Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

August 28, 2015August 28, 2015 / ktbuchs87

I am the queen of roasted things. It’s pretty much my answer to everything. Broccoli? Roast it. Zucchini? Roast it. Almonds/cashews/hazelnuts? Roast it. Sweet potatoes. Roast it. Annoying relatives that randomly drop in for the weekend without calling? Roast it.

Ok, maybe not the last one but still. Whenever I have food that can be roasted, I’m gonna roast it. So I was shocked that I had never roasted peppers before. It’s not like it’s a hard process. It couldn’t be simpler. I just never looked at a pepper and felt the need to roast it. Well, that time is over because roasted peppers are delicious. They add a wonderfully smoky flavor to whatever you use them for and smoky is always good.

I put this sauce over gluten free linguine and it was fantastic. You could use this over zoodles, in lasagna, over vegetables (roasted of course), or you know just eat it straight out of the pot. I won’t judge.

Roasted Red Pepper Sauce- slightly adapted from Minimalist Baker’s Vegan Roasted Red Pepper Pasta

2 large red bell peppers
1/2 cup caramelized onions (or regular onion), diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 to 1 cup coconut milk
3 tbsp nutritional yeast
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place the peppers on the sheet. Roast the peppers for 20 minutes and then flip them over and roast for another 20 minutes. The pepper should have a little char on it once it’s done.
Remove the peppers from the oven and place a glass bowl over them to allow the steam to loosen the skins. Let them sit for about 15 minutes.
While the peppers are steaming, heat a little oil in a medium pan over medium-high heat. Saute the onions and garlic until soft and translucent, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat and place in a blender.
Take the peppers out from under the bowl and remove the skins. The skins should slip off pretty easily. You can leave a little bit of the char on for a more intense smoky flavor.
Add the peppers, nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper to the blender. Pulse a few times to break everything up and then add in 1/2 cup of the coconut milk. Blend until smooth. If the sauce is still really thick add in more coconut milk, up to 1 cup.
Pour the sauce into a saucepan and heat through, about 5 minutes. Serve over pasta, vegetables, or even rice.

At first glance, it looks like there are a lot of complicated steps but you’re really just roasting peppers and then blending everything together. You could even roast the peppers ahead of time and then when you’re ready for dinner you can just throw everything into the blender and you have dinner in no time! You can also roast the peppers in a few different ways, I just like the oven because it doesn’t take a lot of effort.

Anyone have any fun weekend plans besides making this awesome and simple dinner? I’m looking forward to spending some time with Adam since we haven’t been able to do that for over two weeks! Have a great weekend everyone!

Friday Recipe Round-Up

August 21, 2015August 20, 2015 / ktbuchs87

Yay Friday! This week has been a doozy for me. A ton of projects were suddenly due all at once and I have been working to get all of those done. On top of that, this weekend is my sister’s bachelorette party so I have been getting things ready for that! Seriously, how is it possible that my baby sister is getting married?! We were literally just playing with our Barbies and Polly Pockets. Like yesterday. For reals.

Anyway! Because it’s been a crazy week in the Dawson house I don’t have a new recipe for you today BUT do not start sobbing yet! I do have a round-up of all the delicious recipes I have found on all the blogs I follow.

I will have new stuff for you next week, but in the meantime enjoy these recipes as well as all the ones I have over on my recipe page!

Key Lime Pistachio Truffles from The Clean Dish

I am really having a thing with key lime lately. It is the perfect summer treat and there are so many ways to make it. These truffles look amazing!

Grain-Free Chocolate Zucchini Bread from Predominantly Paleo

About this time of year, we’re pretty much drowning in zucchini. It’s delicious but the same old zucchini bread can get a little tiresome. I love this chocolate twist!

Avocado Lemon Basil Pesto from Kathy Hester

Along with key lime, I have been having a love affair with pesto this summer. My fridge has not been without a jar of the stuff for more than 2 hours. The lemon basil in this is amazing, but if you can’t find any regular basil still makes a tasty pesto!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Magic Shell from The Lemon Bowl

Be prepared for me to cover everything in this delectable concoction. If you’re smart you should do the same.

Have an awesome weekend and make one of these glorious dishes!

Tahini BBQ Summer Vegetable Bake

August 14, 2015 / ktbuchs87

I have been all about the tahini lately. I have been finding ways to put it on everything and I have not been disappointed. Most of us only know tahini as an ingredient in hummus. It helps give it that nice creamy, earthy flavor. While hummus is delicious, tahini deserves to be more than just an ingredient in a popular dip.

It is awesome in baked goods, drizzled over pancakes or roasted plantains, and it turns any homemade dressing into creamy delicious lick the bottom of the bowl good. The fact that it turns things creamy is one of my favorite things.

I like creamy, creamy is good, but sadly people only associate creamy with cheese or other dairy products. I’m going to change your mind one tahini filled recipe at a time.

This one is really easy to make and is a great way to use up the surplus of zucchini and other summer vegetables I’m sure are crowding your fridge. I also like this one because it can be made the night before and then just popped into the oven and it’s done. That’s actually what I did when I made this last weekend and it worked beautifully.

The sauce I made for this vegetable bake would also be awesome as a dip or slathered on wings or ribs or burgers or a spoon…. You get the idea. Go grab all the summer vegetables you have, whip up this sauce, and throw together this yummy dish!

Tahini BBQ Summer Vegetable Bake

Tahini BBQ Sauce-

1/4 cup tahini
2 tbsp homemade ketchup (or the best you can find/afford at the store)
1 tsp molasses
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp smoked paprika (make sure it’s smoked)
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp salt

Blend all ingredients together until smooth and well combined

Vegetable Bake-

1 batch of tahini BBQ sauce
1 zucchini, sliced and diced
1 summer squash, sliced and diced
1 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen
1 cup red onion, diced
1 1/2 cup cooked garbanzo beans (or whatever bean you have on hand)
2 tsp Italian seasoning
salt and pepper

If you want/have the time, roast the zucchini and summer squash. You don’t have to, but it adds a nice flavor to the dish. Drizzle with a little olive oil and salt and pepper and roast at 400 for 15 minutes.
Remove the zucchini and squash, turn the oven to 375 and place the roasted vegetables into a large bowl.
Add the corn, onion, garbanzo beans, and stir everything to combine. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning and salt and pepper and stir again.
Add in all the tahini BBQ sauce and stir everything making sure the sauce is coating all of the vegetables and beans.
Transfer everything to a large casserole dish. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes. Take off the aluminum foil and bake for another 5 minutes.
Remove from oven and let it cool for at least 5 minutes before serving.

DIY Wednesday: Infused Olive Oil

August 12, 2015August 12, 2015 / ktbuchs87

We’re about to get fancy people. Today you are going to learn just how easy it is to make flavored and infused olive oils. If you have never tried an infused olive oil, then you and your food are in for quite the treat.

I have had a variety of infused oils before, but I have never bought my own. They were either gifts or I was using someone else’s when cooking at their house. The reason I never bought my own? They are expensive! A good infused oil can be $15 to $20 a bottle and sometimes even more. Don’t get me wrong, they’re delicious and add a ton of flavor to a dish, but I’m not spending $20 on a bottle of fancy oil. Sorry, I’m just not that girl.

Then I learned just how simple it is to make your own fancy oil. For some reason, I thought it was this complicated and mysterious process to infuse olive oil. It really isn’t. It’s as simple as choosing the flavors you want, heating those flavors with some olive oil, cooling/straining, and then using your infused oil in all the foods.

The options are endless when it comes to infused oil. You can do fruit/citrus, garlic, onions, herbs, or even flowers. It’s all up to you. A few pointers before we get started:

Use decent olive oil. It doesn’t have to be super expensive, but better oil will result in better flavor
For herbs, try to use fresh instead of dried. Both will work, but fresh will leave a more powerful and fresher flavor. Also, blending the herbs with the oil will have a more intense flavor
For spices, buy whole and either leave them that way or ground them at home. Store-bought ground spices just don’t have the same freshness as whole and home-ground
For aromatics like garlic or onion, you can leave them in the oil instead of straining them out. This will keep infusing the oil with their flavor and make them stronger
Infused oils HAVE to be stored in the fridge. Because the oil has been heated it will spoil faster if left out on the counter. Just pull the oil out of the fridge a few minutes before you use it.

Once you start infusing your olive oil, you’ll want to try all the different kind of flavors. Infused oils are great for adding another layer of flavor to dishes, work really well in salad dressings, and are great for dipping bread into. They also make really pretty and thoughtful gifts. So let’s get to the infusing!

Infused Olive Oil

Garlic-Cilantro-Lime Oil

1 cup olive oil
1/2 cup cilantro, washed and stems removed
6 cloves garlic, washed and rinsed (you don’t want dirt in your oil)
4 strips of lime peels, use a vegetable peeler to remove even strips
1 tsp red pepper flakes, optional

If you want you can roast the garlic cloves at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes. It isn’t necessary, but gives the oil a nice rich garlic flavor
While garlic is roasting, wash and remove the stems from your cilantro. Blend the one cup of olive oil with the cilantro and pour into a medium saucepan.
Blended oil and cilantro with garlic, lime, and red pepper flakes
Add in the roasted (or not) garlic, red pepper flakes, and lime peels. Heat over medium-low heat until the oil is lightly bubbling, about 5 minutes.
Remove from heat and allow to cool completely. Once the oil is cool, use a fine mesh sieve or cheese cloth to strain your oil into a glass container. You can add back in the garlic if you would like to have a more powerful flavor.
Seal tightly and store in the fridge. The infused oil will keep for up to a month

It might seem like a lot of steps, but once you get the hang of it, it’s really easy. You can keep it simple and just infuse your oil with one thing like garlic or basil or red pepper or you can get more creative and create blends like star anise, lemongrass, and orange or oregano, basil, and thyme. Plain old olive oil just isn’t going to cut it anymore once you start infusing it with awesome flavors.

What blend would you make for your oil?

Key Lime Popsicles

August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 / ktbuchs87

I am excited about this one you guys. One of my favorite desserts is key lime pie. I love the tanginess of the lime and the fact that it isn’t overly sweet. And key lime cheesecake? Forget about it. Creamy, tangy, limey goodness.

Back in the day, my family would go to this restaurant called Omega. They were a greek place (duh, their name is Omega) and they had all the food. Seriously so much food. You could get a whole 3-course dinner which would include soup/salad, an entree, and then dessert. You could also order a la carte, but who would do that? Crazy people that’s who. Anyways, back to the 3-course feast. They had a huge dessert counter and big glass cases that would display hundreds of cookies, cakes, and pies. After our dinner, my sister and I would run to the dessert counter to choose what we were going to get. I would make the obligatory lap around the cases, but I already knew what I was going to get. A big slice of key lime cheesecake. It always hit the spot and no matter how full I was from my massive dinner, I had a little room for that cheesecake.

I haven’t had key lime pie or cheesecake in many years, but I still crave that tangy goodness especially around summer. I decided it was high time that I made a key lime dessert that would satisfy my craving without being totally decadent.

My one hurdle was the sweetened condensed milk. That is one of the key ingredients in key lime pie and there was no way I was including it in my “healthy” version. I thought about doing just plain coconut milk and leaving it at that, which would certainly work. But I decided to take it a step further and made a coconut condensed milk.

Bingo.

This key lime popsicle is cool, creamy, slightly sweet, and wonderfully tangy. It passed the husband test (although I handed it to him right as he was in the middle of a video game. Gamer wife fail) and he ate it with glee. It also doesn’t require a ton of ingredients and once you make the condensed milk, it takes like 2 minutes to put together. After that, all you have to do is wait for it to freeze…

Key Lime Popsicles

1 can full-fat coconut milk, unsweetened
1/4 cup maple syrup or honey
1/2 to 2/3 cup lime juice (I used 2/3 but I like it very tangy, use less if you don’t want it as tart)
1 tsp grated lime zest

Shake your can of coconut milk well and pour into a medium saucepan. Bring to a low boil over medium heat stirring occasionally.
Once the milk is at a boil, whisk in the maple syrup or honey and keep at a low simmer for about 15 minutes, stirring frequently so it doesn’t scald. The milk should get a little thicker and reduce down just a little.
Remove from heat and pour into another bowl and let it cool completely. Once it’s cool add in lime juice and zest. Stir it all together.
Pour the mixture into popsicle molds and let them freeze for at least 2 hours, overnight if you can. If you don’t have popsicle molds you can use an ice cube tray and toothpicks or dixie cups and popsicle sticks.