Eat soup instead of exercising

I have been gaining weight ever since I started this blog. That's because I feel I have to eat everything I make. I know that needs to change, and I know exercise needs to be added to the mix. However, the exercise thing is easier said than done.

My daughter makes a delicious vegetable soup that helps us always lose weight…as long as we don’t eat a loaf of French bread and butter with it. This is her vegetable soup recipe for losing weight.

Like any vegetable soup, you can throw in anything in the refrigerator that’s still fresh. Same goes for the spices. Create your own soup that you can put your name on.

KATIE’S WEIGHT-LOSS VEGETABLE SOUP

1 large onion
4 celery stocks, sliced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp olive oil
3 quarts water
5 carrots, peeled and sliced
16 oz. frozen green beans
1 (28oz.) can diced tomatoes
½ small head of cabbage coarsely chopped
3 Tbsp. chicken bullion
1 tsp dried thyme leaves
1 tsp. dried basil leaves
1 tsp dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste

Sauté onions until soft. Add celery and garlic and sauté until aromatic. Add water, bullion, carrots and spices and boil for 10 minutes. Add green beans and tomatoes and bring to boil. Add cabbage last. When cabbage is cooked, season with salt and pepper. Serve hot.

The best of the best...

In my research on origin of Cioppino, I found that this wonderful fish stew began in San Francisco in the late 1800s. This city with a heavy Italian influence had many Italian fishermen. They would return from fishing and throw part of their catch into a community pot, and that was the beginning of Cioppino. Soon the Italian restaurants of North Beach were featuring Cioppino on their menus. Wikipedia says the word "Cioppino" comes from Italian for "chopped," "chopped fine," which describes the "process of making the stew by chopping up various leftovers of the day's catch."

Most of us have had variations of Cioppino and we have favorite restaurants where we claim they make the best "Cioppino." Some have mastered this fish stew at home, and their Cioppinon rivals the best. It's hard to get bad Cioppino so everyone can make the case for their favorite place to find it.

I like Phil's Fish Market in Moss Landing on the Central Coast. The Cioppino at Phil's was featured on the Food Network earlier this year when celebrity chef Bobby Flay came out to tape a segment of "Throwdown With Bobby Flay." Phil's Cioppino won the Throwdown. Click here for a video of the Throwdown.

There are many recipes for Cioppino, but I like this one from epicurious.com:

CIOPPINO

4 large garlic cloves, minced
2 medium onions, finely chopped
1 Turkish bay leaf or 1/2 California bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
1 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1 green bell pepper, cut into 1/4-inch dice
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/2 cups dry red wine
1 (28- to 32-ounces) can whole plum tomatoes, drained, reserving juice, and chopped
1 cup bottled clam juice
1 cup chicken broth
1 (1-pound) king crab leg, thawed if frozen
18 small (2-inch) hard-shelled clams (1 1/2 pound) such as littlenecks, scrubbed
1 pound skinless red snapper or halibut fillets, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
1 pound large shrimp (16 to 20), shelled (tails and bottom segment of shells left intact) and deveined
3/4 pound sea scallops, tough muscle removed from side of each if necessary
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil


Garnish: shredded fresh basil leaves and small whole leaves
Accompaniment: focaccia or sourdough bread
Cook garlic, onions, bay leaf, oregano, and red pepper flakes with salt and pepper in oil in an 8-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring, until onions are softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in bell pepper and tomato paste and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add wine and boil until reduced by about half, 5 to 6 minutes. Add tomatoes with their juice, clam juice, and broth and simmer, covered, 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

While stew is simmering, hack crab leg through shell into 2- to 3-inch pieces with a large heavy knife. Add crab pieces and clams to stew and simmer, covered, until clams just open, 5 to 10 minutes, checking every minute after 5 minutes and transferring opened clams to a bowl with tongs or a slotted spoon. (Discard any unopened clams after 10 minutes.) Lightly season fish fillets, shrimp, and scallops with salt and add to stew, then simmer, covered, until just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Discard bay leaf, then return clams to pot and gently stir in parsley and basil.

Serve Cioppino immediately in large soup bowls.

The best coconut thing I ever ate

OMG! I just ate a piece of coconut cream pie that made me think I had died and gone to heaven. It's called triple coconut cream pie because it has flaked coconut, coconut milk, and coconut extract in the filling. Even the crust is laced with coconut.

You might think this is a coconut overkill, but it isn't overpowering at all. The filling is very light and fresh-tasting.

I saw this pie on the food network show, The Best Thing I Ever Ate. In this show celebrity chefs talk about… well, the best thing they ever ate. This coconut pie recipe was created by Tom Douglas at Dahlia Bakery in Seattle.

This pie is more time consuming to make than most of my recipes, but if you have the time and like coconut, you've got to try this pie.

TRIPLE COCONUT CREAM PIE

Pastry Shell
• 1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup sweetened flaked coconut
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces and frozen for 10 minutes
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sour cream
• 2 tablespoons ice water

Filling
• 1 (13 1/2 ounce) can coconut milk, well stirred (NOT cream of coconut!)
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut
• 1 vanilla bean, split (can substitute 1 tsp. vanilla extract)
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 5 large egg yolks
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract (optional, but highly recommended)
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

Topping
• 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream, well chilled
• 1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dark rum (optional)
• 1/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut, toasted
• 1 ounce white chocolate, shaved

Directions

For Pie Shell:

Process flour, salt, sugar & coconut together in food processor until combined, about 3 seconds. Add butter and pulse until butter is size of large peas, about five to seven one-second pulses.

Using fork, mix sour cream and ice water in small bowl until combined. Add half of sour cream mixture to flour mixture; pulse for two 1-second pulses. Repeat with remaining sour cream mixture.

Pinch dough with fingers; if dough is floury, dry and does not hold together, add 1 to 2 teaspoons ice water (start with less), and process until dough forms large clumps and no dry flour remains, two to three one-second pulses.

Flatten into 4-inch disk; wrap in plastic and refrigerate until firm but not too hard, 1 to 2 hours, before rolling. You may also place wrapped disks in freezer bags and refrigerate for up to two days, or freeze up to six months. Simply bring to a pliable (but cold!) temperature before rolling out.

Place in 9-inch pie plate, trim and flute edges, and cover with foil. Fill foil to top rim with pie weights or dry beans.

Blind bake pie shell at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, reduce temperature to 350. Remove pie weights and foil, and bake at 350 an additional 10-20 minutes, or until shell is golden brown--not just "blonde." Let cool completely.

For Filling:

Bring the coconut milk, milk, coconut, vanilla bean, 1/3 cup sugar and salt to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally witha wooden spoon to dissolve the sugar.

When the mixture reaches a simmer, whisk the egg yolks to break them up, then whisk in the remaining 1/3 cup sugar and cornstarch until well combined and no lumps remain.

Gradually whisk the simmering liquid ino the yolk mixture to temper it, then return the mixture to the saucepan, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula. Vanilla bean can be discarded at this time.

Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly, until 3 or 4 bubbles burst on the surface and the mixture is thickened, about 30 seconds.

Off the heat, whisk in the coconut extract (and vanilla if you're subbing) and butter. Pour the filling into the cooled crust, press a sheet of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the filling, and refrigerate until the filling is cold and firm, at least 3 hours.

For the topping:

When ready to serve, beat the cream and sugar in the chilled bowl of an electric mixer at medium speed to soft peaks; add the vanilla and rum, if using. Continue to beat to barely stiff peaks. Spread or pipe the whipped cream over the chilled filling. Sprinkle the toasted flaked coconut and shaved chocolate over the whipped cream. Serve.

She's a smart little cookie

Calico, my sous chef, told me she wanted to play with me in the kitchen some more. It warms my heart when she wants to spend time with me and I don’t want to pass up any opportunity, so today we baked.

She wanted to make some cookies. Of course, that's only because she knows that when we make cookies she gets to lick the beaters, clean the bowl with her fingers, and eat lots of cookie dough. She gets her three-day sugar quota in twenty minutes and gets to have fun doing it. That’s why she likes to make cookies.

Oh wait....Isn't that why we all like to make cookies????



We have a wonderful time in the kitchen together, but I know that in about an hour her sugar-rush will turn into a sugar-crash. It's not fair to her mom that I pump her full of sugar and take her home before the crash... but that is one of the benefits of being a grandma. That... and all those precious hugs and kisses.



RUSSIAN TEA COOKIES

2 cubes butter, softened
1/2 cup confectioners'sugar
1 tsp. water
1 tsp. vanilla
2-1/4 cups flour
3/4 cup pecans or walnuts, finely chopped
Powdered sugar

Preheat oven 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add water and vanilla. Mix in flour until combined. Stir in nuts. Roll into walnut size balls or shape into crecents and place 2" apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Roll in powdered sugar or dust lightly with powdered sugar immediately after removing from oven. Roll or dust again with powdered sugar after cookies have cooled for 10 minutes.

Old Mother Hubbard went to the cupboard

Last night my daughter, Katie, and I were craving something sweet and chocolaty and decided to bake some chocolate chip cookies. When we gathered up the ingredients,we quickly realized that we didn’t have any butter. . . or shortening. Then we remembered a chocolate cookie recipe that calls for vegetable oil. Good thing. Our chocolate craving was getting intense.

I got this recipe from my friend, Cyrhen. These cookies are pretty and can satisfy a chocolate craving in an instant. The hardest thing with this recipe is waiting for the batter to chill. That delays actually eating them, and that is what this exercise is all about -- eating the finished product. Chilling the batter, however, makes it easier to roll it in the powdered sugar.

CHOCOLATE CRINKLE COOKIES

½ cup vegetable oil
4 squares (1 oz, each) unsweetened chocolate, melted
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
powdered sugar

Combine oil, chocolate and sugar together. Add eggs, one at a time. Stir in vanilla. Add flour, baking powder, and salt and stir until evenly blended.

Chill batter 30-60 minutes, or until it is firm. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll batter into walnut-size balls and roll each ball in powdered sugar, covering all sides. Place sugared balls 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes. Cookies will not look done. Cool slightly and remove from cookie sheet.

MAKES 3 DOZEN

If you don’t want to take the time to melt the chocolate you can substitute ¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder and 4 Tbsp. oil for the 4 squares of chocolate. It's much easier.

Dip-a-dee-doo-dah

Have you ever gone to the Olive Garden Restaurant and had the Hot Artichoke and Spinach Dip? Did you love it so much that you wished you had the recipe? Well, stop looking... I found it.

I stumbled across copykat.com one day and have been a follower ever since. CopyKat.com is a recipe site that has many famous recipes from some of the most popular(and not-so-popular) chain restaurants.

There's an upside and a downside to knowing what goes into our favorite restaurant recipes. The upside is knowing the ingredients and being able to duplicate it at home. The downside is knowing how much fat is actually in those delicious dishes.

Oh well. Some things are worth a few extra miles on the treadmill...

OLIVE GARDEN HOT ARTICHOKE AND SPINACH DIP

Dip
1 8 oz. package cream cheese, room temperature
1 (14oz.) can artichoke hearts, drained and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup frozen chopped spinach (well drained)
1/2 cup mayonnaise (do not use Miracle whip)
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1/4 cup Romano cheese (you can use all Parmesan if you like)
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 tsp. dry basil (1 Tbsp. fresh basil)
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese
1/4 tsp. garlic salt
salt and pepper to taste

Toasted Bread
1 sourdough baguette
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp. olive oil

Cream together softened cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, Romano cheese, garlic, basil, and garlic salt. Mix well. Add the artichoke hearts and spinach (squeezed of excess water), and mix until blended. Store in a container until ready to use. Spray pie pan with Pam, pour in dip and top with mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until the tip is browned.

Saute minced garlic in olive oil for one minute. Cut baguette crosswise into 1/2 inch slices. Brush olive oil on each piece and place on cookie sheet. Broil in oven until lightly toasted, watching closely. Serve with hot dip spooned on top.

A quest for the perfect sweet potato biscuit

My friend and coworker, Sylvia, asked me if I had a good recipe for sweet potato biscuits. I didn’t, but thought, “How hard could it be to find one?”

I made the these biscuits two weeks ago, but was disappointed because I expected more sweet potato flavor. The next week I tried a different recipe, which had more flavor but the biscuits were as hard and dense as hockey pucks.

I then realized that finding a recipe for a light flaky biscuit with great sweet potato flavor is going to be a lot harder than I thought. But, I’m not giving up! I’m not posting a recipe for sweet potato biscuits until I find one that fits the bill.

I have two more recipes to try, so be patient Sylvia. I’ll keep you posted.

Wish me luck!