O, R, S: Pita Bruschetta with Olives, Roma Tomatoes, Spinach, Pine Nuts and Goat Cheese

I am a bit backlogged on posting some of our dinners from the past two weeks. This recipe was an experiment in re-imagining a more traditional bruschetta we had enjoyed at a random pizza place standing somewhat forlornly in the middle of a suburban wasteland. I substituted goat cheese for the feta they had used and spinach for the basil... and of course totally changed the carb on which it was served!

All in all, it turned out rather well, and again utilized ingredients I already knew the bunny would eat: tomatoes, olives, and goat cheese. Ha!

The pita I have made before and used simply as a baked chip with hummus spread. But the same cooking method works quite well for the bruschetta. This is an especially good use for pita that has gone stale, as the baking tends to revive it just enough for satisfactory consumption.

I ended up serving this with my favorite acorn squash dish, which worked quite well, despite the odd conflagration of flavors. Also nice: the olive/veg blend was delicious eaten cold over leftover cous cous. A quick and easy lunch salad (great on the go).

Pita Bruschetta with Olives, Roma Tomatoes, Spinach, Pine Nuts and Goat Cheese

Ingredients
1 large or 2 small pita rounds
2 tbsp olive oil
seasoning salt or spice blend (Mr. Spice is my current fav)
1/2 c black olives, diced
2 medium roma tomatoes, diced
1/2 c spinach leaves, torn into bite-sized pieces
1/4 c pine nuts, toasted
another 1-2 tsp olive oil
salt and pepper (to taste)
1 tbsp goat cheese, crumbled

Directions
1. Preheat your oven to 350º. Place your pita rounds on a baking sheet and brush both sides of the pita with olive oil. Give them a nice, good coating so they look lovely and slick. Don't be stingy—this is where some good flavor comes in (and it also helps your seasoning to stick).

2. Lightly sprinkle both sides of the pita with whatever seasoning you choose. Maybe salt or garlic salt, maybe pepper or lemon pepper... maybe Mr. Spice or Mrs. Dash. Choose your poison and shake it on to your liking.

3. Place the pita in the oven and bake for approximately 10 min. No need to turn it over, though you certainly could halfway through. What you're aiming for is a lightly browned and very crisp end product. You've essentially turned your pita bread into large pita chips, which you can break down into pieces as small as you like (tortilla sized for dipping, roughly quartered for this bruschetta adventure).

4. At the same time you bake your pita, you can also toast your pine nuts. Easiest method I've found is to place them on a small baking sheet and put them in a 350º oven for 5 minutes. Take them out, give them a good shake, then put them in for another 5 minutes. They should look golden brown and emit a heavenly aroma at this point... remove them from the oven and transfer to a dish to cool.

5. While the pita is baking and the pine nuts are toasting, dice your olives and tomatoes and throw them into a small bowl. Add in the lettuce (easy to simply tear by hand). Sprinkle in the salt and pepper to your taste, and finally add in 1-2 tsp of olive oil.

Give it all a good stir to blend the flavors and set it aside until your pine nuts are out of the oven and a bit cooled off.

6. Add the pine nuts to your veg mixture and give it a few more good turns with a spoon so all the flavors combine.

7. Break your pita rounds into quarters (large) or halves (small), and spoon the mixture onto each section so that you've got a nicely mounded punch of yumminess on each pita chunk. It should look slightly overloaded—as if the whole thing might topple on the way to the mouth.

8. Right before serving, sprinkle your crumbled goat cheese over everything to give it that last splash of color and fantastic kick of flavor.

C, L, H, Q: Warm Quinoa Salad with Leeks, Corn and Heirloom Tomatoes

Heidi Swanson, one of my cooking heroes, seems to have a thing for quinoa. It shows up in many recipes and she tends to describe it with such tenderness and love... I knew eventually I would have to get over whatever reservations I might have about using a totally foreign (to me) grain and commit to a quinoa-inspired dish.

Tonight's dinner was the result. Surprisingly tasty and doubly successful because my daughter was willing to try every ingredient (save the leeks) on its own. So... not only did my husband and I discover a new tasty "foundation" option for meals involving lots of veg, but the bunny tried quinoa, corn, and heirloom tomatoes—only one of which she willingly ate before tonight.

I cry, "Success!"

If, like me, you are hesitant to venture into the world of quinoa... hopefully I can allay your fears. I totally see now why Heidi waxes somewhat rhapsodic. Somehow the grain is transformed from a small, stone-like dot to these lovely, fluffy swirls of cracked cloud. It's really quite beautiful to see. Slightly more high maintenance then cous cous but less so than rice, preparation is neither difficult nor time consuming.

I'll also add a little note about the leeks, because I've never cooked with those either. You see, I am a hater of onions—primarily because they make my stomach hurt and I find their taste wholly unpalatable. But I had heard leeks had a much milder and sweeter taste, and my husband is a big fan of the onion family... so with a bit of trepidation, I tried them out in this dish.

Another happy success, and I have yet another unused stalk still sitting in the fridge. So I will have to decide how else to use it this week! The dill in this dish was a total whim, but one that worked quite well. I also paired this with a side of sweet cornbread (Jiffy with a little maple syrup thrown in... don't judge!). Supremely filling and delicious.

Warm Quinoa Salad with Leeks, Corn and Heirloom Tomatoes

Ingredients
1 c quinoa (washed and drained)
2 c water
2 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 leek, thinly sliced
1 c corn, cooked
4 heirloom tomatoes (any color), diced
1 tsp dill
salt and pepper (to taste)

Directions
1. Cook your corn whatever way you like (or you can always get the frozen stuff and just thaw it out). I had some ears on hand from the farmer's market and so simply cut the kernels off once it had cooled. (I like to cook my corn the old fashioned way: boiling water with a dash of salt.) Three ears yielded roughly 1 cup cooked kernels.

2. Prepare your quinoa as directed on the package or – if you've bought in bulk – use 1 c quinoa to 2 c water. Just as with rice, you are supposed to rinse and drain the grain before you start. Once it's clean, transfer to a pot for which you have a lid, bring the water/quinoa mixture to a boil.

Reduce to a simmer and cook, covered, for another 10-15 minutes. Basically, you want it to cook down until there is no water left... making sure to rescue it from the heat before it starts to bake onto the sides of your pot and burn itself into little scorched nuggets.

3. Meanwhile, saute your leeks in a large frying pan with a bit of olive oil and crushed garlic. Once they begin to look softly translucent and are just hinting some browning on the edges, add the corn and tomatoes. I had two red heirlooms and two green, which was nice for the splash of color it provided.

4. Once you've got your veg all nice and warm and not too cooked (you want everything to stay firm rather than sliding toward a mushy consistency), add in the dill, salt and pepper. Give it all a good stir to blend the flavors; then remove the pan from the heat and get back to the final stages of your quinoa.

5. Add the cooked quinoa to your pan and stir everything together. Give it a bit more love and stirring over a low to medium flame and serve warm. Voila!

O, S: Olive and Spinach Pizza with Homemade Wheat Crust

Olives are one of the rare things my daughter eats with gusto. Black olives to be precise. And although they are technically a fruit, I still sometimes consider them a vegetable and feel happy when she munches away on them. They seem a healthy option and a happy compromise.

Spinach is less enjoyed. She has taken bites, tried leaves and such now and then... but has never really embraced it quite the way her parents do. So... this homemade pizza arose out of the hopes I might be able to sneak a bit of very healthy veg her way while quasi-bribing her with the inclusion of one she already knows and loves.

And it has worked—every time. We are all big pizza fans in this household, and although we LOVE ordering in from Lou Malnati's, this version is much healthier and probably also lower on sodium.

I was inspired by a crust recipe posted by Heidi Swanson and after much googling, experimenting, and alteration have now settled upon my own recipe, which I use and love regularly. I am also sharing a few tried-and-true tricks with you that has made my homemade pizza-making move from "oh that's nice" to "wow this pizza is delicious," because who doesn't want to be showered with compliments?

Beware: This pizza is not for the lactose intolerant or the non-cheese lover!

Olive and Spinach Pizza with Homemade Wheat Crust

Ingredients
Crust:
1 1/4 c warm water
4 1/2 tsp yeast (or 2 packages quick-rise yeast)
3 c wheat flour
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp dried rosemary
1 tbsp dried basil
1/4 c olive oil

Toppings:
2 c or roughly 1/2 jar tomato sauce
3 slices provolone cheese
1 c black olives
1 c baby spinach
1-2 tbsp goat cheese
2 c mozzarella cheese

Directions
1. Put the yeast into the warm water and stir until dissolved. (You can use a jarred yeast, which is cheaper over the long run if you intend to do this often; or, the pre-packaged Fleischmann's-type yeast works just as well.) Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, combine the wheat flour, sugar and salt.

3. Add in the olive oil and yeast-water and stir until everything is thoroughly combined. Dough will be sticky and moist. (I sometimes use my hands at this point, instead of the spoon, as I find this helps to mix the dough more evenly and ensure there are no hidden spots of dry flour remaining.)

4. Place a clean, dry towel over the bowl and let the dough rise for 30-60 minutes.

5. Preheat the oven to 450º. Remove the towel from your dough, punch the dough down with your fist and gather it together. It is at this point you will need to assess whether more flour will be needed before kneading the dough a bit. I usually sprinkle a bit on the counter and rub some on my hands, which seems to suffice.

6. Knead the dough until it is nice and spongy... not too wet, not too dry. Not too hard, not too soft. (Maybe 4-6 passes at most.)

Split the dough in half and save the unused portion for later. You can either put it in the fridge if you plan to use it in the next day or two... or pop it in the freezer for longer storage. It's best to rub a bit of olive oil over the entire dough ball before placing it in your freezer-safe bag. This helps get it out more easily later and gives it a nice coating so it won't dry out. (Just be sure to thaw completely before using it for your next pizza!)

7. Cover your pizza stone or cooking pan with corn meal to prevent sticking. Take your dough and carefully begin to pull it into a larger circle... flatten and pull. Flatten and pull. Once you've got a salad plate-sized circle, place it on your pizza stone and use your hands to slowly work the dough out to the edges of your pan. I can typically get a 10-inch pizza out of one dough ball (half the total dough made).

8. Once your pizza dough is fully stretched out, cover the surface with tomato sauce. (I never make my own, though I'm sure that would be delicious. I find the jarred stuff works fine—particularly if it's organic.) Remember to leave anywhere from 1/2 inch to 1/4 inch of space on the edges so you can pick it up later.

9. Place the provolone cheese slices over the pizza so that they cover most of the surface of the pie. Three slices tend to work perfectly for a 10-inch crust.

10. Sprinkle the goat cheese around the surface of the pizza, covering the entire area. Then place your olives around the pizza in whatever fashion you wish. I like to keep them evenly spaced and try to cover the circle, but you can make it as artsy as you like. Do the same with the spinach leaves.

11. Last, but not least, generously cover the entire pizza with the mozzarella cheese. I like to start in the middle and work my way out to the edges. (Just seems to help me get more even coverage.) Don't be afraid to use the full 2 cups of cheese!

The pizza needs roughly 20 minutes to get a nice golden crust to the cheese. I like to rotate it halfway through the cooking to compensate for any uneven heat in my oven. And somewhere in that last 10 minutes, I check on it, just in case it's cooking a bit faster than anticipated.

It helps to let it cool just a bit before cutting... really no more than 5 minutes or so. This stuff keeps great in the fridge and reheats like a dream on a bit of tin foil in a 350º oven. Hope you like it!

B, C, S: Baby Bella Mushroom Frittata with Cherry Tomatoes, Spinach and Goat Cheese

We are big breakfast fans in our household. Particularly my husband and I—though we have somewhat successfully sucked our daughter into our weekend tradition of big breakfasts. Saturdays we treat ourselves to a local favorite like Le Peep, Walker Brothers, or our new top-pick Dixie Kitchen (down-and-out phenomenal).

But Sundays are eat-at-home mornings, and this recipe came about in an attempt to use up some eggs, incorporate ingredients we know the bunny likes in the hopes she might try something new, and because we'd just seem Alton Brown do a show on proper omelet making. Either he mentioned varying the technique for frittatas or I just made that up, but the episode inspired me to try one, nonetheless.

While I followed some of his techniques for preparation, I tend to like my eggs a bit more cooked than he recommends... so I advocate for a longer cooking time both in the pan and when finishing in the oven. You may alter as you see fit, however, based on your egg idiosyncrasies!

Although the frittata as a whole was not a big hit with the bunny, she did try it (always a coup in our house). She enjoyed the goat cheese the best, and she was also open to eating the eggs that were not too heavily laden with veg (though we're working on that!).

Baby Bella Mushroom Frittata with Cherry Tomatoes, Spinach and Goat Cheese

Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
8 oz baby bella mushrooms
1 c cherry tomatoes (diced)
2 handfuls spinach
2 tbsp goat cheese
6 eggs
1 tbsp milk (any kind)
1 tbsp butter
2 tsp rosemary
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
1. The first step is to sauté all your veg. I like to start with the mushrooms, because they take longest, and then add in the tomatoes and finally the spinach. Olive oil is a great base to get it all going, and you can be sparing (you may need even less than 1 tbsp) because the mushrooms and tomatoes create their own juices.

2. I prefer to season everything at this step. I think the flavors blend more nicely as the veg cooks, and it's easier to make sure the flavors are balanced and what I want too. I tend to lean on rosemary, salt and pepper, but you can use just about anything you like here.

Fresh herbs are always lovely, but dried will do fine too. Other potential additions include sage, basil, and/or thyme. You really can't go wrong with that whole flavor palette, so play with it all and see what you prefer the most.

3. Once everything is soft, bright and lovely, transfer all your cooked veg to the dish you intend for the eventual oven stage. I like to use a glass pie dish (be sure to grease the entire thing with butter to prevent sticking later).

Spread it all out around the bottom so that, once you add your eggs later, the veg will be more evenly distributed throughout the dish.

4. Now on to the eggs! Preheat your oven to 350º. In a medium-sized bowl, crack your 6 eggs and whisk until thoroughly mixed up. Add in the milk and whatever salt and pepper you wish to include, and combine once more.

5. Place the 1 tbsp butter in a clean, large skillet (at least 10 inches) and let it melt. Test the skillet with a quick splash of water to ensure it is hot enough (a few droplets on your fingers should tell you upon contact if the oil is ready... you'll hear a sizzling, popping kind of sound).

Once you've reached the right heat, pour the eggs into the skillet and tilt the pan around slightly to ensure the egg mixture is coating the entire pan. Use a spatula to move the middle of the eggs around as they cook... really for only 5-10 seconds or so. Then let the whole thing sit, untouched, for a good 10-15 seconds.

6. Turn off the heat and transfer your entire egg mixture to your prepared pie dish. Some of the egg will be cooked and some still runny. This is fine, and as it should be. The trick here is getting it safely into the dish without ending up with a large heap of cooked egg on one side... and without pushing all your veg into one spot of your soon-t0-be frittata.

7. You can use your fingers or a fork or the spatula to push things around as needed. Before transferring to the oven, sprinkle in your goat cheese and make sure everything is under the surface of the runny eggy-ness.

8. Bake at 350º for 20-25 minutes. You'll know it's ready when it starts to brown on top. You want it to look slightly golden and no longer runny.

9. You may want to let it cool just a bit before cutting in. Leftovers can be kept in the fridge for several days and make an excellent lunch with a small side salad.

One of the best things about this dish is you can change up the ingredients you add in to your heart's content. I've had success with veggie sausage, a blend of mixed farmer's market tomatoes, zucchini, and all sorts of cheese.

A: Acorn Squash with Maple, Rosemary and Sage

I was never a big squash fan. Which is sort of funny for someone who grew up in the Midwest because, let's face it, the weather here (particularly in the northern part of the state) requires you get used to root vegetables, leafy greens, and LOTS of squash.

It was not until we lived in Carbondale, Illinois that I finally came across a recipe that piqued my interest enough to give the acorn squash a try. It was November, and I was finishing up a shopping trip at the Schnucks near our house. I saw one of those in-store recipe magazine things aimed at Thanksgiving pre-planners and decided I had to have it. And there I found what looked like an undeniably fabulous recipe utilizing the funny-shaped squash with undulating skin I had previously overlooked.

I made a few tweaks to adapt the recipe to our palettes and favorite tastes, and it has now become a staple side dish in our house—one for the guests, as it were. Although our daughter is not quite a convert yet, she has been up for trying it every time I make it, and I think it's fair to say the sweet taste of the dish has nearly won her over.

(What I have found, however, is that she is nuts for the seeds... which I always save and roast; she and my husband typically have them completely consumed within 2 days.)

Acorn Squash with Maple, Rosemary and Sage

Ingredients
Acorn squash (one squash serves 2 people)
Rosemary (to taste)
Sage (to taste)
2 tbsp butter per squash
1/2 c to 1 c maple syrup per squash

Directions
1. Halve the squash. This can be tricky if, like me, you've got weak wrists or hate the idea of ferociously wiggling a sharp knife around inches from your sternum. I have been known to ask my husband to do this part for me; however, I recently tried his technique with a butternut squash and feel more confident I can do the heavy cutting from now on. Here's what I recommend:

Take a very sharp (perhaps very large) knife and stab it into the squash with the tip (blade facing away from you). Push down on the blade so the point of the knife meets the cutting board and then push the knife away from you, using the entire blade to cut the squash. When you reach a point of too much resistance, flip it over and repeat the same thing, cutting away from you so that you are creating a circle through the squash (like cutting a bagel in half). Once you've cut a circle all the way around the squash from one side to the other of the stem, pry apart with your hands (much easier than trying to cut the stem itself!).

2. Place the halves into an oven-safe dish. (You may also want it to be microwave safe, as sometimes a little final zap helps to ensure done-ness. More on that later.)

3. Place one tbsp of butter into each squash half. (You can cheat more or less, depending on your tastes and caloric goals.)

4. Sprinkle generously with dried rosemary and sage (I highly recommend the cracked rosemary from The Spice House should you be in the vicinity - amazing). My guess is, I generally do at least 1 tsp of the rosemary and 1/2 tsp of sage per half.

5. Fill each well of the acorn halves with anywhere from 1/4 c to 1/2 c maple syrup. I like to fill the whole thing up until there is roughly 1/4 inch of space left between the top of the acorn squash and the maple syrup... but this may seem like ridiculous excess to you. Fill at your discretion, but I'd warn against going any lower than 1/4 c per half.

6. Bake at 350° for one hour (increase the time or the temp slightly if you are cooking more than one squash). To test done-ness, prick with a fork. The squash should be very tender.

7. The quicky-caveat: If you are timing this all out with other parts of your dinner and you test the squash to find - upsettingly - that it is not done, you can always finish it off in the microwave. Zap it and check it in 3 minute increments until it has the consistency (and tenderness) you wish.

Things You Should Know...

Hello and welcome to The Alphabet Eatery. I thought I might start with a few insights into how I cook, where this all started, and how you can best navigate this site for your needs. I hope you enjoy yourself while you're here!

Culinary Skills
Okay. First things first. My culinary skills are, let’s just say, minimal. Perhaps average to above-average is more fair. I have never considered myself a cook, though I do love food, but I have made an effort in the last 10 years or so to become more comfortable in the kitchen. I’ve always admired women who seem to have that innate ability to scan a recipe, make a few tweaks, and then magically throw something together without ever lifting a measuring spoon or googling substitution tables – with results that make the taster’s eyes roll back in their heads.

With a bit of practice, confidence, and (probably most importantly) the avoidance of my inner critic when cooking… I now have joined the ranks of non-measurers. I read recipes or see something new on TV and immediately think about how I might want to adapt it to fit with my family’s lifestyle, eating habits, and budget.

This does not mean I make people swoon… but I do have a few really good things I’ve settled on and added to my repertoire. This project, in part, not only is about sharing past successes, but also adding a few more gems to the stockpile.

Because I do not measure, I have tried to approximate amounts for many of the recipes here. Cooking is much more a feeling vs. thinking process for me (for any of you Myers-Briggs fans out there), and so I tend to gut-instinct my way through certain culinary experiments. I also am a firm believer in adapting food to fit your tastes and also how your body wants to eat. So please feel free to use anything in here as a jumping off point from which you can shape a dish perfectly befitting your needs. Goodness knows I do.

Ingredients
About four years ago, my husband and I decided to change the way we were eating. We had both grown up in families for whom meat was usually the centerpiece of each meal, and we’d consumed (and indeed nostalgically loved) a plethora of pre-packaged and sugar-laden items.

We were the generation of Kool-Aid and Kraft Mac-n-Cheese… of Hostess Twinkies and Jolt Cola. We ate, and subsequently cooked with, nothing other than processed flour and refined, white sugar. But as we made the decision to create and raise a child, we simultaneously decided we wanted to provide a different experience of food and eating for her. And we wanted to improve our relationship to food in order to live healthier and longer lives.

As Michael Pollan began talking about sustainable, local eating and the virtues of real food, I discovered Heidi Swanson and Terry Walters… both of whom inspired me to rethink my buying, cooking, and eating habits in favor of more natural, whole food, and organic options. Then along came Jamie Oliver and his Food Revolution – and I am now inspired to tackle this ongoing process of change in a way that will connect me to others who face the same issues and share the same goals.

What this all means, where the recipes are concerned, is that the very basics of most cooking (flour, sugar, salt) actually can be translated – each time – as whole wheat flour, raw turbinado sugar, and sea salt. Olive oil is always extra virgin olive oil.

If I stray from those basics, I will be sure to be more specific. And if you wish to use regular flour, white sugar, and iodized salt as you try something out – by all means, feel free. Just remember the taste will be slightly different, because each of those items brings a somewhat altered flavor to the dish.

Local and Organic
Eating organic food has been a slow and steady transition for us. We do not always buy organic, and I am still learning the difference between foods for which buying organic is tantamount, versus the ones for which is it less important. This is important when you’re cooking on a budget.

Lately, I’ve made it a goal to go organic as much as possible, including items that may be canned or jarred. Which is another important point to make: I still, on occasion, use packaged, pre-prepped, canned, or jarred items. Given our schedules and the quick turnaround required for most meals, it’s what makes the most sense for us. If you’re able to go wholly natural or wholly organic/wholly local… that’s fantastic! It’s a goal for us… but one that is not always met.

As we become more familiar with buying locally (sometimes a challenge in more northern climates!), CSAs, and utilizing our local Farmer’s Market, I will pass along any useful information I can. We are still learning! And if you have tips or nuggets of wisdom to share… please, please do.

The more we approach healthy eating as a community effort and shared responsibility, the better off we'll all be.

The Alphabet
Ah… last, but not least, a word or two about the central concept of this blog and how content is arranged. This project was originally borne of a desire to help my daughter learn her letter names and sounds in a tangible, tactile, and fun way. Meanwhile, I wanted to expand her palette (and ours) – particularly in the realm of fruits and vegetables. And so it seemed a simple and effective marriage: Hunt down foods that begin with various letters of the alphabet and find ways to tie our meal into her learning process.

I started with foods with which my husband and I were familiar, but that she may not have yet tried. And I also tried to incorporate foods with the star ingredient I knew she already liked. The intended learning aspect of each meal was to involve something that would help her learn and practice her letter sounds. For example, asking her what letters we ate on a given night or making a little craft or art project centered around the featured letter and its companion food(s).

I am sad to admit this aspect of the project has been the least successfully realized, as I tend to be in such a rush to cook dinner, make dinner, and then do all our after-dinner tasks that our letter-focus tends to fall by the wayside. It's still my intention to tie letters back into the meal in some form... particularly because I want our daughter to appreciate and understand the stunning variety of vegetables available to her. And if she becomes more confident with her letter names and sounds as a result, then it's a double-win!

Although the alphabet is my muse and catalyst for each meal, I do not post recipes in letter order, as not everything is available at the same time, nor is it very feasible for us to eat based along alphabetic direction. However, I have tagged every meal with any letters that are represented, and you can search recipes by food item or letter, depending on your needs and interests.