Chocolate Sables

Let's get this part over first. According to baking nerds on television, "sables" is not pronounced like the furry animals. It's pronounced something like "sah - blays" and probably with a slightly jaunty French accent.

Which makes sense, since this recipe comes from the book French Desserts by Hillary Davis.

This post is part of a group post organized by the newly revised Virtual Potluck and sponsored by Anolon, WÜSTHOF, Paula Deen, Microplane, Gibbs-Smith, and Nielsen-Massey, who provided products to the participating bloggers as well as items for our giveaway.

Yes, I mentioned a giveaway. It's at the bottom of this post, and there's lots of awesome stuff you could win.

If you aren't familiar with Hillary Davis, you can read about her book Cuisine Nicoise on my blot here where I made a recipe for broccoli, and her book Le French Oven where I made some yummy soup here.

But let's talk about sables. If you haven't figured it out yet, they cookies. Yup, chocolate cookies. They're lovely and crisp and not too sweet, but then they're sprinkled with sparkly sugar on top, so if you want them sweeter, you can certainly add more sugar.

I thought it was interesting that these were brushed with an eggwhite wash before sprinkling with sugar. I don't think I've ever done that with cookies. I've eggwashed bread, and it made it shiny, but it was a new idea for cookies.

I love new ideas.

This recipe called for Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa, but I didn't happen to have that. I did have three other kinds of cocoa, though, so I used black cocoa. I'm sure these will work just fine with whatever you have. I mean, there's just no way these could be bad.

The cookies were lovely with some eggnog for dessert. Microplane gave us each a cup grater and a spice grater to use in our recipes ... I used them to garnish my eggnog - a whisper of nutmeg and then a little bit of grated chocolate. Because, well ... why not?

The cup grater is particularly interesting. You can set it right on a cup or mugif you want to, but it's really nice for holding it above the mug - which you'd need to if that mug was full. The funnel shape means you can do your grating and get the ingredients right into the mug instead of spilling onto the rim or onto the counter.

ALSO, this would be really great for grating chocolate on top of cupcakes, right?

That little spice grater is ideal for nutmeg. I just love it!

Chocolate Sables

Adapted from French Desserts by Hillary Davis

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons cocoa (the recipe called for Hershey's Special Dark, but I didn't have that, so I used black cocoa)

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

1/4 cup confectioner's sugar

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract (I used Nielsen-Massey)

1 egg white beaten with 1 teaspoon water

Crystallized or turbinado sugar

Sift the flour and cocoa together in a mixing bowl, then add the salt and which together.

Okay, in all honesty, I just piled the flour and cocoa into a bowl and whisked. I didn't sift at all. There were a few tiny lumps in my cocoa, but they broke up easily. If your cocoa is particularly lumpy, you might want to go ahead and sift.

Oh, and I used one of my spiffy new Paula Deen mixing bowls. I love the stripes!

Beat the butter, confectioner's sugar, and granulated sugar with a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, scraping down the bowl several times. 

Add the vanilla and beat to combine.

Pour in the flour mixture and mix just until well combined.

Scoop the dough onto a large sheet of plastic wrap, form into a ball, and place another sheet of plastic wrap on top. Use the palms of your hands to flatten it, then use a rolling pin to flatten it to about 1/4 inch thick. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Of course I used my new Anolon cookie sheet. It has a nice silicone grip so it's not as hot to hang onto, but of course I used a mitt when I took it out of the oven.

Use a cookie cutter or a glass to cut out round cookies. Since the instructions didn't mention a size, I used a sort of small cutter, because I don't like giant cookies. That way, I can have just one cookie if I'm not too hungry, but two cookies isn't too much, either.

Place the cookies on the baking sheet, brush with the eggwash, and sprinkle with the sugar. Just for the fun of it, I made one batch with the eggwash and one without. The ones with the eggwash were shiny and had sort of a crackled appearance, and the ones without had a more matte finish. They tasted the same, so the difference was mostly appearance.

Bake for 13-15 minutes. The instructions say to bake until crisp, but the were soft while hot and got crisp after cooling a bit. Just make sure they're done.

Let the cookies cool a few minutes on the baking sheet, then move them to a rack to cool completely. Needless to say, I used the rack that came in the Anolon set.

I haven't used the cake pans yet or the loaf pan that came with the Anolon set yet, but I'm pretty excited about them. The surface is really slippy, so I shouldn't have any trouble with cakes sticking. I used the parchment paper on the baking sheet that this recipe called for, but I think the cookies would have been fine without them.

Besides the fun products I used in making the cookies, I got a few items that didn't quite fit this recipe. The cake knife from WÜSTHOF looks like just the right thing to slice through cake, and the triangular shape will be perfect for lifting slices of cake for serving.

And then I received both lemon and almond extract from Nielsen-Massey. 

I considered using the almond extract in the cookie recipe because almond goes well with chocolate, but then I decided to stick with the vanilla called for. I'm kind of a fiend for vanilla - I buy it in 32-ounce bottles. Yeah, I'm crazy. But that's how much I use.

Want more recipes? 

Go visit the other bloggers participating in this potluck:

• Theresa from Foodhunter's Guide made Plenty of Pears Salted Caramel Loaf Cake
• Milisa from Miss in the Kitchen made Mini Raspberry Croissants 
• Debra Clark from Bowl Me Over made  Fabulous Butter Cake
• Miranda Payne Couse  from Cookie Dough and Oven Mitt made Laughing Cow Sugar Cookies

GIVEAWAY

One giveaway winner will receive a copy of French Desserts by Hillary Davis, an Anolon Advanced Bronze 5-piece baking set, a Paula Deen 3-piece mixing bowl set, a WÜSTHOF GOURMET 6-inch Cake Knife, a Microplane Premium Classic Spice Grater and Spice Cup Grater, and Nielsen-Massey almond and lemon extracts.

A second winner will receive a copy of French Desserts by Hillary Davis.

The giveaway is open to residents of the US.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks to all of our sponsors for providing products to the participating and for the items for the giveaway! For more information about our sponsors, you can follow them on social media:

Anolon and other Meyer products are sold through PotsandPans.com. Find them on Facebook and Twitter.
Anolon is on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Microplane is on Facebook and Twitter.
WÜSTHOF is on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Gibbs-Smith is the publisher of the cookbook. They are on Facebook and Twitter.
Hillary Davis is on Facebook and Twitter.
Nielsen-Massey is on Facebook and Twitter.

Buttery Semolina Rolls - A Quicker Recipe

It's funny how much kitchen tools have changed since I was a kid. I can remember when my mom got her first blender, and she didn't get a microwave until I was an adult. She had a countertop broiler that I'm sure was a fire hazard.

And I don't ever recall her using a thermometer. Not for meat, not for anything. Somehow we managed not to eat undercooked turkey, but overcooked meat sometimes happened.

Now, it seems like I use a thermometer just about every day. Or at least every day that I cook. I use it to check meat temperatures, and I use it when I'm making fiddly things like candy or custard. Or when I'm making sure I'm not killing the good bacteria when I make yogurt.

When I'm making bread, I can be a little ... imprecise with my temperature-checking, but I'll have to admit that things often turn out better when I am paying attention.

When proofing yeast, or when I'm giving it a head-start in warm water, the yeast like a temperature of about 110 degrees. A little lower is fine. 110 is safe. But when temperatures rise too much hotter, yeast goes from happy and frolickly to cooked and dead.

But did you know that you can also test whether your bread is done based on internal temperature?

A lot of recipes suggest thumping on the bottom of the loaf, or going by time and crust color. That's fine if you've got a lot of bread experience or if you don't have a thermometer handy - but these days, doesn't everyone have a thermometer of some sort?

Sweet and enriched breads are done baking when they're somewhere between 190 and 195 degrees. Regular white bread is done at somewhere between 195 and 200 degrees. It's much easier to stab a loaf of bread with a thermometer to read the temperature than it is to turn a hot loaf out of a pan to thump its bottom.

I've owned way too many thermometers over the years. Way too many. I actually have a box of them tucked away for the next garage sale. But a while back, after a turkey said it was done too quickly because of a faulty cheap thermometer, I decided to invest in something better. Yup, I bought a Thermapen.

Now, the nice folks at Thermapen have sponsored this post, and one lucky reader will get a brand-new Thermapen AND an autographed copy of my cookbook, Make Ahead Bread.

Plus, there's a recipe here. Because I like recipes. And bread. This one isn't a make-ahead version. Instead, it's a slightly speeded up version, with a shorter first rise.

Mom wants you to make these for you for Mother's Day. And then leave the Thermapen for her. Because Mom needs a good thermometer!

Buttery Semolina Rolls

1 cup water, at 110 degrees
1 tablespoon sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons Red Star Active Dry Yeast
2 cups (9 ounces) bread flour
3/4 cup (4 1/2 ounces) semolina flour
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
Baking spray (optional)
Cornmeal (optional)

Combine the water, sugar, and yeast in the bowl of your stand mixer. If you start with 110-degree water, it will drop a few degrees when you put it in the mixer bowl and add the sugar and yeast. That's fine.

While proofing isn't really necessary if you know that your yeast isn't old and dead, it does give the yeast a little jump start, which means that the bread tends to rise a bit quicker. You don't always want a fast rise because a slow rise gives the buns more flavor. But in this case, the buns have extra flavor from semolina flour and from butter.

Let the water-sugar-yeast mixture sit for 5-10 minutes until it's frothy.

Add the bread flour, semolina flour, salt, and butter. Knead with the dough hook attached to your stand mixer until the dough is elastic.

Remove the bowl from the mixer, cover, and set aside in a warm place for 30 minutes. the goal is to find a place that's about 90 degrees.

Meanwhile, spray a 10-inch round cake pan - or anything similarly sized - with baking spray. It's not necessary, but it's extra insurance. Sprinkle cornmeal on the bottom of the pan, if you like. And onto the sides, if you like. Again, it's not necessary, but I like the flavor and crunch.

Divide the dough into 12 roughly equal pieces and form them into balls. Place the balls in the pan so they're somewhat evenly spaced.

Cover the pan and set aside for 30 minutes. The buns should double in size and fill the pan.

Meanwhile, heat the oven to 350 degrees.

When the buns are risen, remove the cover and bake for 25-30 minutes, until the buns are golden brown and the internal temperature is about 195 degrees.

Remove the pan from the oven, flip the buns out of the pan, and let them cool completely on a rack.

Well, okay, you can rip one off and sample it while it's warm. Or three. I won't judge.

THE GIVEAWAY

The nice folks at Thermoworks have graciously offered to give away one of their amazing Thermapens, and I've thrown in an autographed copy of Make Ahead Bread as well.

Click HERE to enter.

Enchiladas Suisas and a #giveaway

I love enchiladas, so the fact that there's an entire book about them makes me just a little giddy. I was invited to participate in a book tour for the book and I got the chance to make some amazing enchiladas.

Enchiladas suizas were one of my favorites, dating way back to when Bob and I were dating. Suizas, I was told, meant that the enchiladas were Swiss-style, which refers to the dairy products used. These enchiladas have a creamy green sauce and are topped with cheese.

Mmmm. Cheese.

The instructions are long, but that's because they're detailed. These are actually very easy to make, and you can make some of it ahead of time, like the sauce that can be made and refrigerated until you need it, and the chicken that can be cooked, shredded, and refrigerated until you're ready to assemble.

I had more sauce than I thought I needed, but when I reheated, I added more sauce, because it's really good. I've also used some on tacos. Next time I make these, I might mix some sauce into the shredded chicken. It's a really good sauce. I can see using it for a LOT of things.

Here's what you can WIN in the Giveaway (see the entry at the end of the post):

Enchiladas Suizas
Reprinted from Enchiladas: Aztec to Tex-Mex Copyright © 2015 by Cappy Lawton and Chris Waters Dunn. published by Trinity University Press.
Makes 12 enchiladas

Ingredients:
For the sauce:
1 pound (454 grams) tomatillos, husks removed, cored
1–2 serrano chiles, destemmed
1⁄2 medium white onion, peeled, coarsely chopped, and root end removed
3 cloves garlic, peeled
3⁄4 bunch cilantro
Chicken broth as needed for thinning sauce
1 tablespoon (15 ml) vegetable oil
1 cup (237 ml) crema Mexicana
Kosher salt to taste

For the filling:
2 cups (260 grams) poached and shredded chicken

For the assembly:
12 white corn tortillas
Vegetable oil as needed for softening tortillas
2 cups (240 grams) queso asadero, queso Chihuahua, or Emmentaler Swiss, grated

For the garnish:
1 cup (237 ml) crema Mexicana, or to taste
1 medium white onion, peeled and thinly sliced
Cilantro leaves to taste

Directions:
Start with the sauce:
Place the tomatillos, chiles, onion, and garlic in a saucepan, cover with water, and
bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to a simmer and gently cook until the tomatillos change color but
do not burst.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer vegetables to a blender.

Blend the vegetables until smooth, adding chicken broth as needed to achieve a
medium sauce consistency.

Add cilantro and process for a few seconds more.

In a saucepan over medium heat, place 1 tablespoon (15 ml) oil.

When it is hot, add the sauce and cook for a few minutes until warmed through
and slightly thickened.

Reduce to a bare simmer and stir in crema Mexicana. Heat the sauce through,
but do not let it boil.

Remove from heat and season with salt to taste. Cover, set aside, and keep warm.

Assemble the enchiladas:

The authors.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C).

Pour oil to a depth of 1⁄2 inch (12 mm) in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat.
Heat to low frying temperature, about 300°F (150°C).

Place each tortilla in the oil and fry for a few seconds, just long enough to soften.
Drain on paper towels.

Fill the lower third of a tortilla with 2 tablespoons shredded chicken, roll, and
place seam side down in an ovenproof baking dish large enough to accommodate
the enchiladas in a single layer.

Repeat with the remaining tortillas.

Generously cover with the sauce, making sure the edges of the enchiladas are
well covered.

Sprinkle queso asadero or queso Chihuahua on top.

Bake in a preheated oven until the enchiladas are heated through and the cheese
is melted and brown in spots, about 15 minutes.

Garnish with crema Mexicana, onion slices, and cilantro leaves.

Note: These enchiladas are intended to be flavorful but not spicy hot, so use chiles accordingly.

I used purchased tortillas (we have some good ones out here) but there's a recipe for homemade tortillas in the book, and the authors created an awesome video as well. Check it out!

For more information, check out the book's website, Pinterest, and Facebook.

Giveaway has ended.

Fajitas! And a really sharp #Giveaway

A while back, I read a quote from a chef who commented that cooking is fun because you get to play with knives and fire.

I can't disagree. There's something incredibly satisfying about cutting meats and vegetables and fruits with good knives. It's a pleasure rather than a chore. So when my buddies at Virtual Potluck teamed up with WÜSTHOF, I was pretty excited about the new kitchen weapons.

We each received the CLASSIC 5-inch Serrated Slicing Knife and the CLASSIC 2-Piece Extra Wide Chef Set that includes a 4-inch paring knife and a 6-inch cook’s knife. AND I have the same knives that I'll be giving to one of my readers.

The first time I used the serrated knife to slice a tomato, I nearly swooned. I like using serrated knives to cut tomatoes, but this one is so much better than other knives I have. So much. Much like the serrated bread knife that I received as a gift to celebrate my book contract, this was a knife I didn't know I needed until I used it. Now I'm in love with it.

Wowza.

And the other two knives are pretty darned nice, too. The wide cook's knife is great for slicing, and the width makes it wonderful for smashing garlic or scooping up what's been cut.

The paring knife is sweet, too. It make peeling things much more fun, and it's also great for cutting small things, like when I'm slicing limes for cocktails.

The first thing I thought of cooking that would show of the knives was fajitas. First, I love Mexican food. And Mexican-inspired food.  And second, fajitas require a lot of slicing. And different kinds of slicing.

I opted for steak fajitas. But what kind of steak? The usual suspects for fajitas are skirt steak, flank steak, or flap meat. But the secret is that you can pretty much use any kind of steak you like, as long as you slice the meat into small, thin pieces. I decided to use a boneless ribeye.

I also decided to use a LOT of vegetables. Because I like them.

The one thing I didn't do (that I usually do) is that I didn't go crazy with toppings. I usually end up with way too many toppings whenever I serve something in a tortilla. This time, I limited it to an avocado crema, fresh tomatoes, and cilantro.

Steak Fajitas
with Avocado Crema

For the fajita filling:
1 steak (your choice)
Salsa (home made or store-bought) for marinating
Olive oil
1 zucchini
1 red bell pepper
1 poblano (or similar) pepper
1 onion
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the crema:
2 avocados
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/2 teaspoon salt

For assembly:
Corn tortillas
Tomatoes
Cilantro

Marinate the meat:
A few hours before cooking, place the steak in a plastic zip-top bag and add just enough salsa to coat the meat. Seal the bag and let the steak rest at room temperature while you prep everything else. You can also marinate the steak overnight and remove it from the refrigerator an hour before cooking.

Prepare the vegetables:
Slice the zucchini into matchsticks about 2 or 3 inches long. Core and seed the red pepper and poblano pepper and slice into similar-sized pieces. Peel the onion, cut it in half from root to stem, and slice into half-moons so the strips are about the same size as the zucchini and peppers. Set aside.

Make the crema:
Put the avocado flesh, sour cream, lime juice, and salt into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

Prep the garnishes:
Slice the tomatoes into thin wedges and chop the cilantro roughly.

Cook the steak:
Heat a skillet on high heat. Remove the steak from the marinade and pat dry. Rub the steak with the olive oil and place in the hot pan. Cook until nicely browned on one side, flip, and cook on the second side. Continue cooking until the steak is done to your liking. Remove it from the pan and let it rest while you cook the vegetables.

Cook the vegetables and tortillas:
Add the vegetables to the pan where you cooked the steak. You can wipe out the pan, if you like, or just let the meat flavor season the vegetables. Add a little olive oil, if necessary and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cook the vegetables to you liking - crisp-tender is fine, and fully cooked and caramelized is just as good. It's your dinner, so make it the way you like it.

Meanwhile, warm the tortillas in a dry pan, flipping them over as the heat up, until they're soft and have a few brown spots.

Slice the steak and assemble:
By the time the vegetables are cooked, the steak should be rested well enough to slice into small, thin pieces. If you're using skirt or flank steak or flap meat, make sure you're cutting against the grain of the meat.

Assemble the fajitas with vegetables, steak, and garnishes as desired - or serve the individual components in bowls and let people make their own.

Serve hot.

If you're looking for a knife for a holiday present, check these out! And they're easy to wrap, since they come in boxes. Or, enter below and see if you might win!

Thanks to WÜSTHOF for sponsoring this post and providing knives for the giveaway (US residents only). If you want to know more, check out their website, like them on Facebook, or follow them on Twitter.

Chilled Beet Soup from Le French Oven

My buddies and I over at Virtual Potluck loved the cookbook Le French Oven so much, we decided to do a group post about it. AND we've got cookbooks to give to you. AND something else.

Do you know what a French oven is? You might have one, and not even know it.

According to some definitions, Dutch ovens are made from uncoated cast iron, but similar coated pots are French ovens. There are of course, French French ovens - coated cast iron pots made in France.

The book Le French Oven focuses on cooking in different types of French ovens, from large ones to individual ones. I have at least a dozen pages bookmarked, with recipes I want to try. And I've made a few.

But for this post, I decided to make beet soup. Because I love soup and I love beets, and this recipe is completely different from my usual.

I usually make beet soup similar to what my mom made - a clear soup that's a teeny bit tart. Then sour cream is added at the table. Mom's beet soup could be served hot, warm, cool, or chilled. And I pretty much liked it every possible way.

This soup is designed to be served chilled, and it's blended with buttermilk. A lot of buttermilk. The result it a very pretty pink soup.

I had to make one little change to the recipe. It called for using beet greens as a garnish. The beets I bought at the farmers market were end-of-season beets, and the greens were really beat up. They weren't really appetizing either as garnish or in the soup. So, while I made the rest of the recipe according to the book's instructions, I made a different garnish.

While I didn't make the garnish this time, I do like the idea of floating a "salad" on top of the soup. I might give it a try next time I have pretty beet greens.

If you have pretty greens, this includes those instructions, but I'll include my variation as well. Just in case.

Gorgeous Chilled Beet Soup
with Beet Greens Salad
Adapted from Le French Oven by Hillary Davis

8 beets, with good looking leaves
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 quarts buttermilk
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons salt, divided
2 cracks freshly ground pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon white or wine vinegar

Wash, trim, and peel the beets - wear rubber gloves if you don't want to stain your hands!

Place parchment or wax paper on your cutting board if you don't want to stain it. Coarsely shred 2 beets and set aside. Slice the remaining beets into large pieces.

Pull the leafy part of the leaves off of the thick stems and discard the stems. Finely chiffonade the greens so you have a tightly packed 1/2 cup. Use any remaining greens for whatever you like.

Place the sliced beets in the French oven with enough water to cover. Add the lemon juice and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook the beets until they are tender - about 40-60 minutes. Drain the beets.

When the beets are cool enough to handle, put them in a food processor or blender, in batches if necessary, with the buttermilk, sugar, 1 teaspoon of salt, and pepper. Blend until very smooth. Pour the finished puree back into the French oven.

Taste for seasoning and add more salt and/or pepper, if desired. Cover the French oven and refrigerate until the soup is chilled.

Just before you're ready to serve, whisk together the oil, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and vinegar. Toss in the grated beets and the beet greens. Mix well to coat.

Serve the soup in bowls and top with the beet salad.

Note: Since my beet greens weren't edible, I garnished with peeled and julienned cucumber pieces instead.

All of the participating members of Virtual Potluck received a copy of the book from the publisher as well as a serving item from Le Creuset; I got the soup tureen shown in the photos. The publisher is providing books for the winners as well as an oval Dutch oven for one winner.

Giveaway is over.

Pan-Roasted Cod with Bell Pepper, Artichokes, and Tomato and a Sun Basket #Giveaway

When the folks at Sun Basket contacted me and asked if I wanted to try their healthy meal kit service, I said "sure." Right now, I'm only cooking sporadically, so I figured that having pre-measured and pre-planned meals showing up at my door would be a good idea.

All the meals at Sun Basket are categorized for different types of diets - vegetarian, paleo, gluten free, diary free, and soy free. Each week has different selections.

I chose pan-roasted Pacific cod with bell pepper, artichokes, and tomato, which was gluten-free and paleo; turkey burgers with apple-date chutney and spiced rice which was gluten free; and roasted cauliflower gratin with tomato, goat cheese, and arugula, which was vegetarian and gluten free.

My favorite of the three was the cod, and I'm including the recipe here. The turkey burger was interesting. It included grated zucchini in the burger to make it more moist - I thought that was a great idea, and I'll probably do that in the future if I make my own turkey burgers. The apple-date chutney was the perfect companion for it

Cod dinner ingredients

While I liked the flavor of the rice combo, my one quibble was that I thought it would have looked better on the plate if it had been more colorful instead of having three brownish items on the plate. I added some cherry tomatoes to brighten mine up - a pretty easy fix that anyone could do.

The cauliflower gratin was good, but I probably wouldn't make it the same way a second time. There was nothing wrong with it, but just not my favorite way of preparing cauliflower. I'm sure others would love it.

Cauliflower dinner ingredients.

But here's the thing. You can always change the recipes around, if you don't like some part of it. For example, the cauliflower recipe came with arugula to be made into a salad. I'm not fond of arugula, so I gave it to a friend, used some red leaf lettuce to make a salad, and made the dressing from the kit for my salad. Easy peasy.

The meal kits come with a UPS return label so you can return the box and freezer packs to be re-used, so you don't have to worry about properly recycling everything. I really liked that. I'm fine with recycling cardboard, but there's no good way to recycle freezer packs.

Sun Basket box.

If you're looking for healthy and special-diet meal kit options, take a look at Sun Basket. All the ingredients were high quality, they were packed well, and the instructions were good. There are lots of different meal options to choose from each week, so you should be able to find something you like!

If you want to give Sun Basket a try, you can get $30 off your first order just for my readers. See, I like you!

And, one lucky winner can try Sun Basket for FREE. The giveaway widget is after the recipe.

Pan-Roasted Pacific Cod with Bell Pepper, Artichokes, and Tomato
Recipe courtesy of Sun Basket

Since the ingredients were pre-measured, there aren't amounts for all items in the recipe; I estimated the amounts (in parenthesis) or just use your own judgement about how much you like)

2 Pacific cod filets (2 servings)
1 large or 2 small shallots
2 garlic cloves
Red chard (1 bunch)
1 red bell pepper
Artichoke hearts (These weren't fresh; use canned or frozen/thawed. About 1/3 cup, but I'd use more next time since I like artichokes.)
1/4 teaspoon aleppo pepper, optional
Fresh oregano (one sprig is enough)
Diced San Marzano tomatoes (I'd guess about a cup)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
Salt and pepper
Olive oil

Heat the oven to 200 degrees.

Pat the cod filets dry and season on both sides with salt and pepper.

In a nonstick frying pan on medium heat, warm 1 or 2 tablespoons of olive oil until hot but not smoking. Cook the cod until golden brown, about 5 minutes on each side. Transfer the cod to a sheet pan and keep it warm in the oven while you prepare the rest.

While the cod is cooking, you can prep the vegetables.

Peel and chop the shallots. Chop the garlic. Strip the chard leaves off the stems. Rinse and chop the leaves and stems, keeping them separate. Cut the bell pepper into 1-inch pieces. Discard the seeds and stem.

Rinse the artichoke hearts. Chop the oregano leaves.

In the same pan used to cook the fish, add more oil if the pan seems dry. Warm over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add the shallots, garlic, chard stems, bell pepper, and aleppo pepper, if you're using it.

Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots and chard are just tender, about 5 minutes.

Stir in the tomato paste and cook until slightly caramelized, about 1 minute. Add the artichoke hearts, tomatoes, oregano, and chard leaves. Season with salt and pepper.

Add 1/2 cup water and cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has been reduced by half, about 5 minutes longer.

Transfer the braised vegetables to individual bowl. Top with the fish and serve.

Sun Basket provided the meal kits to me at no cost; they also are providing the product to the winner and they also supplied the giveaway widget. Giveaway is now over.

#Choctoberfest Begins Today!

I'm starting to get back on the blogging bandwagon this week, and what better way to do it than with chocolate? Because today is the first day of #Choctoberfest.

Heavens knows I can use chocolate now, right?

Today I'm posting giveaway information. Tomorrow you'll find a recipe for one of my favorite comfort food desserts - chocolate custard pudding! I've snared a chocolate-related guest post for later in the week, and I have a cocktail in mind for the end of the week.

I joined #Choctoberfest for the fun of it, but I also received some products from sponsors for my use. I've got enough Imperial sugar to last at least a little while!

Make sure you stop by to see what all the other bloggers have come up with, and thanks so much for all the kind words and support while I'm still trying to get my feet under me again.

#Choctoberfest is a virtual event put together by The PinterTest Kitchen. Bloggers from around the world will be posting their favorite chocolate recipes, and you'll get a chance to win some awesome prizes. What's not to love?

Here's what this event is all about!

#Choctoberfest would not be possible without our sponsors, starting with our 2015 Gold Sponsor, Imperial Sugar. Imperial Sugar has been a trusted name in family kitchens since 1843. Their sugar products and sweeteners are made from non-GMO cane sugar and ensure consistently delicious results. We'll be using Imperial Sugar whenever we use sugar in our recipes this week, and can't wait to share the sweetness with you!

You can find Imperial Sugar on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and more. Make sure you visit the recipes section of their website for some sweet inspiration, and you can also find coupons on their website if you want to try out Imperial Sugar yourself.

Imperial Sugar and our other sponsors have banded together to contribute some awesome prizes for our #Choctoberfest giveaway! Entering is simple - just click below to follow us on Pinterest. Here's what you could win:

• My First Cookbook and Granulated Sugar from Imperial Sugar
• Chocolate Mint Essential Woman Omega Swirl and Chocolate Silk Greens from Barlean's
• Chocolate bars (dark, milk, and white) from Lindt Chocolate
• Hemp seed prize pack (hulled hemp seed, toasted hemp seed, hemp seed oil, and hemp protein powder) from Just Hemp Foods
• Divine Chocolate gift set (15 flavors of chocolate bars!) from Divine Chocolate
• Dark chocolate caramels from Tahana Confections
• Vintage inspired gathering apron from Bless This Mess
• Lulu's Lovepack (6 flavors of chocolate bars!) from Lulu's Chocolate
• Pure Chocolate Lovers Supreme gift box from Pearson Farm

We also have a nonprofit sponsor this year - Rescue Chocolate! They make vegan chocolate treats and donate 100% of their proceeds to animal shelters.

Enter now to win the #Choctoberfest prize. Hurry, because we're picking the winner on October 12 at 8:00 AM, so if you don't sign up before then, you'll miss your chance!

Giveaway is over.

A huge thank you to all of the other blogs participating in #Choctoberfest 2015. Check out their blogs throughout the week for chocolate recipes you won't be able to resist:

The PinterTest Kitchen • 2 Cookin' Mamas • A Day in the Life on the Farm • Aloha Flavor • Amy's Cooking Adventures • Angels Homestead • Balancing Motherhood • Bless this Mess • Busy-at-Home • Chocolate Slopes • Coconut & Lime • Colie's Kitchen • Cookaholic Wife • Cooking In Stilettos • Cooking With Libby • Cookistry • CopyKat Recipes • Cravings of a Lunatic • Crumbs in my Mustachio • Culinary Couture • Cupcakes Take The Cake • Deliciously Savvy • Eat It & Say Yum • Fairyburger • Famished Fish, Finicky Shark • Farm Fresh Feasts • Food Hunter's Guide to Cuisine • Full Belly Sisters • Get Off The Couch and Cook • Grumpy's Honeybunch • Hey What's for Dinner Mom? • Honey and Birch • I Can Cook That • Jane's Adventures in Dinner • Jessie Weaver • Life on Food • Life, Love, and Good Food • Majorly Delicious • Moore or Less Cooking Food Blog • Mother Would Know • Or Whatever You Do • Poet in the Pantry • Recipes Food and Cooking • Rhubarb and Honey • Sassy Southern Yankee • Savory Tart • Seduction in The Kitchen • Serena Lissy • Sumptuous Spoonfuls • Take Two Tapas • That Skinny Chick Can Bake • ThatsSoYummy • The Chonchudo Files • The Crumby Cupcake • The Dinner-Mom • The Saucy Southerner • The Spiced Life • The Spiffy Cookie • The Two Bite Club • The Weekday Gourmet • Vintage Kitty • Wendy Polisi • What A Girl Eats • WhitBit's Indian Kitchen • Wit Wisdom & Food • Zesty South Indian Kitchen

Are you a blogger who is interested in joining us during our next community event?

Sign up here now!

We'll make sure you get an email about our next blogger event.

Project Karma and a Cookbook Giveaway

Photo from From Cupcakes to Caviar.

It seems impossible that we're approaching the three-year anniversary of when my husband went into the hospital ... and didn't come home for a long time.

Sometimes it seems like just yesterday, and sometimes it seems like a lifetime ago. So much has happened since then.

If you haven't been reading this blog for that long, the short story is that he drove himself to the clinic, they sent him to the ER and shortly afterwards he was in the ICU awaiting surgery. Things went wrong, they told me there was no hope - pick a time to pull the plug - and the next day he woke up and his condition started improving. Slowly.

Meanwhile our money situation was dire, and hospitals aren't cheap. Although I hated the idea, I wrote a blog post and asked for donations. I was overwhelmed with the generosity of strangers. And grateful to friends. And astonished at how my life could go from worrying about whether Bob would have a home to come home to ... to being comfortable spending time with him, knowing that the bills would be paid for a short while. I could breathe for a while.

It was the worst time of my life, and also the most amazingly wonderful time, when I realised how wonderful people really are. I felt very loved and very comforted at a time when I needed it most. And it wasn't even the money, but it was the fact that so many people were so caring.

I promised the universe that when I was in a position to give back, I would. I'm a big believer in karma, and in doing good without expectations of payback. Paying it forward, so to speak. And paying back when good things have come your way.

Have a cookie. Photo from From Cupcakes to Caviar.

For me, that payback time is now. And I'm asking you to help me with that payback. Please.

My friend Janet Brand - you might know her from the blog From Cupcakes to Caviar - just asked online for prayers and good wishes, and when I pressed her for details, she reluctantly told me.

Janet's husband's company recently stopped providing health insurance for spouses, and the family can't afford to pay for private health insurance to cover Janet. They're one of the many families who make too much money to get free insurance, but who struggle every month over paying monthly bills, food, and other expenses, and there's not enough left for that big insurance bill every single month.

I know exactly what that's like. I was there, too. So, like me, she crossed her fingers and hoped that everything would be fine. And ... she's not. She's experiencing symptoms of a very treatable type of cancer. She knows it well because it runs in the family. She knows what the future looks like, but she can't afford to pay for treatment, and she can't afford medical insurance.

She was asking for prayers and good thoughts, but what I want for her is medical help.

So, here's the plan. I twisted her arm really really hard, and she set up a GoFundMe campaign to collect money to pay for her insurance and her deductible. She's not asking for money for a blogger trip, or a new dishwasher. She's not asking for money to buy shoes. She needs money for basic healthcare to save her life.

Janet has two children who need her a lot (besides the ones who are grown) - one in grade school, and the other is special needs. It's not like she can run out and get a job, because childcare would cost more than she could earn. She's a hardworking gal who takes care of her kids, her house, her husband, and her blog. Now she needs some help taking care of herself.

Can you help?

Janet is one of the funniest people I know, and I absolutely refuse to lose another friend because they delayed medical treatment.

If you have some spare money, consider sending some to her GoFundMe campaign. She's only asking for enough to cover insurance and the deductible for a year, but I'd love to see her get a cushion to cover food and maybe some childcare, because there may be some days when she's not going to have a whole lot of energy for daily tasks. And she will need insurance next year, too.

You don't need to donate a lot. Even $5 will help her reach her goal. Even $1, if that's what you've got to give. It adds up.

If you don't have money, then consider sharing this blog post, or directly share a link to the GoFundMe campaign.

If you are a blogger and you'd like to write a blog post that mentions this campaign, email or message me on Facebook. I might be able to offer a little extra bonus giveaway for your readers as a thank-you from me.

If you're a blogger and you have a vast (or small) audience on social media, but you don't want to write a blog post, please just share a link. Please?

Janet is a real sweetheart, snarky and humble and funny. I nearly had to hit her over the head to allow me to do this for her.

She didn't want to ask for money, and she only agreed when I pointed out that her children really need her. And then she thought about it. If she wasn't there, her husband couldn't take care of both children and still work. Her special needs child would probably end up in a home ... and that's when she finally agreed to let me do this. Not for herself, but to make sure her family is okay.

She truly needs your help. Please do what you can for her.

And now for the GIVEAWAY

I have ONE copy of my cookbook, Make Ahead Bread to give to one lucky winner.

You do NOT need to make a donation to enter the giveaway, but there will be bonus entries for sharing links on social media. See, you can help without opening your wallet!

I may be offering extra books if donations entries and/or donations exceed my expectations.