Burgers & Fries

Recipe: Burgers with Shallots & Blue Cheese on Hamburger Buns // Cook's Illustrated Cookbook (burgers), Bread Lover's Bread Machine Cookbook (buns)
Side Recipe: Baked Potato French Fries // Vegan Richa
Rating:  

I used the bread machine to make dough for hamburger buns this morning--all I had to do is shape the dough and bake them. The burgers were simply put together with an egg & salt and pepper. I splurged on crispy shallots & blue cheese treat. This was an excellent meal (although not the healthiest). The fries took the longest--around 30 or 40 minutes.

Orzo with sausage, peppers and tomatoes

Recipe: Orzo with Sausage, Peppers and Tomatoes // Serious Eats

Rating:

This is the second time I've made this. It's spicy & satisfying, comes together quickly, and I can easily keep most of the ingredients on hand. We used Shady Brook Farms turkey sausage that I pulled from the freezer.

The only thing I'd alter is the pasta ratio--I'd like more veggies & meat or less pasta.

Pumpkin & Porcini Soup

Recipe: Pumpkin & Porcini Soup // The Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home (page 35)

Rating:

Great, earthy soup. Came together quickly (30-45 min). I added the optional cream/milk at the end, and preferred it that way. I will make this again.

I had to visit a few grocery stores to find dried porcini, but whole foods came through for me in the end. I would consider trying a different dried mushroom or dried mushroom mix in the future if I couldn't find porcini.

White Chicken Chili

Recipe: White Chicken Chili // Serious Eats

Rating: 

This was okay. I'm still in the market for a spectacular white chicken chili recipe.

The broth was good and I liked the chiles. I would recommend shredding the chicken in the future. Mine was cubed and I added too much of it.

Bagels

Recipe: Egg Bagels // The Bread Lover's Bread Machine Cookbook (page 88)

Rating:

Made the dough in my beloved bread machine. Seth and I shaped them, then boiled and they puffed up HUGE. They immediately shriveled again when we put them on the baking pan. I was discouraged, but they puffed up again a little when baked. You can see they look a little wrinkly in the photo. I'm not sure how to fix this.

Ours never sunk in the boiling water, so perhaps we let them rise too long. In any case, they tasted just fine. The crust was crispy and the inside soft just the way a bagel should be. One or two smaller bagels did not seem to be completely cooked through.

Serious Eats recommends adding malt syrup during the boiling process, so maybe we need to try that next time.

Also, I would like to try a with a cinnamon sugar topping!