Strawberry Oatmeal Muffins

Prep time: 20 minutes Cook time: 25 minutes The addition of black pepper to this recipe is important, but make sure you are using finely ground black pepper, not coarsely ground. If all you have is coarsely ground, skip it. Add to shopping list Ingredients 1 1/4 cups old fashioned oats 1 cup plain yogurt 1/2 pound strawberries 2 teaspoons granulated white sugar 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar 2 eggs 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted 1/2 cup brown sugar (packed) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 cup all purpose flour 1 Tbsp baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon finely ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon Method 1 Mix the oats and plain yogurt together in a large bowl. 2 Rinse and core the strawberries. Roughly chop the strawberries (I cut them in quarters lengthwise and then make one or two crosswise cuts). You should have about 1 1/2 cups of chopped strawberries. Place in a small bowl. Sprinkle with white sugar and balsamic vinegar. Gently stir to coat the strawberries with the sugar and vinegar. 3 Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat oven to 400°F. Prepare a 12-well muffin tin by coating with butter or lining with paper muffin cups. 4 Whisk together in a medium bowl the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, finely ground black pepper, and cinnamon. 5 Add the eggs, melted butter, brown sugar, and vanilla extract to the oatmeal and yogurt mixture. Stir until just incorporated. 6 Use a wooden spoon to gently stir the flour mixture into the oatmeal. Stir until just incorporated and the flour is moistened. Do not over-mix! Or your muffins will end up rubbery. The batter should be rather lumpy, not smooth. 7 Gently fold in the strawberries, including any of the sugary vinegary liquid the strawberries have been sitting in. 8 Spoon the batter evenly into the muffin tin wells or cups. Bake until the tops are browned and the muffin bounces back when you gently press on the top with your finger tips, about 20 minutes. A bamboo or metal skewer inserted into the center should come out clean. Let cool for a couple minutes in the muffin tin before removing to serve. Yield: Makes 12 muffins.

chicken divan healthier

i wanted broccoli and cheese and mushrooms, but no heavy sauce. so i did this:

browned 8 oz of sliced mushrooms
half a medium onion
in 1 T butter. well, or 2.
salt and peppered.
moved them to the side and added two skinless chicken breasts, sliced. browned them.

placed browned chicken in a pam sprayed baking dish with a lid.
cut up fresh broccoli and added that to the dish on top of the chicken.

to 4 oz of greek yogurt, added gorgonzola crumbles and shredded cheddar and mushrooms. poured this over the chicken and broccoli. topped with shredded parmesan. baked covered till bubbly, abt 30 min at 350. removed top and browned 15 minutes. the "sauce" was watery, so I drained that, reduced it and added a teaspoon of cornstarch, reduced more. poured this over the dish and heated another 5 minutes.

fetuccine with yogurt and herbs

When I come across a recipe that I really want to try, I usually follow it to the letter so that I have an idea of how it SHOULD work, and then as soon as I'm done eating it, I am already coming up with ways to alter it. In this case, I can't say that I can come up with a single improvement.

The other day, I bummed a copy of Edible Portland (they're free in grocery stores around town) off my buddy so I could check out a recipe, and instead of making the one I'd planned to, I stumbled across this one instead. It requires prepping a day ahead, but since I plan my meals in advance, it wasn't a problem.

From Edible Portland (adapted from Cathy Whims, Chef/Owner, Nostrana)

2 cups whole milk yogurt
extra virgin olive oil
3 large onions, thinly sliced
sea salt
1 lb fettuccine
2 cups fresh herbs (a mixture of chervil, basil, parsley, chives, and fennel frond) roughly chopped
2 oz Proscuitto di Parma, thinly sliced (optional)
1 bunch green onions
1 cup grated pecorino


1. The day before, fold a long piece of cheesecloth in fourths. Spoon yogurt into its center and tie the bundle to the center of a long, wooden spoon. Lay the spoon across a bowl, so that the yogurt drains- whey will drip into the bowl below. Refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight. Remove yogurt from cheesecloth and bring to room temperature. Discard whey. (Editor's note: that business with the spoon sounds rather complicated. If you have one of those wire colander things, you can just set the cheesecloth in it, then spoon the yogurt on top, then set it in a bowl. That's what I did.)

2. Heat olive oil in large skillet. Add onions, toss well and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 to 40 minutes or until the onions turn creamy and golden brown. Turn heat to low if onions darken too quickly. While cooking, add salt to taste, a little at a time. The onions can be caramelized in advance and kept in the refrigerator. (That's what I did. It made dinner prep go a lot smoother.)

3. Bring a six-quart pot of water to a boil. Season with sea salt- enough so that the water tastes like seawater. Drop in pasta. Cook until al dente and drain, reserving a half-cup of water. (Whoops, I just realized I used a whole cup. Oh well.)

4. Place thickened yogurt in a large bowl and whisk with the reserved hot water. Toss pasta with yogurt until coated. Add caramelized onions, herbs, proscuitto, and green onions. Season with salt & pepper and toss well.

5. Place pasta in a warm serving bowl. Garnish with pecorino and a drizzle of olive oil. Serve.

(Makes 6 servings.)


Woo! The only thing I'd do differently next time is cut the recipe in half for my own little family. We were lucky to have a dinner guest this evening, or we'd surely have had a ridiculous amount of leftovers (though there's still a good sized portion sitting in my fridge right now). The tanginess of the yogurt was delicious, the caramelized onions gave the whole dish a sweet and savory touch, and the fresh herbs were delightful, of course. I loved that it had the weight and feel of a nice thick alfredo sauce, but without making me feel like total crap after I was done eating it. I didn't have any proscuitto or bacon or anything like that on hand, but next time I make this, I'm definitely going to throw some in. Because you know- meat.

Almost Cheeseless Pasta Casserole

Almost Cheeseless Pasta Casserole Recipe

I used a 100% farro pizzichi pasta here, but whole wheat penne is much more readily available - shoot for something made from whole grain flour, and roughly that size.

zest of one large lemon
8 ounces dried whole wheat pasta (penne or something comparable in size)
1 1/2 cups butternut squash, peeled and sliced into quarter sized pieces
3 handfuls kale, chard, and/or spinach, loosely chopped
2 cups plain Greek yogurt (I use 2% here)
2 egg yolks
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
2/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1/4 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and torn into pieces
scant 1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped

Preheat oven to 400F degrees, with a rack in the middle. Butter or oil an 8x12-inch baking dish, or two smaller gratin dishes. Sprinkle with lemon zest and set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt it generously, and cook the pasta until al dente. Just 10 seconds before you are done cooking the pasta, stir in the butternut squash and chard - for the quickest possible swim. Quickly (but carefully) drain. Now run cold water over the pasta, squash, and kale (just enough to stop the chard from cooking). Shake off any extra water and set aside.

While you are waiting for the pasta water to boil, whisk together the yogurt, eggs, garlic, and salt in a large mixing bowl - set aside until the pasta is boiled. Then. when ready, add the pasta-squash-kale mixture to the yogurt mixture and stir in half of the almonds. Scoop everything into the prepared baking dish(es), sprinkle with olives and feta, and bake for 25-30 minutes. Remove from oven and serve sprinkled with a bit of the chopped fresh mint and remaining almonds.

Serves 6 -8 as a side.

Grapefruit yogurt cake

Grapefruit Yogurt Cake
Adapated from Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, or 1 c flour and 1/2 c. ground almonds
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
3 extra-large eggs
3 teaspoons grated grapefruit zest (approximately one large grapefruit)
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup freshly squeezed grapefruit juice

For the glaze:
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed grapefruit juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, grapefruit zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it’s all incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup grapefruit juice and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the grapefruit-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.

For the glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar and grapefruit juice and pour over the cake.

gateau au citron

Gâteau au Citron,
or, French-Style Yogurt Cake with Lemon
Adapted from Gâteaux de Mamie

OKAY: I made this and it was the bomb: subbed 1/2 c flour for 1/2 c ground almonds, and added frozen blueberries, used Greek yogurt. We had it for breakfast with Aidell chicken apple sausages browned, which was a good compliment, and this is now a standard item. Easy, too.

This type of cake is an old classic in France, the sort of humble treat that a grandmother would make. Traditionally, the ingredients are measured in a yogurt jar, a small glass cylinder that holds about 125 ml. Because most American yogurts don't come in such smart packaging, you'll want to know that 1 jar equals about 1/2 cup.

For the cake:
1 jar plain yogurt
2 jars granulated sugar
3 large eggs
3 jars unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. grated lemon zest
1 jar canola oil

For the glaze:
Juice from 2 lemons
1/2 jar powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a large bowl, combine the yogurt, sugar, and eggs, stirring until well blended. Add the flour, baking powder, and zest, mixing to just combine. Add the oil and stir to incorporate. At first, it will look like a horrible, oily mess, but keep stirring, and it will come together into a smooth batter. Pour and scrape the batter into a buttered 9-inch round cake pan (after buttering, I sometimes line the bottom with a round of wax or parchment paper, and then I butter that too).

Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the cake feels springy to the touch and a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Do not overbake.

Cool cake on a rack for about 20 minutes; then turn it out of the pan to cool completely.

When the cake is thoroughly cooled, combine the lemon juice and powdered sugar in a small bowl and spoon it gently over the cake. The glaze will be thin and will soak in like a syrup.
Serve.


Variations: This type of yogurt-based cake is a terrific base for many improvisations. For a basic yogurt cake, simply leave out the lemon zest, and do not use the lemon juice glaze. For an almond version, try replacing 1 jar of flour with 1 jar of finely ground almonds. You can also play with adding various fruits (if frozen, do NOT thaw before adding) or nuts, if you like. When I add fruit, I generally pour half the cake batter into the prepared pan, top it with a layer of fruit, and then pour in the other half of the batter, sometimes adding more fruit on the very top.