Author Archives: Janis Chanin

Ginger Soy Salmon with Watermelon Salsa

05 Tuesday Apr 2016

Posted by in Dinner, Fish, Fruit, Healthy, Quick and Easy

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Longing to take a spring break trip, but it’s just not in the cards for you this year?  Maybe you can’t spare the vacation days, you just don’t have the extra cash, or Zika has you nervous.  No need to miss out–make this spring break inspired dinner and you’ll be on island time in no time!  Grass skirt, bikini top, and piña colada optional!

Ginger Soy Salmon with Watermelon Salsa

Ginger Soy Salmon with Watermelon Salsa
Yield:  2 servings
Time:  30 minutes active prep, 2 hours marinating, 20 minutes cooking

For the salmon and marinade:
2 six-ounce filets of salmon
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp. minced fresh ginger
3 tbsp. soy sauce (low sodium preferably)
2 tbsp. brown sugar

For the watermelon salsa:
NOTE:  the dice on the following fruits and veggies should be small, roughly ¼-inch cubes (unless otherwise noted)
½ of a large cucumber, seeded and diced
1 orange, diced
3 cups diced watermelon
10 oz. pineapple tidbits, or diced pineapple
¾ to 1 full jalapeño, very finely minced
zest of half a lime
1 tsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. sugar

  1. Prepare the marinade by whisking together the garlic, ginger, soy sauce, and brown sugar.  Transfer to a zip-top bag and add the salmon.  Refrigerate for 2-4 hours to allow ample time for the flavors to marinate into the salmon.
  2. Meanwhile, prepare the watermelon salsa.  Toss together all ingredients.  Mix well.
  3. Preheat the oven to 400°F.  Place the salmon in a lightly greased glass baking dish.  Pour the marinade over the fish.  Cook at 400°F until the salmon is cooked through, roughly 16 minutes.
  4. Serve with watermelon salsa.

PDF to Print Recipe for Ginger Soy Salmon with Watermelon Salsa

 

Super Moist Carrot Cake

28 Monday Mar 2016

Posted by in Dessert, Holiday

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Super Moist Carrot Cake

This cake was my creation for Easter dessert this year.  I even dressed it up with edible shimmer sprinkled across the top!

I absolutely love carrot cake, but it’s one of those foods that I rarely eat because it usually contains walnuts, pecans, or some other type of toasted nut, making homemade nut-free carrot cake such a treat for me!  I love my carrot cake chock full of carrots, so there’s a whole three cups of finely shredded carrots packed into this dessert!  Does that mean I can count a slice as a serving of vegetables?!

Super Moist Carrot Cake
Yield:  One two-tiered 9-inch cake (8-16 servings)
Time:  30 minutes prep, 35-40 minutes baking, ~70 minutes total

For the cake:
4 large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
1½ tsp. cinnamon
1½ tsp. ground ginger
¼ tsp. salt
3 cups finely shredded carrots* (roughly 8 large carrots)
½ cup canola oil
¼ cup crushed pineapple with liquid/juice
zest of one large orange

For the cream cheese frosting:
8 oz. reduced fat cream cheese, at room temperature
½ cup (8 tbsp.) butter, at room temperature
2-3 cups confectioner’s sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Lightly grease two 9-inch round baking pans.  Set aside.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and salt.  Set aside.
  3. In another large mixing bowl, beat the eggs.  Stir in the finely shredded carrots, canola oil, crushed pineapple, and orange zest.  Beat in the dry ingredients, a bit at a time.
  4. Divide evenly between the two prepared baking pans.  Bake at 350ºF for 35-40 minutes, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.  Allow the cakes to fully cool before frosting.
  5. Whip the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract) together in a stand mixer until light and fluffy.  Add confectioner’s sugar, a bit at a time, until the desired consistency is reached.  Place one layer of cake on a plate or cake stand and spread with frosting.  Top with the second layer of cake, and cover the entire cake (top and sides) the remaining frosting.  If desired, reserve some of the frosting to pipe on decorations.

PDF to Print Recipe for Super Moist Carrot Cake

The cake can be prepared a day or two in advance and stored at room temperature, but it is best to frost this cake the day you plan to eat it.  Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

*Finely shredded carrots keep the carrot cake very moist.  If the carrots are shredded into pieces that are too large, they will be too heavy and sink to the bottom of the batter as the cakes cook.  Finely shredded carrots stay suspended in the batter, resulting in a more even distribution.

Super Moist Carrot Cake

Whipped Blue Cheese and Poached Pear Toasts

09 Wednesday Mar 2016

Posted by in Appetizers, Boozy, Bread, Fruit, Vegetarian

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Whipped Blue Cheese Pear Toasts

This looks and tastes like a fancy schmancy appetizer, but I promise you it’s very simple to make.  It pairs especially well with dessert wine, which is exactly how I discovered it!  My friend Courtney recently suggested this recipe to me after I told her I planned to crack open a bottle of Far Niente’s dessert wine Dolce with my hubby that evening.  I highly recommend these elegant toasts, whether you’re simultaneously toasting with dessert wine or not!

Whipped Blue Cheese and Poached Pear Toasts
Yield:  8 appetizer servings
Time:  30 minutes

For the whipped blue cheese:
6 oz. blue cheese
4 oz. cream cheese (or Neufchâtel)
¾ tsp. red wine vinegar
1/8 tsp. salt
1 cup whipped cream

For the poached pears:
8 cups water
2½ cup sugar
6 cinnamon sticks
5 strips of fresh ginger (remove the outer skin from the ginger root, then create strips using a vegetable peeler)
4 Bosc pears (Bartlett or Anjou work too!)

Other:
1 baguette or loaf of other French bread
freshly cracked pepper
4 tbsp. honey

  1. Thinly slice the baguette and lightly toast until golden brown (about 5-8 minutes at 375ºF).
  2. To poach the pears, combine the water, sugar, cinnamon and ginger in a small saucepan.  Simmer over medium heat until gently boiling.  Keeping the stems of the pears intact, peel off the outer skin.  Submerge the pears into the boiling poaching liquid and continue to simmer over medium heat until the pears are softened, about 10 minutes.  Remove the pears from the liquid and allow to cool to room temperature.  Slice into quarters, remove the core, and thinly slice each quarter into about 5 slices.
  3. In the meantime, mash together the blue cheese, cream cheese, vinegar and salt.  Gently fold in the whipped cream and mix until well blended.
  4. Spread 1 tbsp. of the cheese mixture over each toasted baguette slice.  Place two slices of poached pear on top of the cheese mixture.  Lightly drizzle with honey and garnish with fresh cracked pepper.

Note:  The poaching liquid can be kept refrigerated for up to one week to poach additional pears and/or to be used as a pear-cinnamon-ginger simple syrup for cocktails.

PDF to Print Recipe for Whipped Blue Cheese and Poached Pear Toasts

This recipe was inspired by Far Niente’s recipe, which is available at: http://www.dolcewine.com/recipes/blue-cheese-mousse-with-vanilla-poached-pear-canape/?utm_source=Winery+Customers&utm_campaign=f52bc20046-DEC%2BDFNS%2BRecipe%2B2015&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_42c452f99d-f52bc20046-229092593

Thai Salmon Over Lentil Mash

24 Wednesday Feb 2016

Posted by in Dinner, Fish, Healthy, Quick and Easy

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Thai Salmon Over Lentil Mash

As most great recipes originate, this recipe was innovated by necessity.  I intended to make honey mustard glazed salmon with vanilla balsamic lentils (recipe here), but when I opened my pantry, I found that I didn’t have green lentils–only red.  Knowing that the texture of red lentils is rather different than that of green lentils once cooked, I knew immediately that they wouldn’t taste great with the recipe I’d had in mind.  I had fresh ginger root on hand, so I decided I’d concoct a dinner using fresh ginger and red lentils.  I love the warm curry flavors with the spiciness of the fresh ginger, and the brightness of the fresh cilantro in this meal.  Both my husband and I were surprised by how delicious this dinner turned out to be, and how quick and easy it was to make!  I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Thai Salmon Over Lentil Mash
Yield:  4 servings
Time:  40 minutes total

For the Lentil Mash:
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 large white onion, diced
2 shallots, diced
3 tbsp. fresh minced ginger
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
¼ tsp. salt
2 tsp. curry powder
3½ cups chicken stock
2 cups red lentils, sifted thru for stones and rinsed
¼ cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro

For the Salmon:
Four 6-oz salmon filets
2 tsp. curry powder
1½ tsp. ground ginger
½ tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. ground pepper
1-2 tbsp. honey

  1. Preheat the oven to 390°F.
  2. Place the chicken stock in a medium-sized saucepan and bring to a boil.  Stir in the red lentils, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cover.  Simmer for 25-30 minutes, until the stock has been absorbed and the lentils are tender.  (Red lentils tend to get mushy instead of holding their shape once cooked.  That’s our goal here, so don’t worry if it looks like baby food!)
  3. Meanwhile, combine the garlic, onion, shallots, fresh ginger, olive oil, salt, and 2 tsp. curry powder in a medium sauté pan.  Cook over medium heat until the onions are softened, about 8-10 minutes.  Set aside.
  4. Place the salmon in a lightly greased baking dish.  In a small mixing bowl, combine 2 tsp. curry powder, the ground ginger, salt, and pepper.  Mix to evenly distribute all of the spices.  Sprinkle over the salmon filets.  Lightly drizzle the salmon with honey.  Book at 390°F until cooked through, about 18 minutes.
  5. Once the lentils are ready, toss the onion mixture and the lentils together.  Fold in the chopped cilantro.
  6. Spread some of the mashed lentils on a plate, and top with the cooked salmon.  Enjoy!

Serving Suggestion:  I roasted asparagus to accompany this dish.  I ended up having extra minced fresh ginger, so I sprinkled that over the asparagus prior to roasting.  Yum!

PDF to Print Recipe for Thai Salmon Over Lentil Mash

Espresso Martini

14 Sunday Feb 2016

Posted by in Beverages, Boozy, Cocktails, Holiday, Quick and Easy, Vegan, Vegetarian

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Espresso Martini

Last year Valentine’s Day landed on the Saturday of President’s Day Weekend.  Since my husband was traveling for his annual hunting trip with his dad and brother, I decided to celebrate the holiday with one of my best girlfriends, Danielle.  We cooked dinner together, watched cheesy romantic movies, and created this delicious Espresso Martini recipe.  All in all, a great Valentine’s Day spent with a great friend!

This Valentine’s Day, I wish all of you experience lots of love and happiness, and many espresso martinis!  Cheers!

Espresso Martini
Yield:  one drink
Time:  5 minutes

1½ oz. Kahlua
3 oz. vanilla vodka
1 oz. freshly brewed espresso
½ to 1 oz. simple syrup (depending on your taste)
Ice
Optional:  three espresso beans

  1.  Combine the Kahlua, vanilla vodka, espresso and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker.  Pack with ice.  Shake vigorously for 2 minutes.  Strain into a martini glass.  If desired, garnish with three espresso beans.

To make the simple syrup: combine equal parts water and sugar (ex: 1 cup of each) in a saucepan.  Simmer on medium heat until the sugar is completely dissolved.  Store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Note:  An average shot glass holds 1½ ounces.

PDF to Print Recipe for Espresso Martini

Espresso Martini

Danielle and I enjoying our Espresso Martinis last Valentine’s Day!