triple decker sandwiches have always held me in a certain sense of awe.  I have a very clear memory of my father making a triple-decker peanut butter and jam sandwich at the cottage we used to rent as kids.  It looked so luxurious, so EXCESSIVE... and far too big for my 5-year-old mouth.

Fast-forward about 20 years, after considerable mandibular growth and freedom from the confines of parental sandwich rules.  A couple of weekends ago, my new neighbour/work buddy Deb and I enjoyed the exquisite culinary offerings of Baked Expectations in Osborne Village.  Fan.  Freakin'. Tastic.  I had suggested that we split a sandwich or wrap for an entree, then each order a dessert.  Deb suggested the (you guessed it, you smart person you...) triple decker grilled cheese.

This thing was like no grilled cheese I'd ever had before.  Three slices of whole grain bread, two kinds of cheese, grilled mushrooms and onions, and some fresh lettuce and tomatoes (there was possibly one other vegetable, but I forget what it was).  DELISH.  I even ate the mushrooms; it was that good.  Another fantastic point: fresh-cut shoestring fries, and a pickle spear.  Mmmm.

Just an FYI- there's sautéed garlic and onions under that cheddar.  Oh, yes.

So, while catching up on some much-needed leisure reading and rest on Sunday, I thought I might try to create an homage to my experience at Baked.  Not recreate, you understand.  I don't think I'm capable of such deliciousness.  Regardless, I gave it a good shot.  I used three slices of cheddar and onion ciabatta that Deb had brought to accompany our pre-Manitoba Moose hockey game meal.  I toasted these under the broiler on one side, then flipped them over and added swiss cheese to one slice, and sautéed onions and garlic covered in cheddar cheese to the other.  The last slice just got toasted, with a bit of margarine.  I think you can see what I added to the last slice above, prior to assembly.

Very yummy lunch... trip to the deli not required!

Hubs was convinced that the baby spinach and tomatoes didn't belong.  I respectfully disagree.

You KNOW those pickles are necessary.  They're like a sandwich food group all on their own.  My favourites: Vlassic kosher baby garlic dills.  Mmm.

While I most certainly have recreated (improved upon?) my father's triple decker sandwich efforts (peanut butter, raspberry jelly, honey, AND bananas... take that, papa!!), I think this particular sammy is a bit more refined; perhaps less childish.  Good grief, I'm even making grown-up sandwiches now... is this what happens when you graduate and start a career??

Thinking she'll pick up bananas and white Wonderbread on her next shopping trip to relive simpler times,
-Honeybee

Citrus crazed

 It's hard for me to believe that, once upon a time, a young Honeybee really didn't like citrus fruits.  Oranges were too hard to peel, and had too much pith.  Lemons and limes were far too sour for her sweet tooth.  Grapefruits were right out of the question.

I'm not sure if more citrus has become available on the market in more recent years, but I count this family of fruits among my favourites now.  I'm especially excited that 1) it's blood orange season and 2) Manitoba stocks blood oranges.  Tangerines, mandarines, and clementines are up there in the top five as well.  So many of my recipes call for freshly-squeezed lime or lemon juice, +/- zest, that I find myself stocking up on these during every shopping trip.

Blood orange slice, for those who are unfamiliar.  If you're in Windsor, go to Joseph's Farm Fresh Produce and buy some now!!!

 I've tried out a couple of noteworthy citrus recipes over the past couple of months: clementine cosmopolitans, at both Hubs' family Christmas and Sher's birthday, as well as tangerine meltaways.  Behold!

Pouring the clementine simple syrup (seen bubbling away at the beginning of the post) into the rest of the cosmo mix: cranberry juice, lime juice, and vanilla vodka.  Mmm.  Recipe is here, courtesy of Claire Robinson (who is just adorable).

These puppies are delicious, but STRONG... definitely made for sipping.  I made a whole pitcher full... and drove to Jess' place with it :S  I kept praying that 1) it wouldn't spill and 2) I wouldn't get pulled over!

Sorry for the blurry pics... my camera wasn't loving me this evening.  They're a very pretty blush colour!

I needed to make something for our bi-weekly genetic counsellor meeting (a chance to review tough cases and kvetch about life in Genetics & Metabolism at HSC Winnipeg).  I'd been wanting to try a few more recipes from my Anna Olson cookbook, so I did what I usually do: check the ingredients list, and make whatever recipe I can with what I have on hand.  The result?  Tangerine meltaways, a sort of shortbread-y cookie that apparently originated in the South.  Tasty!!

My cookbook is so well-loved (mistreated?) that its pages are falling out!  It still serves, though.  Don't worry about trying ot make out the fine print; you can view the recipe here.

Again, camera wasn't super-cooperative, but here are the rolled and sliced cookies.  Look at all that zest!!

Enjoying some meltaways, with some blood orange slices and lemon thriller tea.  I actually used clementine & blood orange juice and zest in the cookies, as opposed to tangerines, which gave them a pinky-orange colour.  P.S.- Ni, click the link in the last sentence.  I've had it stuck in my head this entire post, and it makes me think of you!

Close up!

The glaze DOES dry matte, like Anna says... but this one looks shiny due to some spilled tea.  Oops!

A nice little evening snack.

There IS one citrus recipe that I've personally never attempted... but I've had a HUGE hankering for over the past while.  This would be GOOD key lime pie.  The kind that's not really green, more yellowish, and made with sweetened condensed milk.  I'll have to wait for a good excuse to make one (maybe St. Patty's day?)  If anyone has a tried-and-true recipe, let me know... otherwise I'll turn to Anna again.

Incredibly confident that she'll never be stricken by scurvy,
-Honeybee

Muffin Mania!

My muffin pan has gotten a good workout lately.  Whenever I'm feeling like I need a little pick-me-up, out comes the dozen-cupped baking vessel.  In the past few weeks, I've re-made some favourites of mine: pumpkin muffins and berry bran muffins.  I tweaked them both a little bit this time around... details below!

Pumpkin Muffins
Adapted from "Muffin Mania" by Cathy Prange and Joan Pauli

• 4 eggs
• 2 cups white sugar
• 1 cup oil
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1 3/4 cup pumpkin (small can)
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 cup raisins

1. Beat eggs slightly. Add sugar, oil, pumpkin and beat thoroughly.
2. Add dry ingredients and mix until smooth. Stir in raisins.
3. Fill greased muffin cups 2/3 full.Bake at 375° for 15-20 minutes.

Mmm, nice and moist.  They didn't suffer at all from cutting down on the oil content.  Plus, I feel a little bit better having subbed in some whole wheat flour.

This next recipe comes from my dear friend Andrea.  I'll give you the original instructions below, then let you know what's going on with that ooey gooey goodness (see above) afterwards:

Berry Bran Muffins
From Andrea… not sure of her original source

Makes 9-12 muffins, depending on how you fill the tins

• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup wheat bran (you can also use All Bran)
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup of frozen or 1 cup of fresh berries

1. Mix together the egg, milk, and oil.  Stir in the wheat bran and let sit five minutes.
2. Stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl.
3. Combine wet and dry ingredients until just moistened. Stir in berries.
4. Spoon into greased muffin tin (or cupcake wrappers). 
5. Bake at 400ºF for 20 minutes. 

My modification: À la Tim Hortons "Fruit explosion" muffins, I substituted some peeled, chopped apple for some of the berries, and added a small dollop of PC Blue Menu raspberry jam on top of the raw batter just before putting them in the oven.  No more messing around with the jelly jar when it's baked right in!

Overall, these were super-tasty.  The key is to eat them in moderation.... not four in a row (I'm not addicted... I can quit anytime I want...) I did fairly well with these, bringing just one at a time in for a mid-morning snack at work, with another one alongside a cup of tea for an after-dinner snack.  Reasonable, right?  Right??

Thinking she'll use up more of that jam making her godmother's PB&J muffins...
-Honeybee

More homemade pasta

 I have one piece of kitchen equipment that I don't use often enough.  This would be my pasta machine.

There she is, in all her glory!!  She was a birthday gift from Nonna the same year that Hubs proposed.  It was a good day.

As much as I scoff at Giada De Laurentiis' macrocephalic bobblehead and overuse of cleavage as a way to increase male viewership, I have to admit that the woman has some good recipes.  I received a copy of her book, "Everyday Pasta", as a gift some years ago, and have been meaning to try her shortrib ragù recipe.  I had Jess and Kyle over for "cat orientation" prior to my holiday visit to Windsor, and used them as guinea pigs treated them to a scrumptious dinner as a thank you for looking after the fur babies.

Mmm.  Beef shortribs.  In all honesty, this marks the first time I've cooked with them.  Shameful, I know.

The ragù.  I LOVE that the beef simmers in this for TWO HOURS before being removed, shredded, and returned to the pot.  My kitchen smelled like a mamoni's fantasy world.  The recipe can be found here.  I also find it hilarious that this food writer (whom I've never met) also compares Giada to a dashboard ornament.  Glad I'm not the only one!!

On to the pasta.  Thanks to my wonderful aunt Lisa, I got Nonna's recipe: "2 1/2 cups of cake and pastry flour for 5 eggs or 4 eggs and 2 half eggshells full of water.  Add more flour as needed, probably about another cup or so. 5 eggs should be good for 5 or 6 servings but those are big servings. I think it's about 1 1/2 pounds of pasta"

Rollin'.  In the future, I think I'll make these one setting thicker.  They were just a liiiittle too thin to stand up to chunky meaty sauce!

So pretty :)

Finished product, topped with shaved pecorino romano.  Heavenly.

I also made parmesan popovers (they're in the blue bowl in the background), but I honestly didn't prefer them.  Kyle seemed to like them, so I gave him the leftovers.

Get that fork in there!! Delish.

Overall I was very pleased with the results (minus the popovers... I'm not even going to link you to the recipe).  Hubs, again, was jealous that he missed a good meat dish... lucky for him, I had enough ragù left over to freeze for another night.  It's just waiting for his arrival in this fair (and freezing!) city!

Thinking that an early April snowstorm might be a good excuse to serve up the leftovers,
-Honeybee

Spicy Thai Basil Eggplant

I frequently get a hankering for Thai food.  I've tried a fair few places in the city so far, and most have been quite good... but none have fully lived up to Basil Court back home.  So, in an effort to have the dishes I want, when I want them, I've been turning to making them myself.  You've seen my Pad Thai... that kicked the craving for awhile.  I was shocked to discover that I didn't take pictures of my matsaman curry efforts (maybe I was just too hungry to bother?), but here is my attempt at spicy Thai basil eggplant.

Mmm.  Eggplant.  I love the long, skinny Chinese variety... they're so pretty and tender!

A bit of a closer look.  See the lovely colour on those nice thin skins?

White onion, zucchini, red pepper, and basil standing at the ready.  The recipe didn't call for zucch, but I had one that was going round the bend, so I just tossed it in.

Mmm.  Look at that purple!

Pepper and onion, getting fried up.  Yes, I added the pepper.  I'm trying very hard to expand my palette with regards to the capsicum family.

Bringing it all together.  The sauce was nice and sweet and sticky... delish!!

On a bed of rice.  Funny, in this pic, some of the eggplant looks like chicken or pork pieces.  I assure you, it's all veg.

 Thai Spicy Eggplant

Adapted from "Simply Thai Cooking" by Wandee Young

Makes 3-4 servings.

• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 3 Asian eggplants, sliced into 2-inch wedges
• 1 zucchini, sliced into 2-inch wedges
• 2 Tbsp vegetable oil (in addition to the above oil amount)
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 fresh hot chilies, finely chopped (sadly, I was out of chilies, so subbed 1 tsp chili flakes and 1 tsp Sriracha)
• 1 small white onion, roughly chopped
• 1/4 medium red pepper, cut into thin strips
• 2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 20 whole leaves fresh basil (I only had Italian basil, not Thai, but meh)
• 1/2 tsp cornstarch dissolve in 1 Tbsp water
• 2 1/2 cups freshly steamed rice

1. Heat 1 cup oil in a wok on high heat, until it is about to smoke.  Add eggplant and zucchini and fry on all sides for 2 minutes until nicely browned, and flesh is soft and can easily be pierced.
2. Remove the eggplant from the oil with a slotted spoon and place in a colander set over a bowl to drain off the excess oil.  Discard the oil in the wok and wipe it clean.
3. Add 2 Tbsp oil to the wok and immediately add garlic and chilies and stir-fry for 30 seconds.  Add onion and red pepper strips and stir-fry until softened.
4. Add the fried eggplant back to the wok.  Add soy sauce, sugar, sriracha, and 1/2 cup water and fry until everything is bubbling happily.
5. Add 2/3 of the basil leaves and the cornstarch dissolved in the 1Tbsp of water.  Stir-fry until sauce has thickened somewhat.  Remove from heat.
6. Transfer to a serving dish and top with the rest of the basil leaves.  Serve immediately with the steamed rice.

Finished product!  Time to chow down!

This was a pretty tasty dish overall.  I remember feeling a tiny bit disappointed with it... but that could have been because I was coming down with something, if my internal calendar serves.  I'll have to try it again soon!  I'll also have to make Matsaman again, so you can see how happy it makes me.  So.  Happy.

Looking forward to trying more Thai recipes and restaurants,
-Honeybee