DomestikDiva's Kitchen

The calm before the storm

2010-02-28T18:58:00.006-05:00

So it's Sunday, another weekend has come and gone. I am of the firm opinion that weekends are for premeditated comfort food. We spend all week rushing about usually not really spending too much time on what we eat and thinking about it even less. So when the weekend rolls around I like to spend long lazy afternoons in the kitchen making some of our more elaborate family favorites. This is one of Mr. Diva's favorite meals. Truth be told we were supposed to have it for lunch yesterday, but I spent all morning failing miserably at my first attempt at making tortillas (yes you read correctly, not only can make everything posted here, but created most of it, and yet unleavened bread eludes me) So I cheated and went to the store to get corn tortillas today. If you make your own though feel free to use them here (and let me know your secret?).

This recipe makes a pan of 20 enchiladas. Enough for 6-8 servings in our house, so it's a great option if you need/want leftovers for the next day's lunches! If you eat meat you can also substitute one of the cans of black beans for some ground turkey or lean ground beef. Just brown the meat for a few minutes at the very beginning and follow the rest of the recipe as is adding each ingredient to the meat.

Black Bean & Spinach Enchiladas

20 small corn tortillas
1Tbsp canola oil
1 large onion diced
3 cloves garlic roughly chopped
1 Tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
4 mild green chilies finely chopped
1/4 cup water
4 PACKED cups of fresh spinach washed, shaken dry and roughly chopped or torn
2 15oz cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups enchilada sauce (I use mild for Baby Diva's sake)
1/2 cup salsa
2 Tbsp sour cream (and more for serving if you like)

- I a large saute or frying pan, saute the onions and garlic in the canola oil over a medium heat for about 3 minutes
- Add the spices and cook additional 1 minute
- Add chilies and water. Cook 1 minute
- Add spinach and cook until just wilted. About 3-5 minutes.
- Add beans and cook for 3 more minutes until beans are warmed through.
- Remove pan from heat and mix in the salsa and sour cream.
- Preheat oven to 375*
- Fill each tortilla with about 1tsp of enchilada sauce and 2Tbsp of bean and spinach mixture.
- Roll filled tortilla and place it seam side down in a large (8x13) lightly oiled casserole dish or baking pan.
*NOTE* Corn tortillas can be a little finicky to work with since they are more brittle than flour ones. Try microwaving them for 20-30 seconds in batches of 5 at a time to avoid breaking them as you fill and roll them.
- Once pan is filled, pour remaining sauce over the enchiladas. You should not be able to see any white so use more if you need to. Or use a basting brush to move the sauce around as you don't want your enchiladas to be swimming in sauce either.
- Sprinkle the cheese over top and cover with foil.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes, removing the foil in the last 10 minutes so that the cheese gets nice and brown and bubbly.
- Serve with additional sour cream and salsa if you wish.

Laziness creates yumminess!

2010-02-26T21:18:00.004-05:00

So this is one of my favorite "I really don't want to cook right now" dinners. It is so simple and only takes about 20 minutes from pot to plate. It is also a really versatile potluck dish too. Here I used quinoa and served it hot, but substitute the quinoa for orzo or another small pasta, add a cup of your favorite vinigarette dressing and serve it chilled for a fantastic pasta salad!

As it appears here it feeds 2 adults and 1 child nicely, but as always feel free to multiply measurements as per your own needs.

Quinoa with Kale and Beets

1 cup quinoa
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 small onion diced
2 cloves garlic roughly chopped
1 large fennel bulb topped, tailed and roughly chopped
2 cups fresh kale
1/2 can sliced beets
1/4 cup crumbled feta
salt and pepper to taste

- Cook quinoa as per package instructions and keep warm.
- Sautee garlic and onion in oil over a medium-high heat until onion is just translucent (about 3 minutes)
- Add fennel and sautee another 5 minutes
- To prepare the kale trim the leaves away from the tough stems and roughly chop or tear into 1/4 inch ribbons. Rinse it well making sure no soil remains trapped in the curly leaves. Lightly shake to remove most, but not all of the water.
- Add kale to fennel and onions and reduce heat to medium-low cook until kale is wilted (about 5 minute)
- Drain, pat dry and dice the beets and add to the kale. Continue to cook for a couple of more minutes until the beets are warmed then remove from heat.
- Mix in the quinoa and feta and toss to combine all ingredients.
- Serve with salt and pepper to taste, and some additional feta if you wish.

Some days Joni Mitchel fixes everything

2010-02-25T20:16:00.006-05:00

So it was pretty slim pickings in the Diva refrigerator and pantry tonight. Especially after I discovered that the asparagus I had planned on using was destroyed with freezer burn! GRRRR! On to the perpetual plan B: making it up as I go :)
I grew up in house where when all else failed there was always pasta, so as an adult my pantry staples are usually boxes of pasta, cans of tomatoes and a freezer full of frozen veggies that can be mixed accordingly. The asparagus may have been ruined..but the broccoli was just dandy :)
Our experiment du jour ended up taking the form of tofu parmesan over whole wheat spaghetti with broccoli. It was unbelievably yummy, really! I even surprised myself. Combine it with Mr Diva's initiative to open a bottle of wine and throw on some Joni Mitchel and dinner was oh so very satisfying!

This recipe will feed 3 adults generously or 2 adults and 2 kids nicely also and only took me about 45 minutes from inspiration to table.

Tofu Parmesan & Whole Wheat Spaghetti w/Broccoli

1 pkg whole wheat spaghetti
3 cups frozen broccoli
1 pkg extra firm tofu (12oz)
3/4 cup freshly grated parmesan divided into 3 equal portions (plus a little more for serving if you wish)
1 cup plain bread crumbs
1 Tbsp dry oregano
1 tsp dry marjoram
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup olive oil equally divided into 2 portions
2 shallots roughly chopped (1 diced, medium onion will work also if you don't have shallots)
2 cloves garlic roughly chopped
1/2 a large can of whole tomatoes (about 15oz. Or a whole can if you can find whole tomatoes in 15oz cans)

- Mix together bread crumbs, 1 separated portion of parmesan (1/4 cup) , herbs, salt and pepper in a large bowl until well combined
- Slice the tofu into 6 equal slabs and pat with a paper towel until just moist enough for the bread crumbs to stick.
- In a large skillet or sautee pan heat 1 portion of the oil with the shallots and garlic. You will want to heat the oil very, very slowly to really infuse it with the taste of the shallots and garlic without burning them. It should take 5 or 7 mins (you can use this time to preheat the oven to 375*)
- While the oil is heating coat tofu with bread crumbs on all sides.
- When oil is nice and aromatic turn up the heat to med-high and quickly fry the tofu to a light golden brown, about 45 seconds to 1 minute on each side. Do this in 2 batches and keep moving the tofu around the pan to keep the heat even and stop the shallots and garlic from burning; you will be using them and the oil from the pan again, so if they do start to over brown remove them from the pan and reserve in a small bowl for later.
- Remove tofu from the pan and place in a very lightly oiled casserole or baking pan in a single layer.
- As long as the remaining oil in the pan is not burned (if it is skip straight to the blender with the oil/garlic/shallots that you reserved while cooking) de glaze the pan with the canned tomatoes adding back any garlic or shallots that you removed and scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Blend tomatoes in a small blender or food processor to a sauce consistency
- Spoon tomato sauce evenly over tofu and bake for 20 mins
- While tofu is baking boil the pasta in lightly salted water. About 5 mins before pasta is ready add broccoli and bring to a boil again.
- After 20 mins turn off the oven and put the broiler on LOW
- Sprinkle second portion of parmesan over the tofu and sauce and put under the broiler until golden and bubbling (about 3-5 mins)
- While broiling, drain the pasta and broccoli and toss with remaining portions of oil and parmesan.
- Serve 2 slices of tofu over a bed of pasta and broccoli with an extra sprinkling of parmesan and some fresh cracked pepper!

Birthdays

2009-11-14T19:39:00.003-05:00

Today was my mom's birthday and I am so glad I was here to share it with her. It was a quiet uneventful day, we opened cards and presents first thing this morning over coffee and then all piled into the car and drove about an hour south to Cincinnati to one of our favorite grocery stores; Fresh Market. She picked up some applewood smoked bacon that is absolutely to die for if you eat meat and I picked up some fresh, dark, rich ginger bread and my favorite food vice: dark chocolate almonds :) I also made a mental note to get back there before Thanksgiving for black truffle oil and figs for my holiday cheesecake!

Dark Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

2009-11-06T01:25:00.003-05:00

1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup rye flakes
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 stick butter, softened
2 Tbsp Flax meal
4 Tbsp boiling water
3 Tbsp brown sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup dried cranberries
1 bar dark chocolate roughly chopped (at least 60% dark)

Preheat oven to 350* Fahrenheit and use a tiny smear of the butter to very lightly grease a cookie sheet.
Combine flax meal and boil water in a bowl, cover with a towel and set aside until room temperature and really gooey (it's you egg substitute but if you want you can use 2 large eggs)
In a mixer or food processor cream together the butter and sugar until well combined, pushing down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Add the flax meal and beat well
Add the apple sauce and vanilla beat well
Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt
Transfer to a large mixing bowl (or use the bowl from your mixer if it detaches) incorporate flour mixture and combine well
Add oats and rye mix well
Finally stir in the cranberries and chocolate

Spoon dough onto cookie sheet in Tbsp portions and about 1inch apart
Bake 15-20 mins

Learning Curve

2009-11-06T01:14:00.004-05:00

So as the spouse of a service member, I have been very lucky that up until now I have never had to be a single parent. Mr. Diva was deployed to Iraq before Baby Diva arrived, but since he was born hasn't had to leave my side more than a usual 8 hour work day. And for that I have been very blessed. The down side to this is that now I am alone with my 13 month old beautiful, bundle of boy energy and I am EXHAUSTED!! I love my son dearly..but there are days when mommy needs a time out, a good book, a hot cup of tea and a freshly made batch of dark chocolate, cranberry oatmeal cookies!

Mom's lentil soup

2009-11-04T22:48:00.003-05:00

3 cups vegetable broth (if store bought make use low sodium)
3 cups water
2 cups red split lentils
1 medium onion roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic smashed and roughly chooped
2 large potatoes diced (1/2 to 1 inch cubes)
4 carrots diced
4 celery stalks roughly chopped
1/2 tsp cumin
1 Tbsp olive oil

Sautee onions and garlic in olive oil in a large lidded pot over a medium-low heat until just translucent
Add celery and cook an additional 3-5 mins until celery is tender crisp
Add cumin and cook until aromatic
Add water, broth and bring to a rolling boil
Add potatoes and carrot and boil for about 20 minutes
Add lentils and stir
Reduce heat to low, cover and let simmer for 30-40mins stirring periodically to make sure lentils are not sticking and adding up to 1 additional cup of water or broth as needed.
Serve hot with a drop of heavy cream if you like and good dark bread

Braving the cold

2009-11-04T22:03:00.005-05:00

So Mr. Diva is in Virginia taking care of the final details and closing on our first house and Baby Diva and I are hanging out in Ohio at my parents house. I know all you guys in Ohio still consider yourselves East-Coasters (well at the very least my best friend gets very indignant when I refer to her as a Midwesterner), but I think someone forget to tell the weather that! Today was most definitely a Midwestern fall day, bright and sunny but VERY cold. At least for us Californian imports!
Nothing finishes of a cold day of running errands and being outside like childhood comfort food, and for me that is my mom's lentil soup. Luckily, she made some last week that she was able to pull out of the freezer when we got home!
Recipe >>

Chili Sweet Potato Fries

2009-11-04T21:31:00.003-05:00

2 medium sweet potatoes
2 tsp chili powder (i like the smokiness of ancho chili powder for this recipe)
2 Tbsp Pure Maple Syrup
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp of high heat oil such as coconut
1/2 tsp sea salt

Preheat oven to 400* Fahrenheit
Prep cookie sheet with 1tsp of oil
Slice sweet potatoes to desired thickness (thinner if you like crispier fries)
In a large bowl combine remaining oil, maple syrup, and spices
Add sliced sweet potato to bowl and toss to coat with spice mix
Spread evenly on cookie sheet
Bake for 30 minutes

Cucumber Yogurt Dip

2009-11-04T21:20:00.003-05:00

1 medium cucumber
8 oz Greek yogurt
1/4 cup crumbled feta
2 Tbsp fresh chopped mint
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
sea salt and fresh pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a food processor until smooth
Chill until ready to serve.
Serve with fresh veggies, pita chips or on sandwiches.

No Soy Veggie Burgers!

2009-11-04T20:20:00.004-05:00

NOTE: This recipe can be very easily adjusted to be Gluten free. Just substitute the couscous with cooked quinoa and leave out the bran meal.

1 cup cooked couscous (follow package instructions or cook as you normally would)
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups broccoli (if fresh steam first, if frozen defrost and drain well)
1/2 medium onion finely diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tbsp flax meal
2 tsp tahini (or 1 tsp of toasted sesame oil in a pinch)
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp curry powder
1/4-1/2 cup bran meal
1 Tbsp sunflower, coconut or other high heat oil

Preheat oven to 400* Fahrenheit and prep a cookie sheet with about half of the oil
Over a medium-low heat sautee onions and garlic until onions are just translucent
Stir in cumin and curry powder and remove from heat
In a food processor combine couscous, chickpeas, broccoli, onions, tahini and flax meal
Process until well blended and desired consistency ( i like the pieces of broccoli to be a little bigger)
Transfer mixture to a large bowl and gradually add the bran meal until the mixture is still moist enough to form patties but not so moist that it sticks to your fingers.
Form into about 3 inch patties that are about an inch thick, place on cookie sheet and brush tops with remaining oil.
Bake for about 50 minutes, turning once halfway through.
Serve on a whole wheat bun with cucumber yogurt dip your choice of vegetables (i like spinach and red onion slices) and chili sweet potato fries!!

Spaghetti Squash Dinner

2009-11-03T21:00:00.000-05:00

1 Large spaghetti squash
1/2 medium onion finely diced
2 cloves garlic smashed and roughly chopped
1 cup chopped kale
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup spaghetti sauce (if store bought try and find one with little or no added sugar)
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Preheat oven to 400* Fahrenheit
Slice squash lengthwise and remove the seeds and fibrous parts
Fill a large casserole or baking dish with about 1 1/2 inches of water and a pinch of sea salt
Place squash hollow side down in dish and place uncovered in center of oven for about 45 minutes
While squash is steaming, sautee onions and garlic over a medium-low heat until onions are just translucent (about 5 mins)
Add kale and continue to cook until just wilted (about 3 mins)
Add tomatoes, kidney beans and sauce
Mix well so veggies are coated with sauce, cover and turn off heat.
After 40 minutes, remove squash from oven but do not turn the oven off yet!!
Drain the water from the dish and turn the squash hollow sides up
Fill hollows with kale mixture, cover with foil and return to oven for 15-20 mins until tomatoes are cooked just enough to be soft a sweet
Remove from oven ( you can turn the oven off now:) ) and, with a fork, scrape the filling and flesh of squash into a large bowl, toss in the feta add some salt and pepper to taste, mix it all up and serve.

Banana Birthday Cake

2009-11-03T13:03:00.000-05:00

DRY INGREDIENTS:
1 cup whole wheat flour

½ cup whole wheat pastry flour

½ cup bran meal
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon each: nutmeg, ground ginger, and allspice
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder

WET INGREDIENTS:
½ cup Greek yogurt

2 med bananas
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¼ cup no sugar added applesauce or apple puree

¼ cup organic brown sugar

2 table spoons pure maple syrup

Egg Substitute:

4 tablespoons flax meal
6 tablespoons boiling water

Preheat oven to 350* Fahrenheit.

Mix together flax meal and boiling water in a bowl, cover with a towel and leave to the side for now.

Sift together all dry ingredients and set aside.

In a food processor or mixer combine vanilla, applesauce, sugar, syrup and flax meal (the flax should be about room temperature by now and very gooey) and mix well. Then alternate adding bananas and yogurt ½ at a time, mixing well between each added amount.

Empty about 2/3 of the contents of the mixer into a bowl and add 1/3 of dry ingredients into the mixer, mix well. Continue to mix remaining 2/3rds of each the wet and dry ingredients in the mixer, 1/3 at a time alternating batches and mixing well between each to incorporate as much air as possible into the mix.

Pour batter into a cake round or Bundt pan and bake for 30-40 mins (until knife comes out clean)
Mix will also make 18 muffins/cupcakes just reduce cooking time by about 10 minutes.

A return from Hiatus

2009-11-03T09:50:00.001-05:00

Wow... over three months since I last even thought about my blog! Not off to a particularly good start! So what happened? LOTS!!
August was a revolving door of visiting family members, always fun and exciting but also expensive and exhausting.
In September we celebrated Baby Diva's first birthday! There was much excitement and commotion over that, and a very special, little person friendly, low sugar, high fiber banana birthday cake that I was very proud of!
And then at the beginning of October, we moved! Yup..So long San Diego.. Hello Virginia Beach!!
We took 8 days, loaded up our little Civic, and trucked across the entire breadth of the US.
Utah is unbelievably beautiful, I mean just epic! Huge sky, amazing canyons. Truly breathtaking! We drove through Colorado at night unfortunately, so didn't get to experience the Rockies in all their colorful, fall glory :( Colorado was also my first time driving in snow in a loooong time. I was not happy! But we made it,slightly rattled, but unscathed.
We continued on through Kansas, Iowa and Illinois stopping off to see friends and family, freezing our tails off and sampling Mr. Diva's uncle's amazing homemade lasagna.
After a week we made it to Ohio and took a well deserved and much needed break from the car at my parents house over the weekend. For 3 days Grandpa, Mr. Diva and my brother got their Wii on, Grandma made Baby Diva squeak and I enjoyed the comfort of clean clothes and flannel sheets, and home cooked meals.
Then we were off again. A night in Washington DC followed by a delicious homemade breakfast of mushroom and artichoke frittata, and waffles.
Then finally a lazy afternoon drive through southern Maryland and Virginia to our final destination, enjoying the fall colors and cool weather.

But we made it! And we found a house!! A cozy 3 bedroom condo, with a fabulous new kitchen that I can't wait to make my own with warm winter flavors and aromas!
But for now, Baby Diva and I packed up and headed back to Ohio, to hang out with Grandma and Grandpa and my brother through Thanksgiving, while Mr. Diva hangs out in Virginia and finishes up the paperwork and details on our very own, very first condo! :)
So until further notice, my culinary creation shall be brought to you from my mom's kitchen, and hopefully with her own contributions!

So this is what I'm about...

2009-07-17T20:43:00.000-04:00

So, hi! First of all you are here, reading my ramblings, so thank you. If you don't know me thank for choosing my blog out of the zillions of options your search engine just generated and if you do know me then *love* :) This is both my first entry here and my first attempt at a blog period so I suppose an introduction to this self proclaimed domestic diva is in order.
I am a wife and mother and a passionate humanist, and of all the things in my life that I love, food and feeding people are chief among them! I grew up in a family that loved to cook, eat and entertain. Our home always seemed at its happiest and liveliest when it was full of people eating, drinking and enjoying themselves and each other. I inherited this love as an adult, but when it came time to feeding and entertaining a family of my own my passion grew with a new challenge; rather than simply feeding my family, how do I truly fuel the bodies and minds of those I love in a healthy satisfying way that still evokes the pleasure, warmth and happiness in my adult home, that always accompanied food in my childhood home. My task was great; in a generation and society all but lost to drive-thrus and child icon sponsored processed food product, I aimed to raise my family to not only eat their veggies but ENJOY them too! My own diet had always been fairly healthy and wholesome, but after I became pregnant my drive to educate myself on proper nutrition became paramount. I charged on full steam ahead shopping organically, shopping locally, meticulously inspecting the list of ingredients of any packaged non-whole food that made it into my shopping cart ensuring that I could identify every and any additive or preservative and patently rejecting all synthetic sugars and hydrogenated oils. But as the idyllic contents of my shopping cart grew so too did my grocery bill and my frustration. I was appauled and enraged at the reality before me: Striving for good health through food was becoming all but prohibitivly expensive! So after I pouted, and tantrumed over the injustice of it all, I regrouped. Part of this regrouping, among other things, was scouring the internet for family friendly, budget recipies that were truly healthy...Not justifying that ice cream sandwich by saying it has calcium in it "healthy" . By healthy I mean fruits, veggies, minimally processed, mostly whole food.. you know that lost art of eating that our grandparents had to do? But again, all I gained was frustration. Apparently "healthy" today really means "diet plan", or the useful looking recipes I did find tasted like cardboard... so to cut an even longer story short; here I am. This blog is created from my kitchen, all the knowledge I have compiled over the years of my own nutritional trials and errors and the recipies my husband deems as "make agains" are here for you! So, Bon Appetit!