I can't even believe I am making this confession on my blog but here it is. 50 Shades of Grey just isn't holding my attention. I have to admit that I read it and I think to myself what type of independent, strong willed, self confident woman would agree to such a fucked up arrangement. Although the sex scenes are steamy, sensual and erotic...to be honest I just can't get passed the degrading nature of their relationship dynamic.

So the other day while I was getting my hair done I was sitting under the dryer and I thought I could either read 50 Shades of Grey or download a new book. So I opted for downloading a new book and OMG am I glad I did. I downloaded "Yes, Chef" by Marcus Samuelson and if you are unfamiliar with him he is a NYC  Chef who won Top Chef Masters a few seasons ago. However, the depth of his story is so much more powerful. I was nearly in tears just with his introduction and the sensitivity, emotion and honesty of his story. Samuelson was born in Ethiopia  to a single Mother in a poverty ridden land. When he was approximately 18 months old (I believe) his Mother was infected with tuberculosis during the epidemic in 1972. His Mother recognizing that she was close to death took Samuelson and his older sister for a walk to the nearest hospital which I believe was 75 miles away...on foot. She never left the hospital and both of her children were orphaned. He has no memories of his Mother and no pictures, yet the smell of Ethiopian cooking spices are the closest thing to an association.  He and his sister were adopted by a Swedish couple and that is where he was raised. His sense of gratitude and love for his adopted parents and grandparents are beyond heartwarming. And I will be honest although I have never been that woman who has felt her clock tick or dreamt of being a Mother the thought of saving and nurturing a child who has no family is a pretty overwhelming and amazing thought. Don't worry I don't see myself becoming the next Angelina Jolie, but I have to admit I was pretty overwhelmed by emotion with his story.

Super yum!!

Tonight after the gym I got home and all I felt like doing was baking. Sure I was starving and I could have made dinner, however I opted for these for dinner instead:

And I decided to make the easiest, fastest, one pot brownie recipe known to man. You may ask how I exactly know that this is the easiest, fastest, one pot brownie recipe and really it doesn't matter people make up their own titles all the time. "World's Best Hot Dog Restaurant," or "Best Pizza in California," or "Chewiest Rice on the Planet." Seriously you really can't verify those claims so people make them up, use them for marketing and we all blindly believe them.... I am just following suit.

This is the 1 pot

But seriously you do make these brownies in a pot and only 1 pot and they are pretty darn easy. The recipe came from Rachael Ray and this recipe is perfect for those nights when you need brownies stat, you are suffering from PMS crazy cravings or you have an amazing bottle of red wine and you need chocolate to go with it. Ok to be honest I don't fit any of those scenarios tonight, but I felt like baking and so I did. But you are probably pretty impressed with my imagination, ay.

Yeah I have always had a very vivid imagination. As a child I had an imaginary horse, I truly believed I could build a house and my best friend and I tried to build it in the backyard...let me just say the linoleum floor looked pretty good but we kind of failed when it came to walls. I also had no problem lining up all of my stuffed animals and putting them on an airplane so I could serve them fake food and tea. I also enjoyed taking all of my Mothers dishes out of the cupboards so I could pretend to own a restaurant. Ahhh yes imagination is not something I am lacking. Unfortunately as we get older the whole imagination thing isn't as easily embraced...it goes from being "cute" when you are 7 to being "creepy" when you are 30ish.

Melt 4T of butter with 2 oz unsweetened chocolate in your one pot. Take the pot off the heat and whisk in 1 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 2 eggs and 1/4 tsp salt. Stir in 1/2 cup flour and scrape into a parchment lined 8" square baking dish. Cook for 18 minutes at 350 degrees and voila instant brownies. Cool and cut.

This is the parchment paper disaster I was describing

I do have to say that I really don't understand parchment paper and I always have trouble with it. It always ends up deforming my baked goods rather than just creating a non-stick surface. This recipe showed a picture of parchment paper all perfectly cut on the corners and sitting pretty in the pan...so I tried cutting the corners and mine just didn't look nice at all. So I decided to google parchment paper and see what I could learn about my baking nemesis. Did you know its grease and water resistant? According to TLC cooking its purpose is to provide a non-stick surface with easy clean-up. It also allows you to pick up an entire batch of cookies or brownies easily...umm when was the last time you were like damn how can I pick up these 15 cookies at the exact same time? Just saying! It can also be used in the microwave and finally it can also be made into a disposable pastry bag....oh thank you god. However, I did learn that I could also just use cooking spray to create the same surface...phew!

So I spent this morning cleaning out my email Inbox and while I was doing this I had an epiphany. "I am a recipe hoarder." I used to be the variety that would cut all sorts of recipes out of magazines, newspapers, etc. But today I have swapped one addiction for another....my hoarding is now being hidden by a very full Inbox. I have 100's of recipes in my Inbox. Pretty much my process of recipe elimination goes something like this:

• Does this sound yummy?
• Do you think you might want to make this recipe someday (someday is defined as sometime within the next 25-50 years)?
• Is the picture pretty?
• Would you make this for a guest or party? If not, would you make this for yourself? If not, would you make this and give it away?
• Does this recipe include an ingredient that I want to try?
• Does this recipe sound odd but you may want to try it in order to broaden your horizons?
• Does this recipe have an ingredient in it that sounds disgusting but you may need to try the ingredient again in order to keep an open mind?
• Is this something you have always wanted to try?
• Do you know someone who might enjoy this recipe?
• Do you think you might meet someone someday (see above definition) who might enjoy this recipe?

Let me start by saying thank you to everyone who emails me recipes. I love the "food porn" and the inspiration! And tonight the Thai Style Stir Fried Chicken is thanks to one of those fans who keeps me motivated and excited about what I am going to cook next. So for some random reason I am on a chicken kick. Chicken piccata this past weekend and this week I made the Thai chicken and I also made Chicken and Rice with Cilantro Poblano Sauce. Both of these recipes were from Cooking Light and both of these recipes were full of flavor...very different flavors but great flavors all the same. And yes I did add extra salt in both recipes.

Chicken and Rice with Cilantro Poblano Sauce

The Thai Chicken recipe was well Thai influenced with the coconut sauce and curry paste. I haven't used red curry paste before and it has a much more subtle flavor than curry powder or other curry pastes. I definitely recommend it if you like the subtle curry flavor but you aren't a die hard aficionado.

As for the Chicken and Rice with Cilantro Poblano Sauce. I loved the rice!! The chicken was good, but the rice really had a lot of flavor. I also learned a few very valuable ingredient lessons. The recipe called for poblano peppers but some grocery stores call them pasillas. I also learned that the recipe calls for cremini mushrooms but some grocery stores call them baby bellas...so save yourself several trips to multiple grocery stores and keep those little facts in the back of your mind.

As a side note can I just make a few chicken observations? Well hell of course I can because this is my blog and you can't stop me. So here they are:

1. There is nothing more disgusting than the smell of chicken wrappers in the garbage for too long. Yeah made that mistake this week.
2. Did you know that if a chicken has red earlobes it will lay brown eggs and if it has white earlobes it will lay white eggs? And don't ask me where the chicken earlobe is located on a chicken that is way beyond my pay grade. 
3. Did you know a cornish game hen is a 5-6 week old chicken? I totally thought it was a different animal...sure in the bird family...but I didn't know it was in the chicken family. 
4. Americans eat 80lbs of chicken per capita compared to 63lbs of beef per capita. 
5. Hooters sells 30 million lbs of chicken wings per year and I am sorry but I just don't think they are all that great. Please don't hate me but I have had better chicken wings elsewhere...if you are going for the boobs way to be honest.
6. And finally the best new of all...a chicken runs 9 miles an hour and most humans run 12-15 miles an hour...so I could out run a chicken in the event that one of them wants to attack me. Good to know, right? Especially since I have been chased by a goose...just what you wanted to know

Let me start with a bit of a vent. I took a picture of dinner last night using Instagram...which was my favorite photo app...and the picture looked great...and this morning when I went to download the picture for my blog it was gone. Grrrr...so I am sorry this is a blind food blog today devoid of a picture of my cooking prowess. But this recipe is just too good to pass up so here it goes.

So last night I decided to make chicken piccata. I figured hell this is my 3rd attempt and I never make anything three times so...this has got be pretty friggin amazing, right? And ya know what? I think I perfected chicken piccata. This recipe had the perfect crust on the chicken and the white wine, lemon, caper sauce was perfect....just tangy enough, with just enough butter to make it smooth but not so rich you are overwhelmed and just the right amount of capers and garlic to give it a really good flavor. It also has lemon slices sauteed in butter for the top and so the presentation is gorgeous as well. I served the piccata with orzo pasta that was tossed with butter and Parmesan...perfect.

The night was even better due to a last minute dinner guest that I have been wanting to cook for for a long time. So thank you for making the meal brighter.

I believe this recipe came from Cooks Illustrated but I will be honest since I am one of those people that cut out recipes and carry them around...this recipe has been carried around for so long I am just not sure of its origin. However, I definitely recommend you try it as it is easy, tasty and although it looks like a lot of time and effort went into its creation it is not time intensive. The only kind of odd thing about the recipe is that its scaled for 2 servings and most of the time I usually cook for 4, but that can easily be adjusted.

Chicken Piccata
Season:
4 chicken cutlets *** I just bought thin chicken cutlets and those worked well and saved time ***
Saute in:
2T vegetable oil
Deglaze with:
1/4 cup dry white wine
1t garlic, minced
Add:
1/2 cup chicken broth
2T fresh lemon juice
1T capers, drained
Finish with:
2T unsalted butter
lemon slices
Garnish with:
chopped fresh parsley

Season cutlets with salt and pepper then dust with flour. Spray a saute pan with nonstick spray, add vegetable oil and heat over med-high.
Saute cutlets 2-3 min on one side. Flip the cutlets over and saute the other side 1-2 min with the pan covered. Transfer the cutlets to a warm plate; pour off fat from the pan
Deglaze pan with wine and add minced garlic. Cook until garlic is slightly brown and liquid is nearly gone, about 2 min.
Add broth, lemon juice and capers. Return cutlets to pan and cook on each side 1 min. Transfer cutlets to a warm plate.
Finish with butter and lemon slices. Once better melts pour sauce over cutlets. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley and serve.

So here is my challenge to you all. If you make this recipe please take a pic and send it to me so I can post them on the blog...don't worry you will get creative rights. I promise I won't be a food photo clepto but I would love pics of this dish. And seriously we all know I won't be making this a 4th time. Hope you are all having a fabulous weekend....cheers!

So let me start by saying thank you to everyone who has purchased the worlds cutest aprons for me. I love them! I think I can even go so far as to say I collect them because I get amazing aprons as gifts, I purchase them everywhere I go and I seriously love the idea of them. Um but ask me if I wear them...um yeah not so much. And tonight was yet another occasion in which I didn't wear an apron and I should have. Because as I was shaking the spray can of cooking oil to grease my donut pan I pulled the lid off vigorously and sprayed cooking spray all over my face, my shirt and the entire kitchen. Sure the apron couldn't have saved my face or my kitchen but hell it could have at least saved my shirt which is now stained with oil and looks as if a 4 year old child got a hold of it with oil paints. Yipee!!



I know this is random but I purchased a donut pan because I decided I wanted to try and make...well donuts. This variety is not the fried kind its the cake kind which is baked not fried...which is a good thing since as many of you know I have a frying phobia. I also decided to try and use a donut mix for my first go round. And they seriously turned out perfectly! I purchased this mix at Let's Get Cookin' in Westlake but I am sure you can get it on-line. It is super easy to make. Just beat an egg, add oil and buttermilk and the donut mix. Whisk until combined and put in the donut pan. Be forewarned the mix is pretty thick so the hardest part is spreading it in the pan. However, bake them in the oven for 11 minutes, let them cool and flip them on a cooking rack and voila! The icing is also included in the mix and all you need to do is add melted butter and mix and its instant icing...actually instant chocolate coma. But they come out looking perfect and they taste chocolaty and cakey. Next time I will definitely make the dough from scratch.



I also made a super yummy, light and easy scallop pasta recipe tonight. Its from Cooking Light and its scallops with orzo pasta. Yet again because it's Cooking Light I did have to add some additional salt to the pasta but that is just me. However, the scallops were seriously cooked to perfection-3 minutes on each side was completely accurate as it cooked them through but did not make them chewy and they had a nice caramelized exterior. Yum! The orzo pasta was a great accessory with the dried thyme, lemon juice and white wine. It complimented the scallops perfectly.

• Cooking spray
• 1/2 cup prechopped onion 
• 1 cup uncooked orzo (rice-shaped pasta)
• 1 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup dry white wine 
• 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons olive oil 
• 1 1/2 pounds sea scallops
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Preparation

1. Heat a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion to pan; sauté 3 minutes. Stir in pasta, broth, wine, and thyme; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and pasta is al dente. Stir in chopped chives and lemon juice. Keep warm.
2. Heat oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle scallops evenly with salt and pepper. Add scallops to pan; cook 3 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Serve with pasta mixture.

So as many of you know I have had a very strange craving...especially for me. For the past few weeks I have been craving cheeseburgers. This is the type of food I eat once a year at best and for some odd reason I just kept thinking about cheeseburgers. The craving was so bad that last night after work I even debated stopped by In N Out...thanks to Kim who kept talking about it all day at work after I mentioned cheeseburgers at 0900...thankfully as I was going home the line at the drive-thru was atrocious and it killed my motivation.

Yes, it is a burger place and it's named after my home town. Had to wear it while I cooked cheeseburgers. Duh

I have to say as a side note that I love that my friends know me so well that when I tell them I am craving cheeseburgers they look at me as if I just told them I started smoking crack. One of them even asked me if I was pregnant. And granted I am no pregnancy expert but I am pretty sure the stereotypical pregnancy craving is pickles not cheeseburgers but please correct me if I am wrong. But they were accurate in the evaluation...damn what would be so out of the ordinary for Danah...hmmm cheeseburger craving or baby craving...yup both pretty right on.

Anyway today since it was my day off I decided to indulge in my cheeseburger fantasy. So I started looking for a recipe that would satisfy this odd ball craving and thankfully Rachael Ray came to the rescue. This recipe called for a burger with spicy mustard, worcestershire and onions mixed it. It had melted swiss cheese on it...which was super good with the mustard in the burger, but to be honest with you my cheeseburger vision did have American cheese on it. However, this burger seriously had the best onions ever!!!



Let me start by saying I love my cast iron skillet. As many of you know I love the grill and I do truly think that grilled food is the best, but when making burgers the cast iron skillet has truly been a godsend for me. It really keeps the burgers much more moist as it holds the juices in the pan where as the grill just can dry out the meat if you aren't careful. Plus I cooked the onions for the burgers in this grill and they were cooked to perfection. So you take a sweet onion...the recipe calls for Vidalia and you rub the 1" thick onion slices with olive oil and then sprinkle them with pepper and salt. Cook them in a hot cast iron skillet for 4 minutes each side and OMG they are sweet, caramelized, soft and they add so much flavor to the burger. Seriously although I was craving the cheeseburger honestly it was the onion that made my night.



Now before I get into the recipe let me also tell you about an amazing Petite Sirah I discovered at Trader Joes the other day. Its only $16 and it is seriously one of the best wines I have had in a long time. Try it and I promise you will not be disappointed.

So tonight I decided that writing is all about comfort...physical comfort, glass of wine comfort, bath comfort, mental comfort, food comfort and relaxed writing comfort. Which is why I am writing my blog tonight in penguin pj's. Yup I decided I would go for sheer sex appeal while I write tonight...so eat your heart out.  No, I am not talking about a penguin t-shirt or penguin pants...I am talking about full on matching penguin t-shirt and pants. Oh yeah!!! Ummm hmmmm.....

So as a child I had a strange penguin obsession. I loved all things penguin...pretty much if it had a penguin on it it was mine. You name it-penguin socks, penguin sweatshirt, penguin Xmas ornaments, stuffed penguins...you get the picture. So it got to the point that for every Xmas, Hanukkah and bday I got penguin gifts. However, have you ever had a childhood obsession bite you in the ass? Ya know like when you become an adult and you are still known as the "girl who loves penguins." And you are living on your own in your first adult apartment and people are still buying you penguin gifts for your new home and although you are grateful of course the penguin is not the look you are going for when you are trying to be sophisticated, classy and trying to date grown men.

However, just like everything these things usually come full circle. So I do have to admit that I still find penguins pretty darn cute. I loved the movie March of the Penguins, I was thrilled to get my penguin pjs last Xmas and I still look at Opus with adoration. So yes that is why tonight I am sitting here writing my blog in penguin pjs and yes I am bringing sexy back.



This weekend I tried a new mix for Molten Lava Cakes that Fresh N Easy puts out. Really good, moist, chocolatey richness. They are definitely better right after they come out of the oven, but seriously they are way easy to make and they look like you put a ton of effort into them and you didn't. The only challenge I found was getting them out of the muffin tin....here is a spoil of war right here. But ya know with any cooking experience you win some and you lose some.

 I also decided to cook a little bit Greek. For some random reason I had been craving lamb lately and when I went to Trader Joes today and saw lamb ribs I took it as a sign. Yes, I am even superstitious about food...when I see an ingredient I take it as a message...and I cook with it. Anyway I saw French cut rack of lamb and I decided to make Cooking Light's Grilled Rack of Lamb with Saffron Rice and Green Olive and Artichoke Tapenade.

Btw, if you want a lamb wine recommendation. I very much encourage you to try Clos du Bois Pinot Noir with lamb...its smooth, not too earthy and very easy to drink. It enhances the grass taste of the lamb and compliments the flavors perfectly.



The lamb has a great spice rub. It consists of kosher salt, cumin, cinnamon (but not too much so its overpowering), paprika (I used smoked because I love that flavor), coriander, cardamon and ground red pepper. So brush the lamb with olive oil and then rub it with the spice mixture. Remember that lamb is supposed to be pink so be careful of over cooking. Although some people like it bloody that is a little too raw for me, but pink is good.

The rice also has a ton of flavor thanks to that way too pricey spice known as saffron. It also has additional flavor since the onion and garlic is sauteed prior to adding the rice. Plus it is cooked in chicken broth which I just love because it infuses the rice with additional flavor and adds even more salt...and as you all know I am pretty much a salt junkie.

• Cooking spray
• 1 cup diced onion $
• 2 garlic cloves, minced $
• 1 cup uncooked basmati rice
• 2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads, crushed
• 1 bay leaf
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/8 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1 (1 1/2-pound) French-cut rack of lamb (8 ribs)
• 1 teaspoon olive oil $

Preparation

1. 1. Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion and garlic to pan; cook 5 minutes or until golden brown, stirring frequently. Add rice and next 3 ingredients (through bay leaf); bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes. Discard bay leaf. Keep warm.
2. 2. Prepare grill.
3. 3. Combine salt and next 6 ingredients (through pepper). Brush lamb with oil, and rub with salt mixture. Place lamb on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 10 minutes, turning once or until a thermometer registers 145° (medium-rare) to 160° (medium). Let stand 5 minutes before slicing into chops. Serve lamb with rice.

As for the tapenade it doesn't get much easier than this recipe...all of the ingredients go in the food processor...and you process and you eat. I did expect the tapenade to have more a green olive taste and the artichoke was definitely the more overpowering of tastes. Yet it would be super easy just to add additional green olives if you want more of that flavor.

• 3 tablespoons capers, drained
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 10 large pitted green olives
• 2 garlic cloves, minced $
• 1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained

Preparation

1. 1. Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to desired smoothness.

Happy Monday Y'all!

I love cooking in other peoples kitchens! There is some sense of adventure that comes with having free range to search through other peoples cupboards and drawers. Don't worry I limit myself to the kitchen...don't think that by inviting me over to cook I will search the bedroom drawers, closets and the bathroom medicine cabinet.  Plus there is also a level of intimacy in that friendship when you are able to take over their kitchen...yeah I don't know if I could just cook in someones kitchen that I didn't know well. But if you are interested, try me....I might give it a shot.

I recently got the opportunity to take over my BFF's new kitchen. This was extra special as she has recently moved in and so I got a great deal of pleasure in getting it dirty for her. It was pretty cool showing up with a bag of ingredients, putting her in charge of opening the wine (which was a pretty challenging task since it was screw top) and starting to figure it all out. We become complacent in our own kitchens as we know what staples we have...I had to text her through out the day...do you have garlic? What about olive oil? Ya know all thing things you take for granted. When I got there I had to find those staples I requested along with the pots/pans/measuring cups that you are so familiar with in your own home. Plus it was a lot of fun bonding over cooking a meal together, laughing over random things and enjoying the camaraderie of the kitchen.



I decided to try and make a Cooking Light recipe for Rotini with Chicken, Asparagus and Tomatoes. I love Cooking Light, but my biggest complaint is that they just don't use enough salt for my taste. This recipe was no different...we definitely had to add some salt at the end. This recipe also calls for 1/2 lb of pasta but we cooked the entire pound and there was plenty of sauce and topping to spread over all of the pasta. If you want additional sauce just add extra olive oil and vinegar. BTW, she had amazing balsamic vinegar from Sunstone winery....now I am dying for a field trip to buy some and well of course to try their wine. This recipe is perfect for a summer evening...its light, fresh and tasty. The fresh basil and garlic smell amazing while they are cooking. And pair this with a crisp white wine and it made for a perfect night.



Of course the night had to have at least 1 cooking mishap. She has these salt and pepper grinders that have rubber caps on the bottom of them. So I have the salt grinder in my hand and I am grinding over the pan and I don't see any salt...so I continue to grind, shake it and grind some more. Only to realize hmmm I didn't take the rubber cap off...once that task was completed voila plenty of salt. The funny thing is I had used these before and I had made this same error before, however I just remind myself that it takes 40 times to make it a habit...so they better buy a hell of a lot more salt before I remember to take the cap off.

• 8 ounces uncooked rotini (corkscrew pasta)
• Cooking spray
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into 1/4-inch strips ** I love that at Fresh and Easy you can buy extra trimmed chicken breast. I am way neurotic about any nastiness on my chicken and so for someone else to trim it for me is a slice of heaven. **
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup (1-inch) slices asparagus 
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 garlic cloves, minced 
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon extravirgin olive oil 
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled goat cheese 

Preparation

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat.
2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken and asparagus to pan; sauté 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and garlic to pan; sauté 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in pasta, basil, vinegar, and oil. Arrange 2 cups pasta mixture on each of 4 plates; top each serving with 1 tablespoon cheese.