Katie Stew | A rich, simmering blend of my favorite things

May 4, 2011
by katie
0 comments

It’s about to be biscuit time.

Mmmmm… Biscuits. Yum.

Easter morning I decided that I wanted to make something special for breakfast. I hadn’t had biscuits in a while, so I decided to make some from scratch. These are super easy an completely worth it.

I found a recipe from Paula Deen, and while I am not usually a big fan of hers, I figured that she is a woman who probably knows a thing or two about biscuits. Am I right or am I right?

These were flaky, buttery, and just lovely. Mine didn’t rise very high, but I think that is just because I need to buy some new baking powder. I’m pretty confident that otherwise they would have puffed up appropriately. However, it did not diminish my enjoyment and I have every confidence that next time they’ll be perfect.

Oh, and I made mine in my stand mixer and they were fine. The recipe calls for working it by hand, but no need to worry about that. Also, I don’t have a biscuit cutter and just used a water glass. That will work just fine.

Paula’s biscuits

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons butter, cubed
3/4 cup milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425.

In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together. Cut butter into mixture until it begins to look like cornmeal.

Make a well with flour mixture and slowly add milk into the middle. Knead dough with your fingers and add milk when necessary. Roll out dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll out to desired thickness. Cut with small biscuit cutter.

Butter bottom of skillet or baking sheet and place biscuits in pan. Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown.

Enjoy!

May 3, 2011
by katie
1,049 Comments

Pork Spring Rolls

Speaking of spring, let’s talk spring rolls!

Now, I don’t know what makes these spring rolls instead of egg rolls, but that is what the recipe said.

My boyfriend and I have been making these for years now. The original recipe and the cookbook have disappeared two or three moves ago, but we have figured out the general gist and now make these a few times a year. We can’t make them too often though, because we end up just living on them all week until they disappear.

They are sooo good! Look at that golden crispy goodness and tell me you don’t want to just eat the whole plate.

There isn’t a lot to these spring rolls. It is pretty much just pork and seasonings. Magical, flavor exploding, seasonings. And, seeing as I don’t have a written recipe for this, I’m going to walk you through it the way I do these. So, read all the way through to get the ingredient list before you start.

First, prep all your flavor ingredients. Chop 4 large garlic cloves, about 2 square inches of ginger, one large jalapeno, and 4 green onions.

Heat some oil in a skillet and toss in 2 pounds of ground pork and all of the stuff you just chopped. Also, cut in one dried red chili pepper. You can try to chop these, but I find it easiest to just grab the kitchen scissors and just cut it up over the pan.

Cook until pork is all done and golden.

While that is happening, chop up a big bunch of cilantro. When it is chopped, should give you a little more than 1/4 cup of loosely packed cilantro.

Once the meat is browned, turn off the heat and toss in the cilantro. This is also the time to add soy sauce. It is hard for me to say how much should go in. I just shake and shake it in until I get the right golden brown color. But, if I had to put a measurement on it, I’d add 1-2 Tablespoons. You can’t have too much really. Start with one and taste it to see if you want more.

Here comes the fun part! Wrapping the spring rolls!

Start with one square of egg roll wrapper. You should be able to find these in your grocery store.

Add about 2 Tablespoons of meat (or maybe a little more or less, depending on how big you want your egg rolls. You’ll figure it out as you go.)

Fold up from the bottom over the meat and tuck the wrapper in a little at the top. Not too tight! If you tuck too tight, you might rip the wrapper.

Then you fold the two sides over.

And then roll it up to the top! You should have a small cup of water nearby. Once you have rolled the spring roll, seal the edges with water. This will hold it all together.

Voila!

I’m also going to give you an alternate wrapping plan.

I have a good friend who is from the Philippines. Her family makes an egg roll called Lumpia. It is also pork based and super, super yummy. They are small and cute little egg rolls and the last time she made them, I got to see how she rolled them. (Maybe someday she’ll give me the recipe.)

This is a great method for more bite sized rolls. (In case you are more generous than I am and want to serve them to other people. These are so good I have a hard time sharing!) Lately I’ve been making some of both sizes in my batches for variety.

Cut the wrappers in half on the diagonal.

Add about half of the meat you would in a full sized roll.

And then just fold and roll like the others, only you skip the first step where you fold over the bottom. Just fold the sides in and roll it up!

And you get a much cuter, smaller spring roll.

Once you have all your rolls rolled up, get a small pot and fill it about halfway with vegetable oil. Get it nice and hot before you start frying. Medium high should do it on your stove top.

Fry a few at a time. Don’t put too many in at once or they’ll stick together and will lower the oil temp to where they don’t fry as well.

Let them get nice and crispy and then drain on a paper towel lined plate.

Serve with sweet chili sauce. I like to buy 2-3 sauces at a time so that I can figure out what my favorite is. I end up using all of the sauces, but that way I know which one to buy the next time.

Making your own spring rolls can seem really intimidating. But I’m telling you, it is really pretty easy! And you can adapt the ingredients to your tastes. Give it a try sometime. I promise it will be worth it.

May 2, 2011
by katie
2 Comments

Springtime

Spring has finally sprung!

Well, kind of. There have been a few lovely, spring like days mixed in with lots of stupid gray days still. But, the last two weekends have been sunny islands in the sea of rain that has been this spring so far.

My apply tree is blooming. I was able to sit in my hammock yesterday and soak in the sunshine. My man was strumming his guitar and the birds and the bees were flying in the trees. It felt magical. It felt like I was on vacation for a few hours.

I planted these lovely daisies in my front porch planter box. They are so bright and cheery! Even on the gray days, I walk up to my front door and feel a little bit of happy spring.

I’m excited by these new additions to my spring garden. A rosemary bush that supposedly grows long, straight stalks that are perfect for skewering things this summer. And next to it is one of my two blueberry bushes that I put in.

Here you can see my chives, sage, mint, and brussel sprouts, already growing away.

I’ve also planted strawberries, two different lettuces, rainbow chard, and spinach for my spring garden.

Embrace the sunny days. Grow something in the ground. Make your own magical fairy garden space this summer. Soak up the sun.

And if you are really wanting to indulge, get a hammock. I bought this portable one last summer, and it was the best purchase I made all year.

Happy Spring Wishes to everyone!

April 21, 2011
by katie
2 Comments

Children of God

I have finished the sequel to “The Sparrow” by Mary Doria Russell, “Children of God”. What a thoughtful series of books.

It is hard for me to know exactly how I feel about this book. On one hand, I was disappointed as I read it. “The Sparrow” was gripping and suspenseful. I couldn’t put the book down. “Children of God” was more plodding and I didn’t fall in love with the characters the way that I did with the first one. Granted, there were a number of characters from the first book that were still wonderful, but I wasn’t excited by the new entries into the story.

However, it was really nice to see the second half of this story. The first book left our beloved characters in a rather grim spot, and the second book shows us that perhaps everything does happen for a reason. It is certainly not telling us that “the ends justify the means”, but more that perhaps our scope of time cannot take into account all the effects of events or actions. However, I thought that the big “payoff” at the end of the novel was a bit trite.

The first book was one of spiritual odyssey, discovery, and disappointment for our characters. The second book is one about the children of earlier decisions. It is a book of revolution. The earlier characters decided that they have to fix the world for their children and future generations.

I am glad that I read this second book, because it lets me know that things may have worked out better in the end than I would have thought, but at the same time I’m rather indifferent to it overall because it was just lacking in the oomph department. But, I’m still sticking with the vote for “The Sparrow”. It was stunning and wonderful. “Children of God” was not that, but it was a pretty well written addendum to the first book.

Enjoy some spring reading in the sun.

April 21, 2011
by katie
0 comments

Spicy sausage and white bean soup

A few nights ago I was looking for something comforting and easy for dinner. We are having an annoyingly cold spring so far here in Seattle and as much as I would like to boycott sweaters and boots for t-shirts and flip flops, it is still just too darn cold and my will is not strong enough. I decided to embrace that it is still soup weather and came up with a wonderful little recipe for a cold spring night.

As with many of my recipes, I was making this all up as I went, so the directions will be a little free form. But ya know what? It’s a soup. Details tend to be irrelevant when you are making a huge pot of something.

The best part of this soup though? There is nothing unhealthy about it. This is a big bowl of yummy, healthy goodness. And the only thing better than an overly indulgent meal, is a yummy one that you feel good about. Unfortunately for me, the middle ground option tends to come in third.

Spicy sausage and white bean soup

1 TB olive oil

One big jalapeno- seeded and chopped

3 large cloves garlic- chopped

about 2 cups of carrots in 1/2 in slices (or however many you happen to have in your fridge)

1 can diced tomatoes (I like the fire roasted kind.)

1 box chicken stock

dash of oregano

Heaping teaspoon Emeril’s Essense or other creole seasoning

dash of paprika for warmth

One pound of lean turkey kielbasa- fully cooked and chopped to same size as carrots

2 cans white beans- rinsed and drained

Heat oil in skillet and saute the jalapeno and garlic until starts to soften. Add carrots and saute. When you run out of liquid, toss in the can of tomatoes and stir. Once this is bubbly, add the broth, seasonings, and salt and pepper. Keep on a low boil until carrots are soft. Then, add the kielbasa and white beans. Turn to low and let simmer for about 15 minutes to let all the flavors mesh and soften.

Enjoy!

April 6, 2011
by katie
1,034 Comments

Angel Hair with Chard and Garlic

Updated May 1st, 2013. I finally remembered to take a picture!

Original:

For Lent this year, I decided to give something up that I could continue to do after the Lenten season was over. Instead of the crazy operation vegetarian mission that I did last year, I have gone smaller scale, but more sustainable. I’ve hopped on the bandwagon for the new “Meatless Monday” craze. So, for the last 4 weeks, I have been without meat at least one day a week and I’m loving it. I think it is something I can really do all the time.

But, few of the meals I’ve made have been super exciting. They are tasty and nourishing but not “wow” dishes. Until this one.

As I was making this, I was thinking that eh, it should be pretty good for a vegetarian dish. I had my neighbors over and offered to feed them and to my surprise and delight, everyone loved it. Words like delicious and amazing were thrown around. This was totally awesome.

I found this recipe on “Pink of Perfection”, which is a food blog I quite like. Apparently she found it on Epicurious. I’ve made a few changes, such as using angel hair pasta instead of penne, more tomatoes, and adding some parsley and oregano, but that’s about it!

I didn’t think I’d love it so much, so I didn’t take any pictures until after we had eaten and this was all that was left!

Angel Hair pasta with Red Chard and Garlic

Ingredients:

1 pound chard, stems cut from the leaves and the stems and leaves chopped separately
1/8 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes, or to taste
3 large garlic cloves chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup water
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1/2 pound angel hair pasta
1 Tb fresh chopped parsley
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan as an accompaniment

Preparation:

Rinse and drain the Swiss chard. Cut the stems out of the leaves and chop both separately. In a large heavy skillet cook the red pepper flakes and the garlic in the oil over moderate heat, stirring, until the garlic is pale golden, add the stems and 1/4 cup of water, and cook the mixture, uncovered, for about 5 minutes, or until the stems are just tender. Stir in the tomatoes and cook the mixture, stirring, for about 3 minutes, or until the sauce is nice and bubbling. Add the chard leaves, oregano, and parsley and turn down to a simmer. Cook the mixture, until the leaves are tender and the tomatoes are nice and saucy. Salt and pepper to taste.

While the chard is cooking, in a kettle of salted boiling water cook the angel hair and drain it in a colander. Toss it with butter. In a large bowl toss the pasta with the chard and tomato sauce and serve it with the Parmesan.

And then enjoy! You’ll love this.

April 5, 2011
by katie
1,022 Comments

The Sparrow

I finished “The Sparrow” by Mary Doria Russell last week. It took me the entire weekend to decide how I felt about this book. It has been quite some time since a book left me so confused and with so much on my mind. I eventually came to decide that was a good thing.

In an earlier post about “A Wrinkle in Time”, I mentioned that I was reading “The Sparrow” and was super excited about it and that was true. This book was fascinating. It pulled me into it in a way that is unique and unusual. This was definitely one of the most interesting and engrossing books I’ve read in a long time. One of the more interesting I’ve ever read. In fact, I was so interested in what happens next, that I devoured the first half of the book, rushing and pushing to learn more. And then about halfway through I forced myself to slow, to try and savor the rest of the book.

So why did it take me so long to decide how I felt about it?

Because it was hard.

The book wasn’t hard in a technical sense. It was a slower read than many books, because of the depth and excellent storytelling. But, it was hard in an emotional sense. You become really involved in the incredibly well developed characters and then terrible things happen to everyone.

Don’t worry. That isn’t a surprise.

The story is about the failed mission to Rakhat. One day an astronomer hears music over a satellite feed and realizes it is from a foreign world. A decision is made to send an expedition to that world. The story is about that mission, but the mission is told through the framework of an interview with the sole survivor, Emilio Sandoz, a Jesuit priest.

Now before this book gets discounted as spacey sci-fi fiction silliness, I want to stop you. The book is a fascinating story about faith, religion, love, and the question of what makes a family. What brought all the people on the mission to that place? Was it God’s plan? Divine intervention? Was it random chance? And if it was God’s plan to take them there, why did things happen like they did?

My issue with this book is that even though I knew the story was going to turn downhill, I had no idea how far it would go. How bleak things would get for these characters that I had come to love. It is hard to love a book when the author says that the moral of the story is that, even if you do the best you can, sometimes you get screwed.

But after much inner debate, I think I love the book anyways. As soon as I finished it, I called my aunt who had recommended it and asked how she could love such a book. I was sad and frustrated when I finished. Luckily, it was a day or two until I got her on the phone. In that time I was able to grab hold of the tentative peace at the end of the book. I realized that maybe it is more hopeful than I initially thought.

When I got a hold of her, my aunt told me that I need to read the sequel to appreciate the full story. I started it yesterday. I’m excited to see what happens after the end of “The Sparrow”. Excited to continue this terribly well written saga.

And, I’m excited to recommend this to everyone. You might love it. You might hate it. But, you will certainly think about it. It will certainly impact you. And it will very likely be one of the best science fiction works you’ve read.

March 30, 2011
by katie
917 Comments

Pot Roast

The funny thing is, I’ve been cooking this month. I have. I’ve tried a number of new things. But, not much of it has been noteworthy. Or it was almost right and I want to try it out again and fix the recipe before sharing it. So, the blogs this month have been few and far between.

But, last week I did make a pot roast. This was the second one that I’ve made recently and they were both a great success. I think I’ve finally got it figured out. Look at this beautiful thing.

I don’t know why I’ve always had a hard time with pot roast. I’ve tried to make them before, but they were never as wonderful as the pot roasts of my childhood. Mine were too boring or not tender enough. But, I’ve got a method now. And I have to say, I’m super excited about it.

Pot roast is a super comfort food. It has been a blessing in these dreary winter months. There is just something warming and wonderful about a big bowl of juicy meat and potatoes. Though, the carrots may be the tastiest part of the pot roast bake. They soak up the flavors in a magic kind of way.

Pot Roast

I’m just doing this conversation style, so read through it to get all the ingredients. Don’t worry, there isn’t anything weird hidden in here.

First things first: Get a chuck roast. This one was gigantic. About 3 pounds. I recommend getting one that is about 2. Take the roast and dry it off. Then rub it down with salt, pepper, steak seasoning, and then sprinkle a little flour on the surface. (the flour will help the sauce or jus thicken in the oven a little)

Preheat oven to 325. Heat oil in a pan that can be stove top and oven friendly. When pan is very hot, toss the roast in. Let it sit and sear. You want to get a nice brown coating and then flip it to sear the other side. The super hot pan and the searing seals the roast on the outside to help keep the juices in.

This may make your kitchen a little smoky. See that nice brown crust? That is what you are looking for.

Then you will add the liquids. Get a bottle of red wine open. Hopefully, you are drinking it already. Pour wine in the pan until it is about a quarter of the way up the side of the meat. This is not a precise art. Then, open a bottle of beef broth and pour that in until the liquid is about halfway up the side of the meat. Grab your meat magic Worchestershire sauce out of the fridge and shake that business all over your roast. Also, not a precise art. If I had to guess, I would say to add 1-2 TB.

Also, at this point I like to add the garlic. I used half of a head of garlic. Crush to peel the cloves, but leave them whole. Toss them in with the liquid. When this dish is all done, the soft, flavorful garlic cloves are one of my favorite parts to eat.

I’m pretty sure I also tossed a teaspoon of rosemary at this point.

Spoon some of this new and fabulous liquid concoction over the top of the meat. Then cover the pan with foil and put this lid on. The foil just helps seal it better to keep the pot roast from drying out.

Toss this in the oven for about an hour and a half.

While this is happening, prep your vegetables. I used about half a bag of baby carrots. I have been addicted to buying baby carrots lately because they are just so handy and easy to cook with! If I need a side dish for dinner, I can just toss a bunch on a pan and roast them with no need for chopping or peeling. But now I’m distracted. Anyways.

I also used half a bag of baby red potatoes cut in halves. When deciding the quantity of vegetables, simply think about what will fit comfortably in your pan alongside your meat. You want the vegetables to have a little moving around room. But trust me, you’re going to want lots of the carrots.

After the meat has cooked an hour and a half and your whole house smells magical, pull out the roast and add the vegetables. Give the top of the roast an extra spoonful of liquid. Then, cover back up and toss in the oven for another hour.

Hopefully at this point, after your last hour, your roast will be fork tender and wonderful. My first one was. The second roast I made was huge and required a bit longer in the oven.

I like to let the roast sit in the pan when it is done for a bit to rest and cool. Then slice the roast while still in the pan and let the slices sit in the juices.

You can serve this with a side salad and toast to soak up the juicy goodness. I also like to eat my pot roast on top of buttery noodles. Mashed potatoes are also good, though a bit redundant with the roasted potatoes.

Anyway you slice it, you have just made a super comfort food. This is the perfect weekend dinner. You prep and put it in early in the evening and then get to pretty much forget about it until it is time to eat.

Oh, and leftover pot roast makes the best french dip sandwiches. Buy some hogie rolls and provolone cheese for an awesome next day dinner.

Enjoy!

March 28, 2011
by katie
1,110 Comments

A Wrinkle in Time

After finishing the epic “A Game of Thrones”, I decided to pick up a small book from my “to read” stack. I put this one in my Amazon cart a while back. I’d never read it before, but have just come across it so many times on recommended book lists that I thought I should check it out. It was the perfect little book for the past few wintery days.

“A Wrinkle in Time” is a science fantasy book by author Madeleine L’Engle that is written for children. But, it is written for children in the way that “The Giver” is. It is really a book for everyone that happens to be accessible to children. It has won a ton of awards such as the Newbery Medal and is also in the top 25 on the list of most challenged and banned books, which as you know is my favorite place to look for reading material.

This book was really fun. It involves space travel, physics, good vs. evil, kids rescuing their parents, and all kinds of aliens. It wasn’t a life changing book or anything, but I’m sure I would have loved it when I was younger.

The good guys are very good and the bad guys are very bad. The fate of the world is on the line and the only thing that can save us is love. I love when books break down like that.

I would say more about this book, but I’ve moved on to a new book that has completely engulfed my world the last week or so. “The Sparrow”. I can’t wait to tell you all about it. I can’t wait to finish it. I can’t wait to have it be one of my new favorite things.

Have an excellent week.

March 16, 2011
by katie
1,084 Comments

A Game of Thrones

Over the last few weeks I’ve been reading George R.R. Martin’s “A Game of Thrones”. “A Game of Thrones” is an epic fantasy novel and the first in the “A Song of Ice and Fire” series that spans four published novels with three more planned. And I have to say, I’m excited. I also learned after I finished the book that HBO has already been working on a series based off of “A Game of Thrones” that will premier in April of this year.

Again, excited.

Like I said, the book is an epic fantasy novel. But, don’t let that scare you off. It is a fantasy novel in that it is set in an imaginary location, but isn’t as full of sorcerers and imaginary creatures as most fantasy novels are. In fact, the setting is very medieval. Lots of knights and jousting and battles. Though, there are a few supernatural forces running around. But mostly, it is a story of human nature and what people are willing to do and sacrifice for things like power, love, and honor.

The book has a ton of characters and the narrative switches to different characters from chapter to chapter. Generally speaking, the book focuses on the Stark family. They are a noble family and the lords of Winterfell, one of the northern holds in the Seven Kingdoms. They are drawn into the drama of the Southern lands when Lord Eddard Stark, the head of the Starks, is asked to be the right hand of the king, Robert Baraethon, who resides in the south. The king is married to one of the Lannister family, a conniving, power hungry family who will do anything to control the Iron Throne. One of the narrative characters is Tyrion Lannister, the dwarf brother of the queen. He is a great character and gives some balance in the Stark/Lannister dramas.

There is also a side story about Daenerys Targaryen, the last of the Dragonlords, the royal family who were nearly wiped out by King Robert when he took the throne. She and her brother are in an Eastern land trying to create a force that will be able to regain the throne for their family. The chapters containing their story are really interesting and were compiled into a novella entitled “Blood of the Dragon”, which won the Hugo prize for Best Novella in 1997.

It is said in the book, that in the game of thrones, you win or you die. And in this book, the author does not shy away from killing main characters, bad guys, and heroes. Fate is both lovely and cruel. And I think it is nice in a book when things aren’t always clear as to who is good and who is bad. It is more interesting when everyone can be both good and bad and the good guys don’t always win.

This was a gripping novel and I quite enjoyed it. It will fill that fantasy void that has been left in my life now that I’m all caught up on the “Wheel of Time” series. This series is more drama and less magic than the other, and I think it is more accessible.

I would recommend checking out this series and am eager to read more and also check out the new series on HBO this spring.