Mixed Berry Smoothie

One of my daughter's favorite ways to waste pass the time is playing computer games. These days, every kids' show has a website with games and other activities, some of which include things you can print. My daughter found the print button very entertaining right from the get-go (which quickly got out of hand), so we had to impose a one-page-a-day limit. 

Many of these sites also have recipes for kids, so last week Maddie used her one page to print a smoothie recipe. She asked me if we could make it, so we did (at least a variation of it). It received two small, but enthusiastic, thumbs up.

MIXED BERRY SMOOTHIE

Yield: 32 oz.

16 oz. fresh or frozen* mixed berries, stems removed if fresh

   (such as strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries)

1 cup low-fat plain yogurt (or vanilla yogurt)

1 cup orange juice

honey to taste (optional)

Place all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth.  Serve immediately.

*This is great with frozen berries because they give the smoothie an icy quality. Of course you can always add a little actual ice if using fresh berries.

adapted from Berry Cherry Groovy Smoothie, Fresh Beat Band, Nick Jr.

We used frozen berries (since it isn't exactly berry season).

We used vanilla yogurt (so we didn't need any honey).

mixing

This really is a nice simple recipe to make with your kids. It's so easy and fun for them to pour everything into the blender themselves and of course they love pushing the buttons--then again, who doesn't?

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Jambalaya

iH a p p y  M a r d i s  G r a s !i

those are bona fide Mardi Gras beads
from New Orleans in the background

Since today is Fat Tuesday, I thought I'd get in the spirit of Mardi Gras and cook up a big pot of jambalaya. There are many variations of jambalaya, (the most common being sausage & chicken and shrimp). This one has a bit of everything thrown in (I like to think of it as jumble-aya). Of course the beauty of a dish like this is that it's very flexible, so you can make it with any protein you want and adjust the spiciness to your liking.

I chose this recipe because a) Emeril is from New Orleans, so I figured he should know his way around jambalaya (or get his ass kicked out of town if he doesn't) and b) I already had a jar of Essence of Emeril seasoning from when I made crab cakes last month.

JAMBALAYA

Yield: 10 to 12 servings

1/2 cup canola oil or vegetable oil

1 lb. andouille sausage, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch slices

3 cups chopped yellow onions

1/2 cup chopped green bell peppers

1/2 cup chopped red bell peppers
1/2 cup chopped celery

1 teaspoon Essence of Emeril Original Seasoning (store bought or see recipe below)
1 teaspoon salt, divided

1/2 teaspoon cayenne*, divided

1 heaping tablespoon chopped garlic

1 1/2 lb. boneless chicken thighs and breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes

1/2 lb. ham steak, cubed

3 bay leaves

3 cups medium-grain white rice

6 cups water

1/2 lb. medium, shelled raw shrimp

1 cup chopped scallions, green tops only

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1.      Heat the oil in a large cast-iron Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the onions, bell peppers, celery, Essence, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of the cayenne. Stirring often, brown the vegetables and sausage until they are caramelized, about 15 minutes. Scrape the bottom and sides of the pot to loosen any browned particles.

2.      Add the garlic, and cook for 1 minute. Season the chicken with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and remaining 1/4 teaspoon cayenne. Add the chicken, ham, and the bay leaves to the pot. Brown the chicken for 8 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot to loosen any browned particles.

3.      Add the rice and stir for 2 to 3 minutes to coat evenly. Add the water, stir to combine, and cover. Cook over medium heat for 30 to 35 minutes, without stirring, or until the rice is tender and the liquid has been absorbed.

4.      Add the shrimp during the last 5 minutes of cooking and cook until just pink. Remove the pot from the heat and let stand, covered, for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the bay leaves. Stir in the green onions and parsley. Taste and adjust salt if needed.

*use more cayenne if you want it very spicy (but be careful because the andouille adds a
  fair amount of spice)


Essence of Emeril Original (Creole) Seasoning

Yield: about 2/3 cup

2 1/2 tablespoons paprika 

2 tablespoons salt

2 tablespoons garlic powder

1 tablespoon black pepper

1 tablespoon onion powder

1 tablespoon cayenne pepper 

1 tablespoon dried oregano 

1 tablespoon dried thyme

Combine all ingredients thoroughly and store in an airtight jar or container.

slightly adapted from Emeril Lagasse

sausage cooking with onions, peppers, celery & spices

chicken & rice already added

water added

adding the shrimp (my shrimp was on the
large side, so I chopped it up a little)

jambayala time!

Laissez les bon temps rouler! (Let the good times roll!) That's the unofficial motto of New Orleans. I've been there several times and never actually heard anyone say that, so don't hold your breath if you visit. But that is the general feeling in the air. It's a great, really fun city (of course I'm a little bias because my sister lives there, so it's kind of like a little piece of me is there too).
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Skibo Castle Ginger Crunch

Recently my daughter's school had "International Day" and all the kids were supposed to dress in clothes from their native country. We had several countries to choose from, but we went with Scotland because it was the easiest to dress (plaid and you're done). 

Then came the realization that we also had to bring in food from that country. Haggis sprang to mind (and then sprang right out again). I saw a recipe for a Scotch whiskey chocolate cake that looked really good (but even I'm not that inappropriate).

So I went with Skibo Castle Ginger Crunch (a shortbread with ginger caramel on top). I don't know if they really eat much of this in Scotland, but the author of the recipe, Doon Fergusson-Howlett, says it was a Christmas teatime favorite when he cooked in castles in Scotland and that was good enough for me (and so was the shortbread)!

SKIBO CASTLE GINGER CRUNCH

Yield: 64

shortbread base:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

topping:

3/4 stick unsalted butter

1 tablespoon Lyle's Golden Syrup (British cane sugar syrup)*

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

*available in the baking or International aisle of most supermarkets

1.      Preheat oven to 350° F.  Grease a 13- by 9-inch metal baking pan.

2.      Make shortbread base: Sift together dry ingredients and blend in butter with your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Press evenly into bottom of pan (base will be thin). Bake in middle of oven until golden and crisp, 20 to 25 minutes.

3.      Make topping just before shortbread is done: Melt butter in a small saucepan and whisk in remaining ingredients until smooth. Bring to a boil and simmer, stirring, for 30 seconds.

4.      Pour topping: Remove shortbread from oven and pour topping over, tilting pan to cover shortbread evenly. Cool for 5-10 minutes, then cut into small rectangles (8 rows lengthwise and 8 crosswise) while still slightly warm. Cool completely before serving.

recipe from Doon Fergusson-Howlett (Dublin, Ireland)

shortbread crumbs

shortbread dough patted down

shortbread dough baked

topping simmering

topping cooling

cut into bars

ready for crunching

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