Blackberry Turnovers

What could be better than warm berry turnovers? If you are short on time, use any type of preserves or pie filling to stuff the turnovers. If you want to do the blackberry filling, you can do it the day before.

Ingredients:

1 (12 ounce) package frozen blackberries, thawed

3 Tablespoons blackberry preserves

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

1 cup confectioner’s (powdered) sugar

6 teaspoons water

Directions: Place the blackberries (along with any juice) in a saucepan and add the preserves. Cook on medium low 90 minutes, until thick. Remove from heat and pour into a bowl. Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Roll out puff pastry lightly and cut into six squares. Turn each square to have a point facing you so that they are now diamond shapes. Place one Tablespoon of the blackberries in the lower half of the diamond and fold the top half over. Press edges to seal and cut a small slit in the top of each to let the steam escape. Bake for 25 minutes.

While the turnovers are baking, mix the confectioner’s sugar and water together to make a glaze. Remove the turnovers to a platter and let cool for 10 minutes. Use a fork or spoon to decorate each turnover with some glaze. These are good warm, at room temperature or even cold.

Note: You may have leftover blackberry jam here, which is awesome and can be refrigerated to use on toast or biscuits.

Steak and Guinness® Pot Pie

Oh, my Irish is starting to surface and I couldn’t be happier. Here’s a shout out to the Cronins and Laytons on my mom’s side of the family tree.

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Tablespoons flour

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

1 pound chuck steak, trimmed of some fat and cut into ½ inch cubes

1 small yellow onion, diced

1 large carrot, peeled and diced

1 ½ cups chopped mushrooms

2 bottles Guinness Extra Stout®, divided

1 can beef consommé

1 teaspoon Worcestershire

½ teaspoon dried marjoram

½ teaspoon dried thyme

Salt and pepper to taste

1 medium russet potato, peeled and diced into ½ inch cubes

1 egg white, lightly beaten

1 sheet of frozen puff pastry, thawed

Directions: Heat the olive oil on medium in a Dutch oven. In a small bowl, mix together the flour and ½ t salt and ½ t pepper. Toss the beef cubes into the flour mix and add to the oil, browning on all sides. Remove the beef to a plate and deglaze the pan with a touch of stout, stirring up all the lovely brown bits. Next, put the onions, mushrooms and carrots in the Dutch oven. Cook for 5 minutes or until soft. Add the beef back into the Dutch oven, along with the rest of the stout, consommé, Worcestershire and seasonings. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cover and simmer 1 hour. Add in the potato cubes. Cover again and cook for 30 minutes more or until the potatoes are fork tender.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Take four oven safe large ramekins or soup bowls and turn upside down over the sheet of puff pastry (you may want to roll the puff pastry out slightly to make sure you have enough to use. Cut rounds of puff pastry ½ inch larger than your ramekins. Ladle the beef mixture into the ramekins. Place the bowls on a baking sheet and brush the top edges lightly with egg white. Place one piece of puff pastry over each ramekin and press the edges over the egg white lightly to seal. Brush the tops with egg white and cut a slit in the top of each to let steam escape. Cook for 40 minutes (turning the baking sheet around halfway through) or until the pastry is puffed and golden. I’m serving mine with a slice of Sage Derby Cheese on the side.

Crispy Fish with Sautéed Spring Onions and Swiss Chard

Ingredients:

For the Spring Onions and Chard:

2 Tablespoons Olive oil

1 small bunch Swiss chard stems and leaves chopped separately (about ½ cup stems, 2 cups leaves)

1 cup spring (bulb) onions, chopped, using a mix of the green and white portions

Salt and Pepper to taste

For the Fish:

3 Tablespoons canola oil

1 pound of firm white fish, like cod, haddock, mahi mahi, etc. about ½ inch thick

¼ cup flour

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

2 lightly beaten egg whites (1/4 cup liquid egg whites)

1 cup panko bread crumbs (I’m using whole wheat panko)

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

For the sauce:

½ cup light mayonnaise

Juice from ½ of a lemon (about 2 teaspoons)

½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

½ teaspoon prepared horseradish

1 teaspoon capers

Directions:

For the spring onions and chard: Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the spring onions and chard stems and sauté for about 5 minutes, until soft. Add in the chard leaves and cook a few minutes more or until the leaves or wilted. Season with salt and pepper and remove to a small saucepan on a low burner to keep warm.

For the fish: Wipe out the skillet from the spring onions and chard. Set up three bowls. In the first bowl, stir together the flour with ½ t salt and ½ t pepper. Add the egg whites to the second. Add the panko and the last ½ t salt and ½ t pepper to the last bowl.

Add the canola oil to the skillet and heat over medium. Cut the fish into 4 ounce portions and dredge first in flour, shaking the excess off. Dip the fish into the egg whites to coat and then into the panko. Cook in the skillet about 5 minutes per side until the fish flakes easily with a fork.

For the sauce:

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl.

Serve the fish either over the top of the greens or alongside with plenty of sauce.

Get creative on me: Sub out collard greens, kale or spinach for the swiss chard. Instead of using spring onion, use some white onion along with a few green onions.

Warm Chocolate Cherry Pudding Cake

I remember Mom making pudding cakes and how they would magically turn into a cake layer on top with warm, gooey pudding underneath. On top of that, you’ve got to love how easy this is to put together!

Ingredients:

1 (15 ounce) can dark sweet cherries

3 Tablespoons cherry preserves

¾ cup flour

2/3 cup granulated sugar

½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, divided

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup milk

3 Tablespoons canola oil

2/3 cup packed brown sugar

¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks, divided

1 teaspoon vanilla

¾ cup hot tap water

Whipped cream for serving

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Drain the cherries, reserving ½ cup juice. Pour the cherries and the ½ cup reserved juice into a small bowl. In another small ( microwave safe) bowl warm the cherry preserves for 10 seconds on high to soften. Add to the bowl of cherries, stir and set aside.

In a 1.5 or 2 quart glass casserole dish, stir together the flour, sugar, ¼ cup of cocoa, baking powder and salt. Add milk, oil, ¼ cup chocolate chips and the cherry mixture. Stir to combine. Sprinkle the brown sugar, remaining cocoa and remaining chocolate chips over the mixture, without stirring. Add the vanilla to the hot water and pour evenly over the top without stirring.

Bake for 65-70 minutes until the surface seems dry. Serve warm with whipped cream.

Chicken and Leek Soup

I like the original name of this soup—“Cock a Leekie” best. I did my own take on this traditional soup to warm up a cool March night.

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 cup sliced leeks (I use frozen sliced leeks, thawed)

8 cups chicken stock

1 skinless, boneless chicken breast

¼ cup quinoa (optional, but really good)

½ cup rice, any type

2 green onions, thinly sliced

2 Tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions: In a Dutch oven, cook leeks in olive oil (medium heat) until just tender, but not brown. Add in the stock and chicken breast. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover the pot. Cook for about 15 minutes, until chicken is tender. Remove the chicken from the stock and put on a plate to cool. Add the quinoa and rice to the stock and shred the chicken, putting the pieces back into the stock. Check for seasonings and add salt and pepper to taste. Simmer, covered, for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add in the green onions, parsley and lemon juice and cook for 3 minutes more. Serve hot.

Baked Egg White Omelet

This isn’t just for breakfast, it is good for lunch, dinner or especially late at night.

Ingredients:

Vegetable oil cooking spray

1 Tablespoon seasoned dry bread crumbs

½ cup mixed color bell peppers, diced

½ cup mushrooms, diced

¼ cup green onion, thinly sliced

1 cup liquid egg whites from a carton

1/3 cup grated parmesan

1 teaspoon salt

2 regular egg whites (save the yolks for something else)

½ teaspoon cream of tartar

Three slices of bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled (the microwave ready kind works well here)

Directions: Spray a 1.5 quart casserole dish with cooking spray. Add the bread crumbs and turn to coat all sides, discarding any extra bread crumbs. Spray a medium skillet with cooking spray. Add the vegetables and cook on medium heat for 5 minutes or until the veggies are soft. Turn off the heat and let cool slightly. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Add the liquid egg whites to a large mixing bowl and whisk until light (they won’t beat to peaks if they are pasteurized, hence the need for regular egg whites). Fold in the cooled veggies, salt and parmesan. In another mixing bowl, beat the two egg whites until soft peaks form. Add in the cream of tartar and beat to stiff peaks. Fold by spoonfuls into the veggie mixture and add in two pieces of crumbled bacon. Scoop into the casserole dish and top with the remaining bacon crumbles.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until set throughout and  golden on top.

Note: I got those really craggy peaks by cutting through the top crust halfway through cooking.

Baked Vegetable Egg Rolls

These are so fast and easy to make. And they are fun to load and roll. You know, one of these nights I might just put out the filling mixture, some proteins like shrimp or chicken and a variety of sauces and let people make their own egg rolls.

Ingredients:

Stir Fry Sauce:

2 teaspoons low sodium soy sauce

2 teaspoons water

1 teaspoon corn starch

3 drops sesame oil

3 drops hot sauce (like Siracha)

1 teaspoon hoisin sauce

1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar

A pinch of sugar

For Filling:

2 teaspoons canola oil

2 cups shredded cabbage

¼ cup shredded carrot

¼ cup thinly sliced green onion

¼ cup sliced mushrooms (shitake if you can find them)

To assemble and serve:

8 egg roll wrappers

¼ cup water in a small, shallow bowl

Vegetable oil cooking spray

Sauces for dipping (such as one or two of the following:  hot Chinese mustard or prepared English (hot) mustard, plum sauce, sweet and sour sauce, sweet Thai chili sauce)

Directions:

In a small bowl, combine all stir fry sauce ingredients and mix well. Set aside. In a large bowl, combine all filling ingredients. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a work or large skillet, heat the canola oil on medium high heat and add the filling ingredients. Cook, stirring constantly, until the veggies become very soft, about 3-5 minutes. . Stir the stir fry sauce again and add to the wok. Cook, again stirring, for 3 or so minutes until the sauce starts to thicken. Remove from the heat. If there is any excess liquid, drain it off and discard. Set aside to cool.

Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with vegetable oil spray. Lay out the egg roll wrappers on a clean surface (I use wax paper) and put 1-2  Tablespoons on the bottom portion of each egg roll wrapper, aiming for ½ inch in from each side and ½ inch from the bottom. Use your finger to run a very thin coat of water around the edge of the wrapper. Fold the edges of each wrapper up and then roll from the bottom (filling side) up. Spray the tops of the rolls with vegetable oil spray and place, seam side down, on the baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Turn the rolls over and bake for another 8 minutes.

Serve with sauces of your choice.

Get creative on me: These are so quick and easy; I’m slightly ashamed that I’ve bought the deep fried ones in the past. Make this your own by changing up the veggies (I would’ve added bean sprouts if I had them) or changing the stir fry sauce. Short on time? Instead of shredding the cabbage and carrots, just use pre-packaged Cole slaw mix. Add some leftover chicken, some uncooked, peeled shrimp, one scrambled egg or some tofu.

Bonus note: Don’t have any hot mustard on hand? You can mix equal parts dry mustard powder and water for seriously hot mustard. Add some honey and you’ve got “Hot Honey Sauce”.