Whole Grain-Chocolate Chip Cookies

These cookies are simple to make and 100% whole grain.  I was actually surprised at how little flour there is the cookies (just 3/4 cup), but the texture is the same as any other chocolate chip-oatmeal type of cookie. Overall, the dough is a tasty, buttery backdrop for whatever mix-ins you like.  I went with chocolate chips, walnuts, and coconut chips - so tasty!  The recommended cookie size (rounded teaspoons) makes teeny tiny cookies - this was good in my case since I was taking them to a coffee hour-type of event, but I think for most people you'll want to make the cookies larger (maybe a rounded tablespoon).  Just be aware that the cooking time will be longer and the yield will be smaller.

Whole Grain-Chocolate Chip Cookies (adapted from King Arthur Flour)
Makes 5 dozen small cookies

1/2 cup butter
1/3 cup plus 1 T white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 large egg
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup rolled oats
2 T milk
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup coconut chips or shredded coconut.

1. Beat together the butter, sugars, vanilla, salt, baking powder, and baking soda until well combined.  Beat in the egg.
2. Add the flour and oats and beat until well combined.  Beat in the milk.
3. Stir in the nuts, chocolate chips, and coconut chips.
4. Cover and chill overnight.
5. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment.
6. Drop small rounded teaspoonfuls of dough onto the cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart.
7. Bake 12-14 minutes, until a light golden brown.  Remove from oven and cool on baking sheets.

Potato Salad with Peas + Cheeseburgers

This was the first meal Tim and I cooked together in our new place: cheeseburgers and potato salad for Memorial Day!  The burgers turned out super juicy and delicious (no surprise using 80/20 ground beef as recommended by Bobby Flay!).  We garnished with cheddar, lettuce, and avocado.  The potato salad is a recipe Tim picked out when I was flipping through one of my food magazines.  It's creamy, a little tangy, and the peas are a great twist.  They add a nice pop of color and sweetness to the potato salad. I also like the fresh herbs, which add something a little special to the dish with minimal effort.  Overall, a great first home-cooked meal in our new place, with many more to come!

Potato Salad with Peas (adapted from Food Network Magazine)
Serves 4-6

1-1/2 pounds waxy potatoes
Salt
2 T cider vinegar
2 cups frozen peas
Heaping 1/2 cup mayonnaise
Heaping 1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup minced parsley
1/4 cup minced chives
Freshly ground black pepper

1. Cut the potatoes into bite-sized pieces and place in a pot.  Cover with water by 2 inches and salt the water.  Bring to a boil, and then simmer until tender.  Remove from pot with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl.  Sprinkle with salt and cider vinegar.
2. Return the water to a boil, add the peas, and simmer until just tender.  Drain, and add to the bowl with the potatoes.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, sour cream, parsley, and chives.  Add to the potatoes and gently toss to combine.  Taste, and season with salt and pepper.  Can be served warm or chilled.

Here were are in our new place...you can see there are still a few boxes to unpack! 

Strawberry Crisp

This weekend has been all about moving - Tim and I moved into new place and we're exhausted but loving it!  Haven't done a lot of home cooking lately because of all the packing and unpacking (plus, we still don't have silverware!) - but, luckily there are plenty of delicious recipes that I made at my old place but never got the chance to post about. 

I've been buying strawberries at the store like crazy lately, and sometimes I definitely buy a few too many! Even if you haven't bought more berries than you can eat, it's definitely worth buying some specifically for this recipe.  The berries are prepared very simply, with just a little bit of sugar, some lemon juice to brighten them up, and some cornstarch to thicken their juices.  The topping is lots of fun, with oats, walnuts, and coconut chips for maximum crunch and flavor.  I didn't add any spices since I don't love cinnamon with strawberries and I couldn't think of another spice that I thought would pair well.  But, the topping is definitely your place to play around with this recipe - you can easily add different nuts, a favorite spice, or anything else you can think of!  Just keep the proportions of flour, sugar, and butter constant and you're good to go.

Strawberry Crisp (adapted from The Budding Cook, original recipe here)
Makes 1 8x8 pan

For the topping:
1/3 cup flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut chips
Pinch of salt
3 T unsalted butter, melted

For the berries:
1 quart strawberries, hulled and quartered
1/4 cup sugar
Juice of one lemon
3 T cornstarch
Pinch of salt

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and grease an 8x8 pan.
2. Combine all the topping ingredients except the butter in a small bowl.  Add the butter and mix in with your fingers until the topping forms a crumbly texture and begins to hold together.
3. Place the strawberries in a large bowl and add the sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, and salt.  Gently toss to combine.  Transfer the berries to the prepared pan.
4. Evenly sprinkle the berries with the topping.  Bake 35-40 minutes, until the top is browned and the berries are bubbling.  Serve warm.

Stir-Fried Chili Beef with Bell Peppers and Snap Peas

For some strange reason, I don't tend to turn to stir fries when I need a quick dinner idea.  I think part of the problem is that I often don't have many of the required ingredients in my pantry, but this recipe is well worth a trip to the grocery store.  Plus, once you make the recipe one time, you'll have leftover sauce ingredients to make it again.

Once you get your ingredients set up, this recipe comes together quickly.  I definitely recommend doing a mise-en-place for this recipe, because it would be easy to burn or overcook the food in the wok if you're busy prepping other ingredients on the counter.  The finished dish is pretty darn spicy (you could use half the amount of hot bean sauce if you're not a spicy fan), with super flavorful, tender beef and colorful, crunchy vegetables.  I really like the sauce because it's got a touch of sweetness from the hoisin sauce, but it's not overly sweet like some stir fry sauces can be.  The dish is definitely best fresh out of the pan, but leftovers kept reasonably well.

Stir-Fried Chili Beef with Bell Peppers and Snap Peas (adapted from Fine Cooking)
Serves 4

12-16 ounces flank steak
3 T Shaoxing rice wine, divided
1 T minced fresh ginger
2 tsp soy sauce
1-1/2 tsp cornstarch
Salt and pepper
1 tsp plus 2 T vegetable oil
2 T hot bean sauce (also called chili bean sauce or chili black bean hot sauce)
2 T hoisin sauce
3 medium garlic cloves, minced
6 ounces snap peas, trimmed and cut in half
1 medium bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch by 2-inch strips
6 medium scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal

1. Cut the beef with the grain into 2-inch-wide strips, and then cut each strip across the grain into 1/4-inch-thick slices.  Transfer to a bowl, and add 1 T of the rice wine along with the ginger, soy sauce, cornstarch, 1/4 tsp salt, and a few grinds of pepper.  Stir until the cornstarch is dissolved.  Add 1 tsp of the oil and stir until coated.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the hot bean sauce, hoisin sauce, and remaining 2 T rice wine.
3. Heat a wok over high heat until a bead of water vaporizes within 1 to 2 seconds of contact.  Add 1 T of the remaining oil, swirl to coat, and then add the garlic.  Stir-fry until fragrant, about 10 seconds.  Push to the sides, and carefully add the beef in one layer.  Cook undisturbed for 1 minute, and then stir-fry with the garlic for another minute, until the beef is browned but not cooked through.  Transfer to a plate.
4. Add the remaining 1 T oil to the wok.  Add the peas, bell pepper, and scallions, sprinkle with 1/2 tsp salt, and stir-fry about 1 minute.  Return the beef and any accumulated juice to the wok.  Add the hot bean sauce mixture by swirling it around the sides of the wok.  Stir-fry until the beef its just cooked through and the vegetables are crisp-tender, 1 minute more.  Serve over rice.

Vanilla Bean Yogurt Cake

When I have a carton of yogurt in the fridge that needs to be eaten, I often turn to yogurt cake.  This one is a great option - it's easy to put together (no mixer needed!), and very tasty.  The cake is not too sweet or rich, making it a tasty dessert but also at least semi-appropriate for breakfast. This yogurt cake wasn't as moist as some I've made, so my favorite way to eat it was toasted with a little something sweet spread on top (Dark Chocolate Dreams Peanut Butter was especially good).

Vanilla Bean Yogurt Cake (adapted from Chocolate and Zucchini, original recipe here)
Makes 1 loaf cake

1 cup plain yogurt (low fat is okay)
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 T light rum
1 tsp ground vanilla
2 cups flour
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
Generous pinch of salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a loaf pan.
2. Whisk together the yogurt, sugar, oil, eggs, rum, and vanilla in a medium bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Add the flour mixture to the yogurt mixture and fold together with a rubber spatula until just combined (some lumps are okay).
4. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan.  Bake 60 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean.

Quinoa Salad with Apple, Fennel, Dried Cherries, and Goat Cheese

I love grain salads - they're easy to make ahead, stash in the fridge, and then pack in my lunch all week for something healthy and filling.  The base of this salad is quinoa, one of my all-time favorite whole grains - it's crunchy, nutty, and has lots of protein to keep me full.  The quinoa is dressed with a tasty cherry balsamic dressing (thanks to my awesome sister for the cherry balsamic vinegar), and then tossed with tons of flavorful add-ins: sweet apples, crunchy fennel, toasted pecans, chewy dried cherries, and creamy goat cheese.  I packed this salad as a sorta main dish alongside half a sandwich and a fruit or vegetable, and it worked perfectly in that role.  If you're making this salad ahead, I recommend squeezing some lemon juice over it just before serving to brighten up the flavors.

Quinoa Salad with Apple, Fennel, Dried Cherries, and Goat Cheese (adapted from Fine Cooking)
Serves 4-6

1-1/2 cups quinoa (I used a mix of red and white), rinsed
Kosher salt
1/3 cup cherry balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 T walnut oil
Salt and pepper
1 medium fennel bulb, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 small apple, cored and chopped into 1/2-inch dice
3/4 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
3/4 cup crumbled goat cheese
1/2 cup dried cherries, coarsely chopped
2 T minced fennel fronds
2 T minced tarragon

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and then add the quinoa and salt.  Lower heat, and simmer about 20 minutes, until tender, adding more water as needed.  Drain and run under cold water until cooled.
2. Meanwhile, whisk together the vinegar, olive oil, and walnut oil.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Combine the cooled quinoa, fennel apple, pecans, goat cheese, cherries, and herbs in a large salad bowl.  Gently toss to combine.  Add about 1/2 cup of the dressing and toss to combine.  Taste and add more vinaigrette, salt, or pepper as needed.  Keeps well in the fridge.

Quick "Tandoori" Chicken

This chicken recipe makes for a quick, flavorful dinner.  Roasting the chicken in the oven is an easy preparation and a good option if you don't have a grill, but it definitely won't give you that tasty charred crust that real tandoori chicken has.  If you do have a grill or a grill pan, those would make for tasty preparation methods, although you might want to cut the chicken pieces larger so it would be less fussy.  The chicken is spicy-but-not-too-spicy with great flavor from the yogurt, ginger, and cumin.  We served it alongside roasted peppers and onions and some fluffy naan-like bread from the Armenian market.

Quick "Tandoori" Chicken (adapted from Cooking Light)
Serves 5-6

2 cups plain 2% yogurt
1/2 cup minced onion
3 T peeled and minced fresh ginger
2 T ground cumin
2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp ground turmeric
6 large garlic cloves, minced
3 pounds chicken breasts, trimmed and cut into strips (like chicken tenders)
Salt
1 T oil

1. Combine the yogurt, onion, ginger, cumin, red pepper flakes, turmeric, and garlic in a large tupperware or bowl.  Add the chicken and toss to combine, making sure each piece of chicken is totally covered.  Cover tightly with plastic wrap, and marinate in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
2. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
3. Remove the chicken from the marinade and discard the marinade.  Sprinkle both sides of the chicken lightly with salt.
4. Line a baking sheet with foil and grease with the oil.  Arrange the chicken on the baking sheet in a single layer.  Roast in the hot oven for about 8 minutes, then drain off any accumulated liquid and flip each piece of chicken. Continue roasting until cooked through and no longer pink in the middle (timing will vary depending on the size of the chicken tenders).