Moosewood Monday

In addition to not having had much time for sewing/quilting over the last several months, I haven't had too much time to try new recipes, either. I finally got back into that recently and tried one from one of my favorite restaurants, The Moosewood in Ithaca, NY. It's a recipe for Creamy Fish Chowder.

I forgot to take a picture of my version, but you can see the recipe and a photo of it by clicking here. I didn't have any zucchini, so I didn't use it, and it worked out just fine. The fish I used was cod. It's a keeper!

I am fortunate to live close enough (75 miles) to the restaurant itself to occasionally dine there, so I took this photo one day recently after having a delicious meal on their patio!

Moosewood Monday

Not as pretty a picture as usual for my Moosewood Monday posts, but I wanted to show that my latest creation, Jamaican Tomato Soup, was a big hit. I first made this for dinner at home (thumbs up), and then took the leftovers to share with my quilting friends. As you can probably tell from the photo, it was a hit there as well.

The recipe for Jamaican Tomato Soup was this one, which says it was adapted from a Moosewood Restaurant recipe. I just made a few minor changes. Instead of mixing steps 5 and 6 in a blender, I just removed about 2 cups of the vegetables and used my immersion blender to mix the rest. Then I added the vegetables back in and continued with the recipe. Oh, and I added a little bit of ditalini pasta (any small pasta will do) because I think most tomato soups benefit from an addition of pasta. The next time I make this, I may reduce the orange juice by 1/4 cup.

Definitely a keeper of a recipe in my kitchen!

My Other Hobby

I haven't been doing too much quilting or sewing lately because of two many other things that are occupying my time. Besides the chores related to spring cleaning and yard work (yuck!), the fun chores have been related to cooking. I've been spending many hours looking through some of my favorite cookbooks and surfing the internet for all sorts of interesting recipes. And boy, have I found some.

Here's what we had for dinner last night...

Gingered Salmon in a Packet from the Moosewood and Pan-Fried Potato Hash with Indian Spices. With a nice glass of wine, my husband said it was like a meal prepared in a five-star restaurant.

Other recipes I've made recently (and will make again) include Easy Mulligatawny by the Pioneer Woman, Sausage, Potato, and Kale Soup by the Pioneer Woman, Red Lentil and Sweet Potato Stew, Chicken Country Captain by Wegmans, Tomato Basil with Orzo Soup by Wegmans, Sweet Potato and Sausage Bisque, Grilled Lemon Salmon by my blogging friend/fellow guild member Kathy of Cotton Cellar blog, Creole Beans and Rice by Moosewood, and Indian Spinach and Chickpeas, just to name a few.

And I have so many more I want to try. At this rate, even though all of these recipes (and all of the others I've posted on my blog in the past) are definitely keepers, it may be a while before I make them again.

Just like quilting...too many recipes and not enough days to make them. And that doesn't count the desserts I want to make!

Moosewood Monday

Here's my last Moosewood Restaurant recipe for 2012..it's their Scallop Chowder. I used the small bay scallops and added some imitation crab meat (the kind made from pollock and some crab). My family likes to have some chunks of veggies in the soup, so I remove about half of them before I use my immersion blender for the other half and then add them back to the soup along with the scallops and crab. We all agreed that this recipe is a keeper.

You can find the recipe I used here. To see the other Moosewood recipes I've shared in the past, click here. And if you're not familiar with the Moosewood, check them out here.

Moosewood Monday

Yes, I'm at it again. But I can't help it. Winter is the perfect time to try new soup and stew recipes. This time it's Savannah Sweet Potato Bisque from the Moosewood Restaurant (where else?) in Ithaca, NY. I used this recipe here (scroll all the way down on that page to find the recipe for the soup). I made just one change -- I didn't have any pimentos, so I just substituted diced red bell peppers and cooked them with the veggies. Roasted red peppers would be good, too. The next time I make this, I'll top it off with croutons, but this time around I just added some (leftover from Thanksgiving) french fried onions.

Served with pork BBQ on a foldup piece of flatbread and a glass of The Rut red wine from Benezette Winery in Benezette, PA.

Moosewood Monday

Here's yet another recipe from the Moosewood Restaurant in Ithaca, NY. This time it's Caribbean Shrimp and Vegetable Soup. I used this recipe. Only a couple of changes -- I used a can of Rotel tomatoes with chili peppers instead of the fresh tomatoes and chili pepper and I was out of turmeric, so I left it out. That's OK, it's mainly for color.

Another thumbs up from my hubby and me. And it went perfectly with some quesadillas and a glass of Mango Slide wine from Nimble Hill Winery in Tunkhannock, PA.

And for those who are wondering...Yes, we had a traditional Thanksgiving dinner...

P.S. One word of warning...if you choose to use the can of Rotel tomatoes, be prepared for a very, very, spicy soup. If you don't like your food so spicy, just use regular tomatoes and add your chili pepper to taste.

Moosewood Monday

I can't help myself -- I am addicted to trying new Moosewood Restaurant recipes. And thankfully, I have a husband who enjoys eating food with exotic and interesting flavors as much as I do.

This time it's Mushroom Peanut Tofu Stew With Greens (minus the tofu). My friend Madalene told me about this recipe (she used tofu and said it was delicious), so I thought I'd give it a try, with just a few changes. I used pork instead of tofu, frozen spinach instead of fresh, and I added a dried chili pepper from our summer garden. I didn't add the full amount of water because we wanted it to be thick enough to serve over rice. I think this would work just as well with chicken.

This, along with a glass of Nimble Hill Winery's Niagara wine, was delightful!

To see previous yummy Moosewood recipes I've shared, click here.

Moosewood Monday

Yes, I'm afraid I'm going to bore you with another Moosewood Restaurant recipe. This time it's Moroccan Stew. Again, another one of their great recipes, but my husband didn't like it as much as he's liked previous Moosewood dishes I've made (I suspect that's because this one had eggplant in it). I didn't have any saffron, so I left that out, and I just realized that I forgot to add the raisins as directed in the recipe. I'm not a big fan of regular raisins anyway, and I had been planning to add golden raisins, but simply forgot. I may add some when we reheat the leftovers later this week. Oh, yes, I added some slow-cooked beef to this for my carnivore spouse.

Moosewood Monday

Yes, I'm on a Moosewood kick...

Here's another top-notch recipe from my favorite restaurant, Moosewood. This is Very Creamy Vegetable Chowder -- the recipe can be found here. Lots of vegetables -- onions, carrots, celery, potatoes, green beans, zucchini, yellow squash, red peppers, and green peas. The only change I made was to use some chicken broth instead of veggie broth. And I used my immersion blender to mix it all together (I removed two cups of the veggies before blending and added them afterward because we like a few chunks in our cream soups). Another keeper recipe.

Moosewood Monday

I realized that it's been quite a while since I posted about a recipe from the Moosewood Restaurant in Ithaca, NY (my all-time favorite place to eat out). I've been making many of the recipes regularly; I just haven't been blogging about it.

This one is the latest -- Indonesian Sweet Potato and Cabbage Soup. My husband and I both agree that it's definitely a keeper. I made just a few changes to the recipe -- I used regular sweet potatoes from the produce section instead of the frozen bagged ones, regular veggie broth instead of organic, regular peanut butter instead of natural, and canned diced tomatoes instead of fresh. Oh yes, and I used a red chili pepper from our garden (we have loads of those) instead of the cayenne. No drastic changes.

To see all of my previous blog posts about the Moosewood recipes I've tried, click here.

Moosewood Monday

Another recipe that my husband and I both agree is a keeper....from a Moosewood Restaurant cookbook  It's their Black Bean and Chipotle Soup. Served with beef and bean quesadillas (sorry, no recipe for those...I just threw some ingredients together). Went great with a glass of Mount Hope Winery Sangria.

Moosewood (And More) Monday

A few of my quilting friends and I took advantage of a sale at a sort-of-LQS (75 miles away) this past weekend and we had the bestest day ever (well, OK, I'm exaggerating a bit, but I think we all agreed that we had a grand time).

Our day was spent in Ithaca, NY with stops at Quilters Corner (the shop with the sale), Sew Green (I've blogged about that place before and I'll have another post about our most recent visit soon), Joann's (nope, it's not closed like we all thought), Knitting Etc (I've almost succumbed to another fiber addiction), the GreenStar Co-op Natural Foods Market (if I lived closer, I'd definitely be a member), and our favorite grocery chain, Wegmans (my gosh, I could live in the Ithaca Wegmans). Whew!

I came home with the goodies you see in the photo (you can click on it for a larger view). Fabrics for a Dr. Seuss quilt, patterns for a fun bird-themed quilt, and a FQ bundle of Kaffe Fassett fabric, all packed up in a bright orange bag. I've been drooling over Kaffe's fabrics for several years now and finally gave myself permission to add some to my stash. Even if I don't use them soon, they will serve a purpose brightening up my quilting studio.

And in the middle of all that, we had lunch at our favorite Ithaca eatery, the Moosewood Restaurant. Here's the yummy stuff we had for lunch (clockwise from upper right) -- Tunisian Vegetable Stew over couscous, Spicy Black Bean Cake and Mango Salsa with sweet potatoes on the side, a California Pita Sandwich (with delish Creamy Vegetable Chowder that didn't make it into the photo), and Pizza Rustica with a side of green beans. As always, the Moosewood did not disappoint.

Thanks for all my friends who came along...I had a great time and am already planning our next fabric field trip!

Moosewood Monday

I haven't posted a Moosewood Restaurant recipe lately...Here's one that's perfect for a winter's day. It's Russian Cabbage Borscht.

Having grown up in a Russian household where we had soup as a first course for dinner almost every day, I can vouch for this being the authentic stuff...Unlike other restaurant borschts (including in overpriced delis in New York City), this recipe is the way real Russians make borscht. Someone needs to tell those delis that BORSCHT IS NOT JUST BEETS WITH BEET JUICE! It's supposed to have lots of other vegetables besides beets and you can also add meat if you live with a carnivore like I do. I grew up with both the meat and meatless (served during Lent) versions. Add some fresh bread (preferably dark rye) and a dollop of sour cream. Yum!

If you're not familiar with the Moosewood...run, don't walk, and get to Ithaca, NY to try the food in person. If you can't do that...run, don't walk to buy a Moosewood cookbook. (No affiliation, I just LOVE their food). The menu at the restaurant changes daily, so you can try something new every time.

P.S. If you don't have tomato puree as the recipe says, just use any kind of tomato sauce...it can be from a can, jar, or (gasp!) even ketchup.

Moosewood Monday

Another great recipe from the famous Moosewood Restaurant. This time it's Southwestern Black Bean Burgers. I made them smaller than the recipe suggests and served them as a side dish for a Tex-Mex meal for guests instead of on a roll with various toppings like a burger as they do in the restaurant. I also made a fresh mole salsa to garnish them with. Everyone gave their thumbs up, so this one is a keeper!

Moosewood Monday

I can't stop making things from the Moosewood Restaurant's recipes. Everything I've made so far has been sooooo good! Just like everything served in the restaurant itself.

This is their Mixed Vegetable Curry (I added chicken to satisfy the caveman carnivore in my house). The spices used to make the curry flavor (not curry powder in a jar) work so incredibly well together. I served it over jasmine rice topped with yogurt, cashews, and golden raisins as suggested in the recipe. (Oh yes, I added a few chickpeas as well, but I picked mine out and gave them to the caveman chickpea-lover.)

Served with a glass of Leidenfrost Vineyards Log Cabin White wine.

The recipe is definitely a keeper!

Moosewood Monday

Here's this week's Moosewood Restaurant recipe. I made this Sweet Potato Apple Chipotle soup and it turned out wonderfully!! The ingredients are so varied, yet the flavors work incredibly well together. Who would have thought that sweet potatoes, apples, celery, onions, garlic, cinnamon, and chipotle peppers in adobo sauce would make a delicious soup? Apparently, someone at the Moosewood did once. It's in their Cooking for Health cookbook, but I found it here.

The recipe calls for blending the soup until it's creamy, but I skipped that step and just mashed the veggies a bit when they got soft. Tasted just as good as the creamy version served in the restaurant.

Served with a glass of Catherine Valley Winery White Cascades wine.

Maybe I'll try the Mixed Vegetable Curry next....

Moosewood Monday

(Technically, we had these on Friday night, but I like the sound of "Moosewood Monday".)

Anyway, my favorite restaurant in Ithaca, NY is the famous Moosewood. It's actually one of my top two favorites anywhere. Whenever I spend a fun quilters' day out in Ithaca with my friends, we always make sure to stop there for lunch. The menu changes daily and we have never had anything there that wasn't absolutely delicious. I made these quinoa stuffed peppers from a recipe on their website. Yum!

There are a good number of recipes on the website, but you can also buy their cookbooks as well.

Next to try...Sweet Potato Apple Chipotle Soup...Stay tuned next week...

P.S. I just did a quick Google search and discovered that my other all-time favorite restaurant (a Thai one in northern VA) has closed. That was shocking to hear -- everyone I knew who ever went there raved about it.