German Pancake Recipe

I'll pretend like I haven't had german pancakes 7 times for the last 2 weeks for dinner. If you haven't had these, you have to try them. My mom, who is not a breakfast or brunch person at all, makes exceptions for this, and it is SO easy to make. They always remind me of her because she always makes these for me when I'm home! They're light, thin, chewy and perfect with simple lemon and powdered sugar. They turn out wonderfully in a trusty cast iron skillet, but I've made them in a pizza pan too. The best part? You can make them with only six ingredients that are most likely to already be in your pantry.

I halve a recipe I've adapted from All Recipes and it's perfect for a single serving in a 15-inch cast iron skillet. 

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 TBS butter, melted

Recipe:

1. Place your cast iron skillet in the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F 
2. Whisk eggs and milk in a bowl.
3. Add flour and salt to the egg and milk mixture and stir until mostly smooth
4. Once oven is preheated, add the 2 TBS melted butter to the cast iron skillet and roll the butter around to cover the bottom and sides of the skillet
5. Pour batter into the skillet and bake for 20 minutes. The sides and middle will pouf up and may be bubbly, but that's ok - it's the best part!
6. Remove from oven, and garnish according to taste.

To serve, I always opt for squeezing a lemon and dusting with powdered sugar, but butter and syrup, pumpkin butter, mixed berries and powdered sugar all work too!

Easy Dinners > Miso Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon

Ever since the juice detox I did a few weeks ago, I have been craving fish like crazy. I know, there could be worse things to crave. Like cigarettes, tater tots or poutine, for example. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I haven't had any meat but have been consuming sea bass, shrimp and salmon pretty much on a daily basis as an effect of the juice detox. As part of this fresh fish kick, I tweaked this Cooking Light salmon recipe and after making this four days in a row for dinner can safely say it is deeeeelicious. The edges get perfectly carmelized - it is the best part.

It's perfect for a weeknight meal and works well if you make it a day ahead to marinade and just grill or throw on a pan for dinner. Part of why I like it is because it tastes VERY similar to the Nobu miso black cod/sea bass recipe I am unnaturally obsessed with, only it's a more wallet-friendly weekday version! 

Ingredients:

• 6 TBS brown sugar (I used brown sugar Splenda blend)
• 6 TBS sake 
• 4 TBS low sodium soy sauce
• 2 TBS grated fresh ginger
• 2 TBS lime juice
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 4 6-ounce skinless salmon filets
• Thinly sliced green onions and toasted sesame seeds, for garnish 

Mix the first 6 ingredients in a long tupperware container. Roll salmon filets around the marinade, cover and leave in fridge for an hour, or better yet, a day before to soak up the flavors. 

When ready to cook, use a nonstick pan and spray with cooking spray. Turn heat to medium-high. Lay filets down on the pan, but don't pour the marinade over the fish in the pan as it will burn. Press the filets down a bit with a spatula so the outside of the filets get a nice sear. Don't worry if it gets a little smoky, you want that bit of char to get carmelized. Cook each side for about 4 minutes, or until preferred doneness.

When the second side has about 2 minutes left and has had its turn to get a good sear, take the remaining marinade left in your container and pour into the pan over the fish and to let the alcohol burn off and thicken a bit.

If you'd like, this is a good time to throw in spinach or green beans to cook in the marinade too. Once the veggies are done cooking, serve fish and veggies with brown rice and some spoonfuls of sauce. Garnish with green onions and toasted sesame seeds.

Cheesy Stuffed Mushrooms > An Easy Party Appetizer

Believe me when I say these stuffed mushrooms are amazing! They're warm, pack a ton of flavor and filled with gooey cheese and sausage. The best part is that they're easy to make - you can do a majority of the work a day or two ahead and then just stuff and pop them in the oven when you need them. I made these at a friend's place for Friendsgiving this year, and they were so easy that I made them again with Mananya and my fam over Thanksgiving. My mom loved the stuffing so much that we made extra and heated it up as a dip with Ritz crackers. SO delicious!

Cheesy Stuffed Mushrooms Recipe, adapted via The Girl Who Ate Everything, via Pioneer Woman

• 24 ounces, White Button Mushrooms (about two large packages)
• 1/2 pound Jimmy Dean Sage Sausage
• 1/2 whole medium onion, finely diced
• 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 8 ounces, Cream Cheese
• 1 whole egg yolk
• ¾ cups parmesan cheese, grated
• ⅓ cups dry white wine
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Parsley, for garnish

Gently separate mushroom stems from the mushroom tops, making sure to pull the top of the stem out fully... this just allows as much cheesy sausagey goodness as possible! :) Finely chop the mushroom stems or throw in a food processor. Line the mushroom tops on a baking sheet and set aside for stuffing later (or cover with foile and place in fridge until you're ready to stuff).

Heat skillet to medium high and brown and crumble sausage. Set aside in a tupperware bowl to cool (make sure it has a lid if you are doing this in advance so you can easily refrigerate with less dirty dishes). 

Add diced onions and garlic to the same skillet and cook for 2 minutes over medium low heat. Pour in the white wine to deglaze the pan until all the liquid has evaporated. Add in chopped mushroom stems, stir to cook for another 2 minutes. Turn off heat and add salt and pepper to taste. Add mushroom, garlic, onion mixture to the sausage in the tupperware bowl.

In another bowl, combine cream cheese and egg yolk. Stir together with Parmesan cheese. Add the cheese and egg mixture to the tupperware bowl with cooled sausage and cooled mushroom stems. Stir mixture together, throw a lid on it and refrigerate so the cheese firms up a bit. If you're making this a day ahead, you can store this mixture in the fridge.

To stuff: Simply smear mixture each mushroom, and be generous with the stuffing! They should create mini mushroom domes.

Bake on baking sheets at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool and garnish with parsley.

These are going in my list of easy, make-ahead (a must for me) party appetizers! What's your favorite holiday app? 

A Mad Men Party

 

 

Check out photos from my Mad Men party this past weekend! People came dressed to impress and the night was appropriately boozy, rowdy and full of gorgeous photo opps - with a Polaroid, of course. Thanks to my pal Jessi for taking some of the fun photos above!

Here's my must-have list for a Mad Men or retro-themed 1960's party. 

The Booze:

• My bar was as stocked as its ever been. I bought all the necessities: Rye, Scotch, Gin, all the makings for Manhattans, Moscow Mules and Old Fashioneds. Luckily, a multi-talented colleague helped to make these classic cocktails for thirsty friends. 
• Another fun idea: find an eight-year-old bartender to dress up in a tux and make Manhattans as they did back in the day (a la Sally Draper). I don't happen to have a spare kid with bartending skills lying around though, unfortch.
• Dangerously strong gin punch in a retro punch bowl set (found at a thrift store) 

The Nosh:

• Ambrosia salad
• Cheese Fondue (amazing recipe, it was the first thing gone!)
• Jell-o. An adult version with lots o' vodka from the visually drool-worthy Jelly Shot Test Kitchen. However, Jell-o and I are not friends.. I had serious problems getting the Jell-o out of the pan, but I don't think most normal people do.
• Finger sandwiches with pimento cheese (courtesy of Lauren)
• Pigs in a blanket!
• Cheese balls of all kinds. I found a great dessert cheese ball recipe from trust AllRecipes.com that tasted like cheesecake with chocolate grahams for dipping. 
• Peanuts
• Chex mix
• Old school Liptons soup dip mix
• Deviled eggs

Party Props & Details:

• Candy cigarettes in a cigarette box with custom matchbooks to remember the event (eBay)
• 1960's magazines from eBay (Ladies Home Journal, Playboy, TV Guide)
• Borrowed items from my parents' basement: record player, rotary phone, retro lamps, dishware
• Plenty of flowered toothpicks
• 1960's music
• As a dork/loser/completefreak, I used Keynote to mimic and personalize the Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce office logo for my TV
• Polaroid camera
• Fun, dapper friends more than willing to dress up, drink copious amounts of booze and eat odd finger foods in a wee Chicago apartment!
• A Mad Men-inspired invitation (below designed by my colleague Kenny):

unbelievably easy dinner > bubble up pizza

 

I feel pretty strongly about meals that are comprised primarily of carbs and cheese (mac and cheese, grilled cheese, calzones, etc.), so I naturally needed to try this Bubble Up Pizza from Pass the Sushi (via The Kitchn). I can’t say it’s the most nutritious dinner in my repertoire, but the fact that I’ve made it twice in one week definitely says something – mainly that it’s delicious and incredibly easy. 

I used my cast iron skillet (brushed it with some olive oil first), and it turned out perfectly. Also, my off-brand biscuits with eight in a tube were plenty. Definitely didn’t need two containers. And bake for a good 20-25 minutes to make sure the biscuits cook all the way through.

Bubble Up Pizza

• 2 containers refrigerated biscuit dough, 6 biscuits each
• 1 jar pizza sauce
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1 cup pepperoni (or other favorite toppings)
• 5 fresh basil leaves

Preheat oven as per directions on dough. With a sharp knife, divide each biscuit into 4. In a large bowl, combine diced biscuit dough, sauce, 1 1/2 cups cheese and toppings. Stir to combine.

Pour mixture into greased oven safe skillet or 9×13 baking pan. Chiffonade the basil and sprinkle on top along with remaining cheese. Bake according to directions on dough, checking to make sure dough is cooked through and cheese is bubbling. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.