One of the challenges of being “the friend who cooks” is that I’m counted on to bring “something different” to potlucks.  This past weekend was no different.  I knew that the people at this particular gathering had never tried quinoa and since I had some in the pantry, that was my “something different.”  If you don't already cook with quinoa, you should know that it doesn’t have an intense flavor on its own (plays well with many flavors), is a complete protein (vegetarian and vegan friendly), and cooks pretty much like rice.  It can be used as a breakfast cereal, and it’s also gluten free friendly.

I made Quinoa Black Bean Salad.  The hardest part of the recipe was slicing the corn off of the cob without it skittering across the kitchen.  The whole recipe was done and piled it into a serving bowl  in under 20 minutes.  Not all of it fit, so I had the excess for lunch, and it was darn tasty. 

Of course, not everyone liked it; I think the appearance is so different that people just don’t know what to make of it.  If you check out the picture, you can see that  the grain is translucent, and there is a darker ring around it.  That dark ring is the grain, which will sometimes detach and look like a tail (get over it).   The kids shunned it in favor of Toffee Bar Coffee Cake, and some of the die hard traditionalists leaned more towards Really Red Potato Salad (to which I added some garden fresh broccoli that needed to be used). 

Considering how ridiculously cold it is for August, I plan on using the rest of the box of quinoa on Kidney Beans & Quinoa, a fall favorite.

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I have tried for years to make architecturally accurate gingerbread houses with no success. My precision cut Frank Lloyd Wright shapes morph into Salvador Dali-esque blobs in the oven.   The kits never satisfy, we always have to get more candy and more icing. And the actual house part may be technically edible, but it’s not very tasty.

My solution? Cocoa Krispies! Nice color, barely any cooking, tasty, lightweight, and best of all, fast and easy. I need to save my energy for the clean up.

You really need to use Royal Icing to assemble a house. Canned frosting isn’t made to dry rock hard. You can use fresh egg whites, but I keep a canister of dried on hand. They might seem a bit pricey, but not only are you not throwing away the yolk, but you can also use them to make meringue cookies, or shells, or just more royal icing!

Royal Icing 1

3 tablespoons dried egg whites/meringue powder
4 cups powdered sugar
½ cup warm water (add more if you need it thinner)

Royal Icing 2

4 egg whites, room temperature
4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar

In both cases, combine ingredients and beat 7-10 minutes. If desired, you can add up to ½ tsp of flavoring such as almond, vanilla, lemon… Scoop it directly into a zip top bag for piping.

And what about the candy? Well, the sky is truly the limit. Big marshmallows make great snowmen. Ice cream cones make trees. Just thin out some of the icing, roll the cone, then roll it in colored sugar. I have used Wheatabix and Shredded Wheat for roofing material, and although it looked cool, it got thumbs down for taste. Lightly toasted or tinted coconut works, but my kids seem just to prefer to cover the whole thing with candy.

This is also a great activity for holiday gatherings if you want the kids doing something besides playing video games. Hire a teen-age supervisor and enjoy your party!

We’ve all read the articles about effortless entertaining, and how you should always have wine and artisan cheeses and nuts on hand. AS IF. As if I normally add $60 to my weekly grocery bill just in case. As if I have room in my fridge for “just in case” food. As if my sons wouldn’t decide on a whim that the $8 hunk of cheese would make a few good sandwiches.

There are reasonable but still special things you can keep on hand to entertain friends and family who just drop by. The key phrase there was “friends and family”. They know you, and don’t need to be impressed. Save that for when you invite them for an occasion. Now is a great time to stock your pantry and freezer with things that can be easily turned into great meals or snacks.

Snacks:

• Pretzels and Creamy Honey Mustard Dip: The nice thing about this mustard is that you can adjust it to be as sweet or as hot as you like. Fabulous served with that big winter sausage that someone always seems to give you.
• Mini Open-Faced Toasted Cheese Sandwiches: The grocery store has loaves of frozen bread that take 10 minutes to bake. Mini is festive! If you serve a lot of mini things it will look planned and more festive than, say 4 sandwiches.
• Raspberry Chipotle Sauce: Served over cream cheese with crackers is great. You can make or buy the sauce.
• Pickles, olives, crackers, nuts.
• Frozen shimp when they are on sale. You can make your own sauce with ketchup and horseradish sauce, adjusting the heat up or down to your tastes.
• Party Punch: Festive and fun, and the ingredients are easy to keep.

 

Entrees:

• Chili: Serve with a variety of toppings, or over rice or spaghetti.
• Pasta is always a hit. Keep some jars of good sauce, and, if you like, add some sliced turkey Italian sausage (which also freezes well).
• Fish fillets are elegant served with a simple butter/lemon sauce.
• Lasagna: The next time you make one, make two and freeze the 2nd without even baking it.  It will take longer to cook, but no mess!
• Individual Pizzas: Premade pizza crusts freeze well, and so does shredded cheese. Anything in your ‘fridge is fair game for toppings!