Easter Bread

From the Hartford Courant April 21 2011

2 tablespoons instant yeast
3/4 cup lukewarm milk (about 95 degrees)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
4 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 1/3 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt

Egg wash:
egg beaten with
1 tablespoon water

1. Whisk the yeast into the milk in a bowl until dissolved. Set aside. Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl with a mixer until smooth, about 2 minutes. Place egg yolks in a small bowl; add the vanilla. Whisk lightly to break up the yolks. Add the yolks to the sugar mixture in four portions, mixing until each is incorporated before adding the next.

2. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix on medium high speed until fluffy, 2 minutes. Add the flour, salt and milk mixture. Mix at low speed to make a soft, tacky dough, 2-3 minutes. (If making the apricot version, sprinkle in 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots and 1/4 cup golden raisins during last minute of mixing.)

3. Transfer the dough to a floured work surface; knead by hand, adding more flour as needed to make the dough pliable, 2 minutes. The dough should be golden, soft and supple. Form into a ball; place in a clean, lightly oiled bowl. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap; leave at room temperature, 2 1/2 hours, or place in the refrigerator overnight to roll it out the next day.

4. Roll dough into a 15-inch square on a lightly floured surface, about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. As you roll, frequently lift the dough with a scraper and dust surface with more flour to prevent sticking. (If adding fillings, left, do so now.)

5. Roll the dough like a jellyroll; place seam side down. Rock back and forth to extend length to 18-24 inches long. Coil into a circular snail shape; stand the coil on end, perpendicular to counter. Press into a loaf shape. Place in a greased loaf pan, domed side up. Cover loosely with plastic wrap; let rise at room temperature, 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or refrigerate overnight.

6. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Poke a few holes in the top of the dough with a toothpick to eliminate air pockets. Brush top with the egg wash. Bake 20 to 25 minutes. Rotate pan; bake until the top is a rich, dark brown, 20-25 minutes.

Nutrition information:
Per serving: 238 calories, 32% of calories from fat, 8 g fat, 5 g saturated fat, 104 mg cholesterol, 34 g carbohydrates, 6 g protein, 211 mg sodium, 1 g fiber.

Fillings
Almond: Spread with 1 package almond paste. Sprinkle with ½ cup slivered toasted almonds.
Apricot: Spread with 3/4 cup apricot jam.

Baja Lasagna

An old Richard Simons favorite  from  Deal-A-Meal!

1/4 cup chopped onion
2 (14 1/2 oz) cans Ready Cut tomatoes
3 oz. canned diced green chilies
1 cup sliced mushrooms
2 2/3 cups drained, canned pinto or kidney beans
1 T chili powder
1 tsp cumin
8 corn tortillas, cut in 1" wide strips
8 oz (2 cups) shredded low-fat cheddar cheese
1 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In non-stick skillet coated with non-stick stray, saute onion about 4 minutes.

Add tomatoes, chilies, mushrooms, beans and chili powder and cumin. Simmer uncovered 10 minutes.

In 11 X 7 casserole, arrange 1/3 of the tortilla strips in single layer.

Set aside a little of the cheese for garnishing.

Pour 1/4 of the tomato mixture and 1/3 of the cheese over tortilla strips. Repeat layers, ending with sour cream and last 1/4 of tomato mixture.  Top with reserved cheese.

Bake 30 minutes.

Serves 8; 301 calories

Slow-Cooker Vegetarian Chili With Sweet Potatoes

 from Realsimple.com

Con Poulos

Serves 4
Hands-on Time: 20m
Total Time: 8hr 20m

Ingredients

• 1 medium red onion, chopped
• 1 green bell pepper, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1 28-ounce can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
• 1 15.5-ounce can black beans, rinsed
• 1 15.5-ounce can kidney beans, rinsed
• 1 medium sweet potato (about 8 ounces), peeled and cut into 1⁄2-inch pieces
• sour cream, sliced scallions, sliced radishes, and tortilla chips, for serving

Directions

1. In a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker, combine the onion, bell pepper, garlic, chili powder, cumin, cocoa, cinnamon, 1 teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Add the tomatoes (and their liquid), beans, sweet potato, and 1 cup water.

2. Cover and cook until the sweet potatoes are tender and the chili has thickened, on low for 7 to 8 hours  or on high for 4 to 5 hours (this will shorten total recipe time).

3. Serve the chili with the sour cream, scallions, radishes, and tortilla chips.

Tip

The chili can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months.

Nutritional Information

Serving Size: Serves 4
Calories 240; Fat 2g; Sat Fat 0g; Cholesterol 0mg; Sodium 1217mg; Protein 11g; Carbohydrate 47g; Sugar 13g; Fiber 13g; Iron 4mg; Calcium 134mg

Brown Rice Recipe--Alton Brown

Courtesy of Jane Jylkka

Ingredients

* 1 1/2 cups brown rice, medium or short grain
* 2 1/2 cups water
* 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
* 1 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Place the rice into an 8-inch square glass baking dish.

Bring the water, butter, and salt just to a boil in a kettle or covered saucepan. Once the water boils, pour it over the rice, stir to combine, and cover the dish tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 1 hour.

After 1 hour, remove cover and fluff the rice with a fork. Serve immediately.

Tiffany’s Quinoa Three Bean Salad with Toasted Almonds

from lululemon

Ingredients :
1 cup dry quinoa
2 cups water
1 tsp salt
½ cup toasted almonds, chopped
1 14oz can garbanzo beans (aka chickpeas)
1 ½ cups chopped yellow and orange peppers
¾ cup edamame beans, shelled and thawed
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
2 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
2 green onions, sliced
¼ cup red onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
dash of ground black pepper to taste
 ½ tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp tamari or Braggs
8 tbsp olive oil
5 tbsp lemon juice

Directions:
In a medium pot, combine the quinoa, water and salt and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 15 min on low heat.
In a small frying pan, dry toast the almonds on med-low heat for about 5 min until they start to lightly brown. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Coarsely chop the almonds when they have cooled.
In a large bowl, combine the garbanzo beans, edamame, peppers, herbs, onions, garlic and pepper. Add the balsamic, tamari, oil and lemon juice, mix well. Fold in cooled quinoa and roasted almonds. Serve over a bed of spinach. Enjoy!