Laura's Best Recipes: July 2010 Archives

176 Homemade Popsicle Recipes

July 30, 2010 7:20 AM

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176 Homemade Popsicle Recipes

I'll admit it. I'm a card-carrying popsicle addict. As I've mentioned in another post, I crave them like a child when I'm sick... and want to add a little vodka to them when I'm well! Once you start making them at home, you won't buy the commercial food-dye ladened boxes of them at your grocery store.

The great thing about making your own popsicles, is you can add just about any combination of fresh fruit juice and they will be good. However, I'm always looking for new ideas and recipes. In my quest, I found some great compilations of recipes that were so worthy of sharing. Check out these links:

50+ Homemade Popsicle Recipes - Tipnut.com assembled recipes from all over the web into one post. There are great ideas for regular fruit pops, frozen yogurt and pudding pops. Each recipe has a link to the original source.

32 Homemade "Organic" Popsicle Recipes - Blisstree.com writes that making your own popsicles is better for your body (and your kids bodies) as well as the environment. Here are 32 mostly organic recipes including veggie varieties for picky eaters.

50 Amazing Homemade Popsicle Recipes & Tips - This website had me when I saw the photo of the VitaMix on the counter. We love our VitaMix! In addition to great healthy recipes for pops, this link also has great tips for making them the best.

30 (ish) Popsicle Recipes by Kitchen Daily - Kitchendaily.com dedicates a month to sharing a new popsicle recipe each day. They share fun fruit recipes but also include adventurous and serious dessert combinations. Butter pecan pop anyone?

11 Fabulous and "Twisted" Popsicle Recipes - Beautiful and so yummy, hostessblog.com shares some serious recipes and tips on how to make beautiful "twisted' pops.

3 Cocktail Pop Recipes - You can turn just about any fruity cocktail into a popsicle. This article shows you three favorite ways to do that. How about a Mojito pop?

Those are some of the best resources for popsicle recipes on the web. However, if you really want to get creative just get out your juicer or blender - hit your farmer's market and have some fun making up your own recipes!

Pan Fried Trout with Summer Vegetables

July 26, 2010 4:51 AM

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Pan Fried Trout with Summer Vegetables

This recipe is wonderful on a summer night. It doesn't take long to prepare but will appear like you spent a lot of time on it. When I have friends over for dinner on a busy weeknight, I prepare this and usually get a lot of "ooh's" because it's so colorful and fresh-looking. This is one of my go-to dishes when I want to make something special but don't have a lot of time.

Use two skillets to cook this quickly, or cook it in two batches, keeping the first batch in a warm oven until ready to serve.

Serves 4

Ingredients
4 8-ounce fresh whole brook or rainbow trout, cleaned and boned with heads and tails intact
12 fresh basil leaves plus 6 thinly sliced fresh basil leaves, divided
12 sprigs fresh Italian parsley
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
6 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced, divided
5 small plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped, divided
2 medium zucchinis, trimmed and chopped, divided
1 cup frozen petite yellow corn kernels, divided

Rinse and thoroughly dry the trout inside and out with paper towels. Fill each trout cavity with 3 fresh basil leaves and 3 sprigs Italian parsley. Using kitchen twine, tie each trout cavity closed. Season each trout with salt and pepper.

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in 2 large skillets each over high heat until the oil begins to shimmer. Add half the garlic to each skillet and cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes. Remove the garlic from the oil and discard.

Place 2 trout in each skillet and cook until brown and slightly crisp, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Reduce the heat to low and add about half the vegetables and half the thinly sliced basil leaves to each skillet; simmer until the vegetables are cooked but still firm and the fish flakes easily with a fork, about 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the cooked fish and vegetables to a platter and serve immediately.

To watch me cook this dish, see this quick video from Good Bite

Adopt an Olive Tree in Italy....

July 23, 2010 5:01 PM

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Adopt an Olive Tree in Italy....

This is a brilliant idea that was shared via Amanda Hesser's Food52 blog. The Nudo cooperative of olive farmers in Italy has created a wonderful program. Adopt one of their olive trees and you get to track it throughout the year and receive the olive oil extracted from that tree. They have a many varieties of oils from different groves. You select your tree and receive first cold-press oil from that very tree. Very cool!

Some ideas are so good they are worth sharing. Now the tough part is narrowing it down to just one tree! I may need to pour a glass of wine while reading about each grove!

Click here to read more or adopt your very own tree!

Chef Rima Olvera's Chile Rellenos

July 19, 2010 6:55 PM

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Chef Rima Olvera's Tejana Style Chile Rellenos

www.omnivore.co.il

From Rima - In her own words:
This technique of this unique and unusual type of Chiles Rellenos, using dried, (instead of the more common version using fresh) ancho chiles in a sweet and fragrant tomato sauce, was taught to me about 25 years ago by one of my very first mentors in the kitchen, Vilma Macias, who was an exceptional chef specializing in traditional Mexican and "Tejana" dishes.
She was a great teacher, and remains a friend to this day.
Enjoy!!:

INGREDIENTS:

12 dried ancho Chile pods
about 4 cups grated Monterey jack cheese
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
zest from 1/2 orange
several eggs
fine cornmeal
flour
canola oil for frying
toothpicks
3 small tins tinned Italian plum tomatoes, pureed with stick blender
1 large onion, cut in fine brunoise
Chipotle chiles, about 1 TB or to taste
salt
dried oregano, about 1 tsp
Dark brown sugar, about 2 TB
fresh garlic, about 6 cloves, finely chopped
Queso Fresco, about 1/2 cup, crumbled

METHOD:
Carefully cut a slit in one side of each Ancho chile pod, remove as much of the seeds as you can without damaging the chile. (do not remove the stems)
When you are done doing this, pour boiling water over the chiles in a large bowl, cover with clingfilm or Saran, let sit for 2-3 minutes, then strain and leave to dry out excess water on paper towels or kitchen towels.

Mix the cheese with the chopped cilantro and the oranze zest, then carefully fill each chile, and secure the openings with several toothpicks.

Heat a heavy bottomed pan with some canola oil. when it is hot, add the oregano and let it fry until the scent changes and it smells toasted and strong, then add the garlic, onions, saute but DO NOT brown, then add the chipotles and the piloncillo or brown sugar, stir with wooden spoon to combine all and dissolve the sugar, then add the tomatoes, salt to taste. Turn down heat and cook for about 25 minutes. Adjust balance with brown sugar, chipotles, salt if needed.

Take 3 big bowls, whisk about 5 eggs in one, add cornmeal to one bowl, and flour to another bowl.

Dredge the chiles first in flour, then in the eggs, and lastly in the cornmeal.

Fry in batches in a heavy pan in deep canola oil, ket drain on paper towls, then arrange them in a glass pan, cover with the sauce, and bake, covered, in 325F oven for about 15 minutes.

To serve, remove from oven and sprinkle the crumbled Queso Fresco on top...

Deliciosa!!!!
XOXOX Rima

Paula Deen's Real Women of Philadelphia - Recipe Contest!

July 19, 2010 12:34 PM

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Paula Deen's Real Women of Philadelphia - Recipe Contest!

Just over two weeks ago, Paula Deen announced the four winners of the Real Women of Philadelphia contest! After receiving nearly 6,000 video entries from all over the country the choice was tough. There were so many talented ladies all over the country but these four rose to the top! Each of them won $25,000 and will help Paula create a cookbook featuring recipes using Philadelphia Cream Cheese. What's really exciting is they are going to help facilitate a new recipe contest that you can enter.... but first...meet the new Real Women of Philadelphia!

Mandy Heaston, Side Dish Host

Mandy is from Seattle Washington and loves to cook with her three daughters at home. Her blog says it all... www.gourmetmomonthego.com Her passion is to figure out ways to make gourmet inspired meals while managing a busy mom's schedule.

Caryn Ross, Appetizer Host

This Oklahoma lady is full of personality and sass! She and her husband of 17 years love to spend time with their two kids on their boat and have an unbridled love of food and cooking!

KC Quaretti-Lee, Dessert Host

KC lives in sunny Florida and is very active in her community of Venice. In addition to being an avid volunteer, she's also involved in the redevelopment of her downtown area. She spends her time with her husband and daughter as well as in the kitchen!

Sheila Cutchlow, Entree Host

Sheila is from Washington DC and is very active in addition being a great cook. Her dream is to switch careers into the culinary world. I really enjoyed watching her very emotional winning moment that even had Paula in tears!

Enter the Contest!

Here's the fun part! The contest and this fun cooking community is just getting started! You can submit your own original recipe using Philly Cream Cheese and have the chance to win $500..... not just once.... but one recipe will be chosen each day to win $500! What's even better is all of the chosen recipes will have a chance to be included in the upcoming Real Women of Philadelphia Cookbook!

Every week for the next 16 weeks... one of the four winning hosts will give you a recipe theme. This week's theme is Time Crunch - Side Dish. Your recipe needs to be just right for those moments when you just don't have enough time in the day. It needs to be prepared in 30 minutes or less with 5 ingredients or less. You can submit as many recipes as you like! Just submit them to the website - no need for videos this time! Be sure to them in before 11;59 pm EST, July 25th. Visit the RWOP official website for all the details.

In fact... visit the website often! I've been impressed with the amazing community that is continually growing on the site. You may even bump into Paula while visiting!

Good Luck!

July 2010 Archives

176 Homemade Popsicle Recipes

Pan Fried Trout with Summer Vegetables

Adopt an Olive Tree in Italy....

Chef Rima Olvera's Chile Rellenos

Paula Deen's Real Women of Philadelphia - Recipe Contest!

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