Over the Kitchen Counter: Angie's Place for Cooking and Crafts

Blue Zone Eggplant and Zucchini Casserole

We didn't grow eggplant in the garden this year but there were zucchini, tomatoes and plenty of fresh, fragrant basil - the right ingredients for this satisfying meal. While the Eggplant and Zucchini Casserole is very similar to eggplant parmesan, this is a Blue Zone recipe so it's healthy and will help you try to live to be 100!

The process is very simple, just layers of vegetables nestled in a quick, fresh, basil-laden tomato sauce. A sprinkle of cheese on top bakes into a delicious crust and the casserole smells lovely while cooking. The recipe yields an 8" casserole and since I was the only one eating this vegetarian main dish, it served me for 4 nights straight. I loved it and the flavour only got better each day. I enjoyed the casserole with pasta one night, crusty bread the next, salad and then broccoli.

You can find the recipe for Eggplant and Zucchini Casserole from the Blue Zones, HERE. If you have an abundance of vegetables in your garden you might enjoy using them up in this Sardinian-inspired dish. If you don't, the local supermarket or farmer's veggie stand will surely carry what you need. 

Amazing Tip for Pulled Pork and Shredded Chicken

I recently saw a random post of someone shredding chicken in the Instant Pot using a hand-held electric mixer. This intrigued me as that is a job I hate doing. Usually, I remove the chicken to a plate and use two forks to pick and pull apart the meat. It's kind of messy and hot, and it seems to take me forever. I couldn't wait to experiment with the mixer technique to see if it actually worked.

On Wednesday I made bar-b-qued pulled pork sandwiches for dinner. The pork tenderloin had cooked slowly in the crockpot all day and it was time to start shredding. I took the lid off about 1/2 an hour before I wanted to serve to allow it to cool somewhat. I put on an apron and glasses (not knowing if the beaters would splatter up hot bar-b-que sauce!) and used the slowest speed on my Kitchen-Aid hand mixer. I hoped this would work for pork in addition to the chicken breasts I saw demonstrated.

It took a minute but the pork chunks easily started to shred. It combined perfectly with the sauce and became the ideal texture to spoon on the brioche sesame seed buns. It was a fabulous dinner and it was just so easy! The pork wasn't gloppy and drippy so there were no soggy buns and we could add a bit of extra bar-b-que sauce to the meat, as desired. I do not know who to thank for this idea but pulled pork sandwiches and chicken tacos or enchiladas just got a whole lot more enticing to make for dinner! Try it out sometime, I swear it works like a charm!

P.S. I'm so excited to share some new things with you so please check back! I will get the posts written as soon as I can - this summer has been super busy!

GCN's Carrot Cake Oatmeal

We have been riding every day and having a blast! After taking a break from both cycling (for the winter) and watching GCN videos (too hard to see them riding in such gorgeous locations while my bike was stuck on the ceiling!), I am so happy to be back to both.

This video below, hosted by new presenter Emma Pooley (who I love!), caught my eye. She is doing a series on 'oat' cuisine featuring nutritious oatmeal. I was excited to try this recipe for Carrot Cake Oatmeal. I made mine in the Instant Pot using steel cut Irish oats. I added the grated carrot, raisins, orange zest, and spices (cinnamon and ginger), plus a little dash of vanilla.

The oatmeal was great and I loved the hint of orange. You really couldn't taste the carrot but the spices were lovely. I didn't exactly melt away into a carrot cake feeling of bliss (gotta miss that cream cheese frosting!), but it was a wonderful way to shake up the daily oatmeal breakfast and both of us would definitely eat it again. (I've also added my video for How to Make Carrot Cake below...just in case you'd rather eat your carrots for dessert than breakfast! It is such a delicious cake!!!!)

We always enjoy coming home to a hearty breakfast after an early morning, longer ride. The stomach is always growling and ready for some nutrition and it tastes even better outside on the deck. I'm pleased with how quickly we have got back into cycling and both of us feel much stronger than our first summer last year. Ride on!

Martha Stewart's Vegetarian Spinach Lasagna

I usually make a meat sauce-based lasagna but I didn't have any ground beef on hand and I DID have everything I needed to make a gorgeous vegetarian spinach one. I found THIS RECIPE from Martha Steward for Spinach Lasagna and it was amazing. It was not difficult to assemble and I was also happy it didn't call for ricotta cheese or cottage cheese since neither was in my fridge at the time.

Once you have steamed the spinach and prepared a simple bechamel sauce it is really quick to add the layers to a casserole dish. I made the process even faster by using some pre-grated cheese left over from the CREAMY 4-Cheese Garlic Spaghetti I'd made (another fantastic and simple recipe, by the way! Highly recommend!).

The lasagna smells incredible while it bakes and tasted absolutely fabulous. I was quite surprised by the lack of garlic in this recipe but it was actually a nice change. You could certainly add it into the sauce if you preferred, as well as substitute other vegetables for the sautéed zucchini. Broccoli or asparagus would both be good substitutes in our house.

I will definitely be making this vegetarian version of Spinach Lasagna and I'm looking forward to the leftovers tonight!

Royal Wedding Celebration!

I am very excited for the Royal Wedding on Saturday and will definitely be up early to watch. Even hubby is on board knowing I will be serving English Cream Scones at 6:00 a.m. There is nothing like enjoying these tender biscuits with clotted cream or Devonshire Double cream and a wonderful jam. I made a special trip to the British foods store to gather all I needed for the day and it took all my willpower to talk myself out of getting the souvenir Meghan and Harry gold-rimmed plate.

There is a bit of the Christmas fruitcake I made last winter to serve as a wedding cake stand-in (since I don't have time to make a Lemon Cake this week) and I plan on Cornish Pasties with potato, onion, and swede/rutabaga (you can find the recipe I used IN THIS POST) for dinner.

With all the media coverage on t.v. I had to pull out my scrapbook from our trip to England in 2016 to find my photos of Windsor (see them HERE) and re-live that amazing tour of the castle. It made me yearn to return and we so enjoyed the town of Windsor it is hard to see everyone standing where we stood, celebrating without us. Well, it looks like it will be a beautiful day and I cannot wait to see the bride and groom.

You can watch me make scones in my video below...an excellent treat to serve with tea!

Frittatas

I happened to catch an episode of Martha Stewart's 'cooking lessons' show and it was featuring egg recipes. The first was for a simple fried egg on toast and I thought it looked very appetizing! Next was a potato and onion frittata and that looked even better! As I had a leftover boiled potato in the fridge it would be ideal for my lunch. I remembered how much I like Martha and back in the day, I learned so much from her. Even though she has had her issues and some people do not enjoy her as much as I, it is still with such appreciation and fondness that I always will stop and watch, listen, and yes, continue to learn from Ms. Martha!

So...here is my frittata! I have made them in the past but usually I baked the dish in the oven for 'x' minutes. Martha suggests cooking and setting the eggs (and flavourful fillings) on a low heat on the stovetop and then finishing under the broiler for only a minute or two. The frittata should then turn a light golden brown and actually puff up with the direct heat. Mine did just that!

The addition of cheese (I used feta) and a sprinkle of freshly grated parmesan before going into the pre-heated broiler was a wonderful touch and the frittata was perfect. I love how Martha will never shy from sharing very simple and basic recipes and methods with her viewers/readers. The love of amazing dishes starts with the appreciation of fresh, quality ingredients. They don't have to be prepared in a fancy way to be absolutely incredible.

Here is a link for the video from the Martha Stewart website on the formula for foolproof frittatas. Worth a watch if you want to brush up on your skills and make a delicious and quick breakfast, brunch, lunch or even dinner...

https://www.marthastewart.com/1129210/formula-foolproof-frittatas

Tasty Baked Garlic Parmesan Potato Wedges

I wanted to serve something different (besides the old stand-by of chips or fries) with the slow cooker pulled pork sandwiches I'd made so I searched for some recipes on-line. I came up with these Baked Garlic Parmesan Potato Wedges from Tasty. The recipe was easy, quick, and I had a new bag of russet potatoes in the pantry. They sounded really flavourful too and I thought they'd be a hit with the family.

Once the potatoes are cut into wedges and tossed with olive oil, a spice mixture of garlic, paprika, and Italian seasoning is combined with freshly grated Parmesan to coat the spuds. The wedges are baked in tidy rows, skin side down, so there is no tending or flipping throughout the 40 minute cooking time. Very simple!

The Garlic Parmesan Potato Wedges were a lovely change from the ordinary and everyone ate them up. They were golden and tender, not too spicy, and excellent dipped in ketchup. I will certainly be making these again soon. You can get the recipe HERE.

3 Ingredient Banana Pancakes

Bananas are zero points on the Weight Watchers program. This is a very good thing for me since I love them and they are quite filling. Our family eats a lot of bananas anyway so the fruit bowl is always full! They never go to waste because when they get too brown to eat, a batch of scrumptious muffins or a couple loaves of banana bread are only minutes away. In the rare instance we have some 'in between' bunches, neither too green nor too ripe, I will freeze a couple for Yonanas, incredible Chocolate Dipped Frozen bananas, or use them fresh for quick and easy 3 Ingredient Banana Pancakes.

The pancakes are simply made with banana, eggs, and baking powder with a dash of cinnamon if desired. They are fried up in a greased pan and topped with syrup as usual. They are sweet and rich with a caramelized banana flavour - a low-point alternative to a regular pancake breakfast. Very fast and easy to make, I love having these on a weekend morning but they can also work on a busy weekday too.

You can find one version of the popular recipe HERE. Next grocery trip make sure to stock up on a good sized bunch of bananas...

Le Creuset Casserole Dish

I have wanted a Le Creuset Enamel Cast Iron Dutch oven forever but the price is extraordinary. My kids sweetly knew my admiration for the company and surprised me with this beautiful, grey ombré, genuine Le Creuset casserole dish for my birthday. It is gorgeous! I'm not sure of the exact size of it but it's roughly a 9x13 ceramic dish about 3" deep.

The included lid is something I've never had with my everyday bakeware and will be so useful, I'm sure. The casserole dish is heavy and the finish is stunning. It is the perfect size and unlike any others I have in the kitchen so it's very handy. I have a dedicated lower shelf just for my new Le Creuset so it doesn't get chipped or broken and it's also kind of heavy to pull off of a higher shelf so a low one is much better.

Macaroni & Cheese

So far I've made my macaroni and cheese in it and last night did scalloped potatoes. It was fabulous for both of those dishes and just the exact size for my recipes. Clean up was so easy (I am sure it could go in the dishwasher but I'm babying it and hand washing. I don't want to risk cracking the glaze or chipping the dish or lid).

Scalloped Potatoes

I can't wait to make a scrumptious casserole or roast something requiring the lid. It may not be cast iron but this Le Creuset set is simply lovely and very versatile.

You can watch my macaroni and cheese video below - (always a hit at our house)...and you can find my favourite-potato-recipe-ever for Scalloped Potatoes, HERE. Have a great day!

Weight Watchers Microwave Egg Cooker

Eggs are now zero point foods on the new Weight Watchers Freestyle plan. Eggs are so versatile and I try to keep a bowl of hard boiled ones (made so easily in the Instant Pot!) in the fridge for those hungry snack times. I usually only have eggs for breakfast once a week, if that, on the weekends but I still picked up this plastic microwave egg cooker from Weight Watchers. Members seem to really like it and even though I can whip up an omelet in minutes in a sauté pan or poach an egg just as easily, I love a good gadget!

The cooker is only $6 and has a removable insert for poaching two eggs, and then the two-sided compartment for making omelets. I followed the directions exactly with regards to cooking time in the microwave and even though my appliance has a lower wattage, it worked out pretty well prepared as directed. I made an omelet first by beating an egg for each side and partially pre-cooking. You can add veggies and cheese at this point but I chose to sauté my onion, mushrooms and peppers first to soften them and flavour with a bit of olive oil.

The filling is added to one side of the cooker and then the lid is carefully closed (allowing the other half of the omelet to fold over) and cooked for another 15 seconds to melt the cheese. The omelet was very good and only 'cost' me a couple points since I used just a half teaspoon of oil and a sprinkle of feta cheese. Yum!

The poaching insert worked even better and was very easy to use. My eggs were a little over done for my preference so I will cook them less next time. I love how perfectly round the eggs are and they are ideal to top an English muffin. The cooker washes up effortlessly (I washed it by hand but it is also top-rack dishwasher safe) and I store mine on top of the microwave. I think this is a great little kitchen addition for those times when you want a quick snack or meal for one without getting the pans out or turning on the stove. It's a good investment of my $6 bucks!