Baked Oatmeal with Fruit and Nuts

Adapted from a recipe in Super Natural Every Day: Well-Loved Recipes from My Natural Foods Kitchen by Heidi Swanson

Ingredients:

• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1/3 cup walnut pieces, chopped
• 1/4 cup slivered almonds
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups milk (I used coconut milk)
• 1 large egg
• 1 T unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 ripe banana, sliced
• 1 peach or nectarine, sliced
• 1 cup blueberries

Steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 400˚F with a rack in the top third of the oven. Generously butter the inside of an 8-inch square baking dish.
2. In a bowl, mix together the oats, half the walnuts, the sugar, the baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
3. In another bowl, whisk together the milk, egg, butter, and vanilla.
4. Arrange the banana and nectarine slices in a single layer in the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle two-thirds of the berries over the top. Cover the fruit with the oat mixture. Drizzle the milk mixture over the oats, making sure the milk moves through the oats. Scatter the remaining berries, remaining walnuts, and slivered almonds across the top.
5. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the top is nicely golden and the oat mixture has set. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes. 
6. Serve warm, drizzled with maple syrup or dusted with powdered sugar. 

Serves 4-6

Coconut Flour Waffles with Walnuts

Adapted from Joy the Baker

Ingredients:

• 1 overripe banana 
• 2 T melted butter, cooled
• 1/3 cup coconut milk
• 5 large eggs
• 1/8 cup honey or maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 T cinnamon
• 1/4 cup walnuts, chopped
• 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted

Steps:

1. In a medium bowl, mash the banana, then whisk in the butter, coconut milk, eggs, honey or maple syrup, and vanilla extract. Whisk until well incorporated.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the coconut flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon.
3. Whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Add the shredded coconut and walnuts and whisk to incorporate. Allow mixture to sit for 5 minutes while you plug in and preheat the waffle iron.
4. Bake in a waffle iron until golden brown. Serve with maple syrup and fruit, such as bananas, raspberries or strawberries. These waffles are also great the next day toasted and topped with peanut butter, sliced banana, and honey.

Serves 3

Thomas Keller's Roast Chicken with Roasted Potatoes

 

Ingredients:

• 1 (2½ - 3 lb) chicken
• 1 lb fingerling or marble potatoes
• olive oil
• fresh thyme
• 2 cloves garlic
• whole grain mustard

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 450˚F
2. Bring the chicken to room temperature before roasting and dry THOROUGHLY with paper towels, inside and out
3. Season the cavity of the chicken with salt and pepper, and stuff it with the garlic and thyme sprigs
4. Truss the chicken
5. Season liberally with 1 T of salt, and black pepper
6. Roast in the oven for 50-60 minutes
7. Let the chicken rest for 15 minutes before serving
8. Serve sprinkled with thyme and with mustard on the side

While the chicken is resting:

1. Increase the oven temperature to 500˚F
2. Toss the potatoes with chicken drippings from the roasting pan, olive oil, salt, pepper and thyme
3. Roast 20 - 30 minutes (depending on size of potatoes)

Puffed Apple Pancake

Ingredients:

• 2 medium or 3 small tart apples, sliced thinly
• 1 T butter
• 1 cup milk
• 4 large eggs
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp cardamom
• 1 1/2 T brown sugar
• 2/3 cup flour
• powdered sugar

Steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 425˚F
2. Rub the sides of a 10-inch baking pan or castiron skillet with butter, and put 1 T of butter in the bottom of the pan
3. Put the pan in the oven until the butter melts, then add the apples with a sprinkle of cinnamon and mix with the butter
4. Bake the apples for 10 minutes, until soft
5. Meanwhile, whisk the remaining ingredients (except the flour and powdered sugar) in a bowl until blended
6. Whisk in the flour, then pour the batter over the apples and bake an additional 18-20 minutes, until the pancake is puffy and golden
7. Remove the pan from the oven, sprinkle the pancake with powdered sugar, and serve

Serves 2

Salad with Steak, Blue Cheese, Walnuts, Dried Cranberries, and Raspberry Dressing

Ingredients:

• 3/4 lb flank steak, seasoned and marinated in olive oil and balsamic vinegar
• 1/3 cup blue cheese, crumbled
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup walnuts
• 5 oz salad mix
• Raspberry dressing, to taste

Steps:

1. Grill the steak until medium rare and let rest 5-10 minutes
2. Mix remaining ingredients together and toss salad with dressing to taste
3. Thinly slice the steak and place on salad
4. Sprinkle with additional blue cheese if desired

Serves 2

Chocolate Olive Oil Pancakes

Adapted from a recipe in Made in Spain by José Andrés

Ingredients:

• 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 T sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 T cinnamon
• 1/2 T vanilla extract
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 ½ cups buttermilk (or milk with 1 T lemon juice)
• 2 T olive oil
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate, chopped into small pieces

Steps:

1. Mix first six ingredients together in a large bowl
2. Whisk in vanilla, egg, buttermilk, and olive oil until the batter is smooth, then stir in the chocolate
3. Ladle about 1/4 cup per pancake on a lightly oiled nonstick skillet or on an electric griddle and cook on both sides until golden brown and cooked through
4. Serve warm with berries or caramelized bananas and honey or maple syrup

Linguine with Lobster, Spicy Cherry Tomato Sauce, and Mint

Inspired by a recipe from The Babbo Cookbook by Mario Batali

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb linguine
• 2 spiny lobster tails, cooked and chopped
• 1 small onion, finely diced
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 2 pints cherry tomatoes, halved
• red chili flakes, to taste
• About 1/4 cup mint, sliced

Steps:

1. Cook linguine in a pot of boiling salted water until just short of al dente
2. While bringing water to a boil, saute onion and garlic in olive oil until softened, then add wine and boil until reduced
3. Add halved tomatoes, chili flakes, S&P, and mint, and simmer until reduced to a sauce-like consistency
4. Add pasta and lobster to sauce and cook until pasta is al dente
5. Adjust seasoning and add mint as necessary

Serves 2