Week 87 | Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup + Salt and Pepper Biscuits + Raspberry Crumble Bars

This week's meal included Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup, Salt and Pepper Biscuits, and Raspberry Crumble Bars. 

The Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup is so flavorful and hearty. It really does the job of dinner. I start by making the most delicious stock. I make it with a whole chicken, onion, leeks, parmesan cheese rinds, white wine, and chicken stock. I use the stock to make the soup and add shredded chicken breasts, carrots, toasted wild rice, and cream. It's so delicious. And just the right thing for the chilly spring days we are having. 

The Salt and Pepper biscuits are just biscuits with pepper. They are tender, flakey, and buttery. They are perfect dipped in the broth of the soup. 

The Raspberry Crumble Bars is a recipe from Ina Garten. They are SO delicious. They have a buttery crust, Bonne Maman Raspberry Preserves, and a crumble that includes Big Sky Bakery Granola (the absolute best granola) and slivered almonds. They are delicious!  

Week 86 | Baked Ziti + Orlondo's Salad + Lemon Ricotta Cupcakes

This week's meal includes Baked Ziti, Orlondo's Salad, and Lemon Ricotta Cupcakes.

The Baked Ziti is a straightforward vegetarian pasta dish that is as comforting as it is delicious. I make it by layering pasta, homemade slow-cooked tomato sauce, and a ricotta cheese blend. I simmer the tomato sauce to develop a deep, sweet tomato flavor that perfectly cuts the ricotta cheese's richness. The cheese is a blend of ricotta, whole milk mozzarella, and parmesan. It's soft, melty, and a little salty. It's perfect. I bake the entire thing until the pasta has absorbed some of the sauce and the cheese is melted and bubbling. It's perfect and delicious.

The Orlondo's Salad is inspired by one of my all-time favorite restaurants in Des Moines that sadly closed a few years back. They had great pizza. Green and black olive was my personal favorite. And more importantly, they had the most legendary salad. The salad was iceberg lettuce, grated mozzarella cheese, the best salad dressing, and pepperoncini. The key to the salad is the amount of salad dressing (a ton) and the ratio of lettuce and cheese, 1:1. I crave it all the time. Luckily they sell the salad dressing at local grocery stores. I make it with romaine lettuce, grated whole milk mozzarella, Orlondo's salad dressing, and a pepperoncini. I don't usually use store-bought products for my meals, but this exception is worth it. If I could get my hands on the recipe, I would GLADLY make it myself.

The Lemon Ricotta cupcakes are from one of my newest cookbooks, Simply Julia, by Julia Turshen. One of my favorite cookbook authors and Chefs. These cupcakes are simple—lemon and a light, airy crumb and delicious cream cheese, ricotta frosting. You're going to love them!

Week 84 | Chicken Enchiladas Verdes + Spinach Salad with Jalapeño-Lime Vinaigrette + Rice Pudding

This week's meal includes Chicken Enchiladas Verdes, Spinach Salad with Jalapeño-Lime Vinaigrette, and Rice Pudding. 

The Chicken Enchiladas Verdes includes six corn tortillas stuff with poached chicken breast and Monterey jack cheese. The verde sauce is really what makes these enchiladas special. It's a sweet-sour (not at all spicy) flavorful sauce. It combines onion, garlic, cumin, roasted tomatillos, and roasted poblano chiles. It's so tasty and delicious you'll want to eat it on everything! The enchiladas are served with Mexican cream, green onions, and cilantro.

The Spinach Salad with Jalapeño-Lime Vinaigrette is a simple salad with a lot of flavor. I adore simple spinach salads. The dressing is just jalapeños (seeded and cored, so it's not too spicy), lime juice, garlic, olive oil, and a little sugar and salt to balance everything out. The recipe for the Jalapeño-Lime Vinaigrette is from Julia Turshen's new book, Simply Julia. I highly recommend all of her cookbooks. The salad is topped with cotija cheese, a fantastic Mexican cheese that is salty and crumbly. 

The rice pudding is one of my all-time favorite desserts. I usually only make it around the holidays, but the creamy dessert flavored with cinnamon is the perfect ending to this flavorful meal. I slowly cook white rice in milk until it's creamy and tender. I then season the rice with sugar, cinnamon and top it with plump raisins and toasted almonds. I think you're going to love it!   

Week 83 | Pork and Sesame Udon Noodles + Smashed Cucumbers + Chocolate Chip Cookies 🍪

This week's meal includes Pork and Sesame Udon Noodles, Smashed Cucumbers, and Chocolate Chip Cookies.

The Pork and Sesame Noodles is a flavorful noodle dish with ground pork and a beautiful brown sauce. The recipe is inspired by Claire Saffitz's recipe from Bon Appétit, Better-than-Takeout Stir-Fried Udon. The udon noodles are thick and tender and mixed with browned green cabbage and sesame oil. The ground pork is cooked until well browned and seasoned with green onions, fresh ginger, sesame seeds, mirin, and soy sauce. Mirin is similar to sake but has more sugar and less alcohol. It pairs perfectly with soy sauce since soy sauce is so salty. I mix all the components to create a perfectly balanced dish: toasted sesame seeds and green onions garnish the dish.

Smashed cucumbers is a Sichuan dish that is typically served with rich, spicy food. So it pairs well with the Pork and Sesame Udon Noodles. This recipe comes from Cooks Illustrated. The cucumbers are smashed to create irregular pieces that hold onto the dressing. The dressing is made from Chinese black vinegar, garlic, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, and sugar. The salad is garnished with toasted sesame seeds. 

The Chocolate Chip Cookies are my family's favorite. I make them every year when we vacation at Lake Okoboji. This recipe comes from Maggie's mom, Nancy, so you know they are fantastic (she's a great cook). There is nothing special or secret about these cookies. They are classic in the most perfect way. 

Week 82 | Guinness Beef Stew + Irish Soda Bread + Irish-Coffee Blondies 💚

This week's meal includes Guinness Beef Stew, Irish Soda Bread, and Irish-Coffee Blondies in honor of my Irish friends. I am not Irish, but I make this meal every year around St. Patrick's Day, and I really look forward to it.

The Guinness Beef Stew is a hearty beef stew with chuck roast, carrots, and potatoes. I use my homemade chicken broth and Guinness, which makes a luxurious sauce. Brown sugar helps to balance the bitterness of the Guinness. The stew is cooked in the oven without a lid, creating a concentrated sauce and allowing the meat to brown slightly. It's the most comforting and satisfying dish on a chilly March day.

The Irish Soda Bread is a quick bread that has a flavor and texture almost like a giant biscuit. There are TONS of opinions on what is traditional Irish Soda Bread. I didn't worry about any of them. I have made a few, and this one is my favorite. I serve it with Kerrygold Irish butter. To me, it's the perfect bite with the Guinness Beef Stew.

The Irish-Coffee Blondies are so delicious. They have ground coffee in the blondies and Irish whiskey in the glaze. They are chewy and yummy!

Week 81 | Prairie Breeze Mac & Cheese + Roasted Tomatoes + Red Velvet Cupcake 🧁

This week's meal includes Prairie Breeze Mac & Cheese, Garlic Roasted Tomatoes, and Red Velvet Cupcakes. It's the ultimate comfort meal. I have been so busy with school lately. A comforting meal is exactly what I need to recharge on the weekend.  

The Prairie Breeze Mac & Cheese has the most luxurious cheese sauce. The cheese sauce is made from one of Iowa's best cheeses, Milton Creamery's Prairie Breeze. It's unquestionably what makes the cheese sauce so delicious. I also use a gruyère cheese to make the sauce creamy and smooth. It's topped with homemade breadcrumbs and baked until it is hot and bubbly inside and crispy on top. 

The Garlic Roasted Tomatoes are the perfect complement to the decadent mac & cheese. The tomatoes get sweet and soft in the oven, and the acidity from the tomatoes acidity provides relief from the rich mac & cheese. They are one of my all-time favorite side dishes. 

Red Velvet Cupcakes. What else do I need to say? They are chocolatey with that perfect tang. The cupcakes are topped with Cream Cheese Frosting. It's the perfect comforting ending to this meal. 

Week 80 | Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork + Brown Butter Cornbread + Winter Slaw + Banana Pudding 🍌

This week's meal includes Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork, Brown Butter Cornbread with Honey Butter, Winter Slaw, and Banana Pudding. All of these recipes have a nod to the south, but with clean and balanced flavors I think you're going to love! 

I make my pulled pork in a dutch oven, and I braise it with my favorite BBQ sauce and Dr. Pepper. Yep, you read that correctly, Dr. Pepper. The sugar and the spices from the soda create a beautifully seasoned and moist pork shoulder. My pulled pork started from Ree Drummond's recipe, and I've modified it slightly over time. 

I have spent years trying all sorts of cornbread recipes. I found most of them to be too dry and not sweet enough. I had finally resulted to the conclusion that Jiffy Cornbread was the best there was. However, after watching an episode of Binging with Babish about cornbread, I gave homemade another go. I love his Brown Butter Cornbread. It's perfectly moist, has outstanding flavor, and just the right amount of sweetness. I top it with honey and flakey sea salt and serve it with honey butter. 

The Winter Slaw is a recipe from Ina Garten that I love. It's an enjoyable way to eat many raw, fresh greens without really realizing the food you're eating is so healthy. The lemon vinaigrette softens the kale and brussels sprouts, so they are nice and tender. The cranberries, sunflower seeds, and parmesan cheese shards add great texture and salty and sweet flavors. And it's the perfect balance to the rich pulled pork. 

Banana pudding is a classic southern dessert that doesn't need any help. It's perfection. I make my vanilla pudding from scratch, so it's extra special. All the flavors soak into one another for a dessert like no other. 

I hope you enjoy this week's meal as much as I do! 

Week 79 | Cobb Salad + Mini Baguettes 🥖 + Sprinkle Sugar Cookies

This week's meal includes a Cobb Salad, Mini Sourdough Baguettes, and Sprinkle Sugar Cookies.

Cobb Salad is one of my favorite dinners. There are so many flavors, textures, and colors. It's as beautiful as it is delicious. My rendition of a cobb salad includes cherry tomatoes, a hard-boiled egg, oven-roasted chicken, avocado, Maytag Blue Cheese, chives, and of course, bacon. The cherry tomatoes add a beautiful acidic component to the salad. The hard-boiled egg adds a rich and creamy element. The oven-roasted chicken is a lean source of protein and savory component. The avocado adds another creamy piece. The Maytag Blue Cheese adds a little funk. And last but certainly not least, the bacon brings a salty smokey element. The dressing I use for the salad is a red-wine vinaigrette with shallot, olive oil, and bacon fat. It's the perfect hit of acid with all the creamy and rich elements of the salad.

The Mini Sourdough Baguettes are homemade with my sourdough starter, Alice. I started her last August and have been maintaining her ever since. She makes excellent bread! These loaves are personal-sized and have a crispy crust and a soft inside.

The Sprinkle Sugar Cookies are Sarah Keiffer's Pan-Banging Sugar Cookies from her 100 Cookies cookbook. They. Are. So. Good. The cookie dough is a pretty standard sugar cookie. The magic happens in the method. Once you bake the cookies about halfway, you take the pan out of the oven and drop it down on your stovetop. You repeat this process every two minutes until the cookies are finish baking. Banging the pan causes the cookies to deflate and creates these little crinkly ripples around the edge. So, the edges are crispy; the center is soft. They are heaven.

I hope you enjoy this week's meal as much as I do!

Week 78 | Valentine's Day Dinner ❤️

This week's meal includes Herb-Marinated Pork Tenderloin with Sauce Robert, Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes, Bacon Wrapped Green Beans, and Salted Caramel Brownies. Yum! I wanted to make this week's meal extra special since pickup is on Valentine's Day. 

The Herb-Marinated Pork Tenderloins are pork tenderloins marinated in lemon juice, thyme, rosemary, garlic, dijon mustard, and olive oil. It gives the pork so much flavor and keeps it very juicy. The recipe is from Ina Garten, and I have been making it for years. I will serve the pork with Sauce Robert (pronounced ROH-bare). Sauce Robert is a traditional French sauce, and I use Julia Child's recipe from Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 1. It is a brown mustard sauce with a ton of flavor and is perfect with the Herb-Marinated Pork Tenderloin. 

The Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes are russet potatoes that I purée in a food mill. It creates the perfect mashed potato texture. I stir in butter, whole milk, sour cream, greek yogurt, and a lot of kosher salt and freshly ground pepper. 

Bacon-Wrapped Green Beans are french haricots verts that are par-cooked in salted water and then bundled. I brush the little bundles with butter, garlic powder, kosher salt, and freshly ground pepper. I wrap each bund in a thick slice of par-cooked bacon. I finish them in the oven topped with brown sugar. This recipe is from Williams-Sonoma, and I discovered it last year over the holidays. They are delicious and a real crowd-pleaser. 

The Salted Caramel Brownies are extreme chocolate brownies made with semisweet chocolate, unsweetened chocolate, and chocolate chips. There is also espresso powder and vanilla extract, which give the brownies an excellent chocolate flavor. They are topped with homemade salted caramel sauce and flaked sea salt. The Salted Caramel Brownie recipe is also from Ina Garten.

I hope you enjoy this week's meal, and Happy Valentine's Day! ❤️

Week 77 | Tuscan White Beans + Caesar Salad + Lemon Olive Oil Cake 🍋

This week is my first take-and-bake meal. I made Tuscan White Beans, Caesar Salad, and Lemon Olive Oil Cake. It's one of my favorite meals, so it felt like an excellent choice for my first dinner. 

The Tuscan White Beans are cannellini beans simmered in onion, garlic, and tomato paste. I finish the beans with puréed preserved lemon, which adds a little hit of acid at the end. The dish is topped with crispy breadcrumbs, made with homemade ciabatta breadcrumbs. They are crisp and salty and add the perfect texture. My Tuscan White Bean recipe is inspired by Alison Roman's recipe in Nothing Fancy. 

The Caesar Salad is a vegetarian version of a traditional Caesar Salad. The dressing is garlicky and cheese. The umami flavor comes from the parmesan cheese and Worcestershire sauce. It's a good alternative to the anchovies. I dress the romaine lettuce with Caesar dressing, crispy croutons (also made from homemade ciabatta bread), and parmesan cheese. My Caesar Salad recipe is inspired by Serious Eats. 

The Lemon Olive Oil cake an ultramoist lemon cake with a subtle olive oil flavor. It is iced with lemon icing to add an extra boost of lemon flavor. It's divine! The recipe comes from Yossy Arefi's wonderful book Snaking Cakes. 

Week 76 | French Demo Week 🇫🇷

This week we had our French demos at school. Under normal circumstances, two French Chefs would come to ICI and work with us for two weeks. However, due to Covid-19, the French Chefs weren't able to travel to the United States. We did the demos virtually. They recorded terrific videos, and then we got to do live Q&A with the Chefs and an interpreter. We got to work with different Chefs for the various courses. Next week we'll be making the recipes they taught us for a French take-and-bake dinner. It was so cool to see the Chefs in their restaurants and get tours of their kitchens. It would have been more fun for them to be here in person; however, I'm grateful for the experience all the same. I can't wait to make the recipes next week!

Week 75 | Caesar Salad 🥗

Caesar Salad is one of my all-time favorite foods. So, I have been working on perfecting how I make it for a few years now. Serious Eats recipe The Best Caesar Salad is my favorite. I have made a few adjustments, including substituting Worcestershire sauce for the anchovies. I don't mind them, but some people don't like them, and it's nice to keep it vegetarian. I do think the flavor is much richer when you use anchovies, so I like when I'm making it for just me. However, Worcestershire sauce still gives you a deep, salty, umami flavor. The lemon balances the fatty, salty flavor so perfectly. I toast the croutons in garlic olive oil with parmesan cheese and then toss the toasted croutons with grated parmesan cheese. It gives you so many hits of parmesan. Put that all together with fresh, crisp romaine lettuce, and it's a match made in heaven! YUMMY!

Week 74 | Ciabatta 🥖

I made two loaves of ciabatta this week. I followed Erin Jean McDowell's recipe on Food52. I love everything that woman does. I have made ciabatta one other time, but it was not very successful. It didn't rise very much, so it wasn't airy and holey, but flat and tough. This round was much more successful. It was tangy, airy, and chewy inside. I'm not sure why my first batch didn't rise, but this batch almost tripled in size in an hour. Ciabatta dough is very wet; it's practically liquid and not very shapable, which is why the loaves are pretty rustic. Ciabatta translates to "slipper" in Italian, which refers to the shape of a ciabatta loaf. The dough sort of blobs out, and you fold it into place. I used my ciabatta loaves for croutons for a caesar salad, (the best) eggs and toast, bread crumbs, and simply eating with butter and salt.

I also started back to school this week, not class, but working at a continuing education dinner with Chef Katie Van Dyke. The dinners are currently take-and-bake due to Covid-19. I highly recommend her dinners. The food is lovely and delicious.

Next week, I have my second year spring semester orientation. I am beginning my final semester. I can't believe it. I also just submitted my application for the France scholarship. I will have an interview later this week, and I find out if the selection committee selected me in mid-February. 🤞🏻

Week 73 | Chocolate Caramel Tart 🤎

This week I made a Chocolate Caramel Tart by Amanda Hesser at the New York Times and was inspired by a Gramercy Tavern recipe. I have had this recipe on my list for years, but I'm always a little hesitant to make caramel because it's hard to get just right. I will never get better at making caramel unless I make more caramel, so I decided to go for it. It turned out great. I made the tart shell the day before I made the filling and glaze. The caramel filling was straightforward and not too fussy because I made it with corn syrup, which helps it from crystallizing. I made the chocolate glaze with dark chocolate and cream. I topped the tart with flaked sea salt. It was so good. Maybe one of my favorite desserts.

Week 72 | Happy New Year! 🌟

Happy New Year! I celebrated the New Year by making a star bread. I made a star bread last year on New Year's Day. It might be a tradition this year. This year, I used a recipe from King Arthur Baking. I used cinnamon and sugar filling. I also made a cream cheese icing to eat with the bread. It was awesome.

Week 71 | Merry Christmas! 🎄

Merry Christmas! I made Erin Jean McDowell's Pumpkin Pie from The Book on Pie for Christmas Eve dinner. I also made this pie for Thanksgiving. The only change was I used mascarpone cheese instead of half-and-half for this version. I am not sure I noticed a considerable texture or flavor difference. I would probably use half-and-half in the future. It's less expensive and easier to mix in. This is my favorite pumpkin pie recipe I have made to date.

Week 70 | Chocolate Babka 🤎

This week I made Melissa Clark's Chocolate Babka. It's a twisted filled bread. The dough is similar to a cinnamon roll dough, and the filling was chocolate. You could make the filling any flavor you like: jam, cinnamon, or pumpkin. I made two loaves and gave one to some new neighbors that moved in across the street. This project looked more impressive than it is hard and was very delicious. It was worth the effort.

Week 69 | Breakfast-y Pasta

I am in full winter break mode. I have been spending a lot of time reading cookbooks, cooking, and baking. I'm trying new recipes and making things I don't always have time for during the school year. This week I made Alison Roman's Pasta with Wilted Greens, Bacon, and Fried Egg. This meal was indulgent and delicious. I will definitely make it again.

Week 68 | Leftovers

Leftovers! Is there anything better Thanksgiving than the leftovers?!? I don't think there is. I usually make a pot pie situation, and this year wasn't any different. I didn't use a specific recipe, but my leftover turkey and gravy to build a sauce added many herbs and then topped it off with mashed potatoes. It was awesome and nap-inducing.

Week 67 | Thanksgiving 🦃

Thanksgiving! This week was Thanksgiving. It's my favorite holiday. It's necessary to take a day to recognize what we're thankful for, especially this year. It's also important to acknowledge this holiday's roots and remember the Indigenous lives lost to protect their land and lives stolen by colonists.  

This year we were only able to celebrate with my parents and sister due to Covid-19. It was sad not to celebrate with all of our family because we love them all so much. 

I made Ina Garten's Tuscan Roulade Turkey, NYTimes's Turkey Gravy with Drippings, Serious Eats's Classic Sage Dressing, NYTimes's Cider-Glazed Brussels Sprouts, Ina Garten's Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes, Cooks Illustrated's Simple Cranberry Sauce, Cooks Illustrated's Best American Dinner Rolls, NYTimes's Pecan Pie Truffles, Erin Jean McDowell's Pumpkin Pie (this recipe is from her fantastic book, The Book on Pie).

Most of these are my favorite Thanksgiving dishes, and I make them every year. The brussels sprouts were a new recipe I tried this year, and it wasn't my favorite. I like crispy brussels sprouts, and these turned out softer. It was also the first time I had made the Tuscan Roulade Turkey from Ina Garten. It was fantastic, simple, especially on Thanksgiving, and easy to slice and serve. I will definitely make this again.