Potato Salad Bites

These Potato Salad Bites combine my favorite baked potato skins with my beloved potato salad recipe. They are perfect for your picnics or parties. 

Potato salad is one of my favorite things to make for a picnic because it goes so great with fried chicken and/or sandwiches but then you need utensils and plates or bowls to serve it which unnecessarily complicates a simple picnic. 

When the leader of our Baking Blogger group announced the theme of this month’s challenge, bite-size baking, I put my thinking cap on to solve that problem. Not that we've been enjoying many picnics since it's still pretty chilly but I do like to plan ahead. 

So here you go, finally, potato salad that’s finger food! I hope you enjoy them as much as we did. I put some in a single layer in a plastic container to bring them to my Mom and I hope you'll be as pleased as I was to know that they arrived in perfect form. 

Potato Salad Bites

I used baby red potatoes but you can use whichever small potatoes are available to you. As you can see, mine fit in my deviled egg plate so that gives you an idea of their size. 

Ingredients

For the potato salad:

1 lb 7 oz or 652g small red potatoes (about 10-11)

1 tablespoon olive oil

Fine sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 eggs, hardboiled

1/4 small Spanish onion 

1/4 cup or 60ml mayonnaise

1/4 cup or 60ml sour cream

2 teaspoons whole grain mustard

For garnish: 

green onion tops

sprinkle of paprika or cayenne

Method

Preheat your oven to 375°F or 190°C. Place the potatoes in a small baking pan and drizzle them with olive oil. Shake them around to coat them with the oil. 

Bake for about 30 minutes or until they are cooked through. I stabbed mine with a pointy knife all the way to the middle to check.

Remove the potatoes from oven, and cool 15 minutes on a wire rack. Don’t turn the oven off but do lower the temperature to 350°F or 180°C.

Meanwhile, finely grate the onion into a mixing bowl. I used a microplane so the onion is super fine. If you don't mind little onion bits in your salad, feel free to use a grater with larger holes. Cut the two hard-boiled eggs into slices into the bowl.

Use the tines of a dinner fork to mash them into smaller bits.

Add in the mayonnaise, sour cream and mustard, as well as a couple of generous grinds of black pepper. Mix well. Set aside.

As soon as the potatoes are cool enough to handle (Despite photos to the contrary, I held mine in a clean towel.) cut each potato in half crosswise. Carefully scoop out the insides of the potatoes, leaving a skin shell about 1/4 in or 1/2 cm thick. Try to keep the scooped potato pieces as large as possible so they don’t turn into mashed potato when we make the potato salad with them. 

Place the shells, cut side up, on a baking sheet.  Sprinkle them with salt and freshly ground black pepper.   

Bake in your still hot oven until dry, about 10 more minutes. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.

When the potato innards are cool, add them to your mixing bowl and fold to combine. Again, trying not to mash the potato pieces completely but you can break up any really large pieces. Taste for salt and add more if needed, plus a couple of generous grinds of black pepper.  Depending on the saltiness of your mayo and whole grain mustard, you might not need much, if any, salt. 

Spoon or scoop the mixture generously into each potato shell. 

Top with some chopped green onion and a sprinkle of cayenne or paprika for color. I use cayenne because we like spicy but my mom and grandmothers always sprinkled a little paprika on a bowl of potato salad so either is good. Chill the potato salad bites until you are ready to serve them.  

Enjoy! 

It's Baking Blogger Monday and we are sharing bite-sized food, which is super fun! Many thanks to our organizer and host, Sue of Palatable Pastime. Check out the link list below. 

• Baked Tater Tots from Magical Ingredients
• Breakfast Toast Cups from Making Miracles
• Chocolate Bouchons from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Eggless Pineapple Cupcakes from Sneha's Recipe
• Hertzoggies (South African Jam and Coconut Tartlets) from Tara's Multicultural Table
• Honey-Kissed Savory Shortbread Crackers from Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Muffin Pizzas from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Pizza Bombs from Palatable Pastime
• Potato Salad Bites from Food Lust People Love
• Prickly Pear Tartlets from Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Baking Bloggers is a friendly group of food bloggers who vote on a shared theme and then post recipes to fit that theme one the second Monday of each month. If you are a food blogger interested in joining in, inquire at our Baking Bloggers Facebook group. We'd be honored if you would join us in our baking adventures.

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Black Pepper Beef with Broccoli and Noodles

A one-pot Chinese style dish, Black Pepper Beef with Broccoli and Noodles would be a delicious (and thrifty) addition to your Chinese New Year celebration menu.

Black pepper beef with broccoli and noodles is a combination of two delicious dishes: a black pepper beef recipe I learned about in Malaysia and the ubiquitous beef and broccoli found on every Chinese restaurant menu in the United States. Plus, to make this a full meal dish, I’ve added fresh egg noodles. With this recipe, just a pound or so of lean beef can feed a family of four a healthy, tasty meal.

If you’ve ever read my About Me page, you know that I’ve lived in quite a few cities and in almost as many countries. As we move on to the next place, there are always local dishes that we’ve grown to love, no longer available to us in our new home city. In the homesickness of the first months, I cook the food we miss from the place we miss. And those recipes become part of our family repertoire forever.

When we lived in Kuala Lumpur, we frequented a Chinese restaurant call Mei Keng Fatt. We had a standard order that always included black pepper beef. It’s a simple dish with almost equal amounts of beef, onions and bell pepper.

Mei Keng Fatt also added some crispy deep fried things that we never quite figured out. Were they tofu? Sliced lotus root? Who knew? They were divine eaten while they were still crunchy so their arrival at the table started a flurry of chopsticks nabbing them quickly. Soon the black pepper beef plate was but a plate of bell pepper, nobody’s favorite part of the dish.

When I started making black pepper beef at home, it was never as a part of a greater Chinese dinner. As much as I love eating out and having so many dishes to choose from and share, it was just not practical for our busy family home.

I began adding broccoli (and leaving out the bell pepper) to stretch that lean beef dish into a full meal. Often I’d serve it with steamed rice but fresh egg noodles, if you are fortunate enough to have a store nearby that stocks them, are a fabulous addition, making this a one-pot meal. If you don't have access to fresh egg noodles, use the Chinese-style dried ones or even normal linguine. I've substituted both of those successfully in this dish. 

Black Pepper Beef with Broccoli and Noodles

You can crush all of the peppercorns together, for the marinade and for finishing the dish with a mortar and pestle. Use 3/4 of it in the marinade and reserve the balance for sprinkling on the cooked dish. Don’t grind the peppercorns just crush them so they are coarse grain. 

Ingredients

For the marinade:

1 1/2 teaspoons or 6 grams whole black peppercorns, crushed

2 tablespoons oyster sauce

1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine (or substitute dry sherry)

2 teaspoons cornstarch

2 teaspoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons sesame oil

For the sauce:

2 tablespoons oyster sauce

1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine (or again, substitute dry sherry)

2 teaspoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons sesame oil

For the black pepper beef with broccoli and noodles:

1.1 lbs or 500g tenderloin or sirloin, cut into strips (like for stroganoff)

14 oz or 400g fresh yellow egg noodles

1 1/2 tablespoons canola or other light oil

2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1/2 onion, peeled and cut into 1/4" wedges

1 small knob fresh ginger, peeled and minced

1 lb or 450g broccoli florets 

1 carrot, peeled and cut in matchsticks 

To garnish:

Green onions, chopped

1/2 teaspoon or 2g whole black peppercorns, crushed

Food Lust People Love: A one-pot Chinese style dish, Black Pepper Beef with Broccoli and Noodles would be a delicious (and thrifty) addition to your Chinese New Year celebration menu.

Add all of your marinade ingredients into a bowl with the beef. Stir well to mix and coat the beef. Set aside to marinate for at least 15 minutes. I usually do this step first, then prep the other ingredients, so the beef marinates for at least 30 minutes.

 

Mix your sauce ingredients together in another small bowl and set aside. 

Cook the egg noodles according to package instructions being careful not the cut or break them. According to Chinese superstition, the longer the noodles you eat are, the longer the lifespan you will enjoy. Drain and rinse with cold water until they are cool and all the excess starch is removed. Set aside in the colander to drain. 

Heat a wok or cast iron skillet over high heat until hot. Add the oil, and then immediately add the beef. Quickly spread the beef out so it is in a single layer. Leave to cook on high until the pieces start to brown and caramelize on the bottom, about 5 minutes. Do not stir or move the beef until it’s well browned. 

Add the garlic, ginger, onions, and stir-fry for a minute or two. 

Add the broccoli and continue stir-frying. Keeping stirring and cooking until the broccoli has almost reached your desired tenderness. We like it pretty crunchy. If you need to drizzle in a little water, do so. 

Add in the cooled noodles and tip the sauce on top. 

Use two stirring implements and a gentle tossing motion (like tossing salad) to mix the noodles and sauce thoroughly into the broccoli and beef. 

Cook for just a minute or two, until the noodles are warmed through then mix in the matchstick carrots. 

Remove from the heat and sprinkle with the remaining crushed black pepper. Garnish with chopped green onions. 

This dish is best served immediately but I have also been known to eat leftovers, warmed gently in the microwave the next day. Still delicious. 

Enjoy! 

It's Sunday FunDay again and my fellow bloggers are sharing recipes to celebrate Chinese aka Lunar New Year. Check out the links below. Many thanks to our host, Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm. 

• Black Pepper Beef and Broccoli with Noodles by Food Lust People Love 
• Chinese New Year Skillet by Making Miracles 
• Easy Chicken Egg Rolls by A Day in the Life on the Farm 
• Lion's Head Meatballs by Amy's Cooking Adventures
• Lucky Duck, Gold Bars, and Longevity Noodles by Culinary Adventures with Camilla 
• Mongolian Lamb by Palatable Pastime
• Pan Fried Crispy Tofu Bowl by Cook with Renu
• Steak Fingers With Steamed Rice by Sneha's Recipe 
• Sticky Asian Baked Wings with Honey by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Stir-fried Clams in Bean Sauce by Karen's Kitchen Stories

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

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Garlicky Artichoke Pasta

Toss a popular tapas dish, alcachofas al ajillo, with linguine to make delicious garlicky artichoke pasta, a quick and easy weeknight meal. 

Alcachofas al Ajillo or garlicky artichokes are a traditional tapas dish from Spain made with fresh, frozen or canned artichokes, lots of garlic and chili pepper. I like to add in some small tomatoes as well, for flavor and color. 

This is normally served with drinks as part of an appetizer course but it is so simple to make and so flavorful that we love to eat it with pasta to sop up the lovely garlicky buttery sauces. 

Garlicky Artichoke Pasta

This recipe serves two as a main dish. It is also easily doubled or trebled to feed more. If you scale up, don’t skimp on the garlic. That’s what makes this dish so good!

Ingredients

1 can (drained weight 5.8 oz or 165g) small artichoke hearts

1/4 cup or 60ml virgin olive oil

1 rounded tablespoon butter

8 large cloves garlic

10 grape or cherry tomatoes

1 small red chili pepper

Fine sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper 

Few sprigs fresh parsley, hard stems removed, roughly chopped

7 oz or 200g pasta, cooked to manufacturer’s instructions

Optional to serve: Freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Method

Drain the artichokes well and rest them open side down in a strainer or on some paper towels so they can dry even more. 

Finely mince the cloves of garlic and cut the tomatoes in half.

Split the chili pepper down the middle but leave it in one piece. This is purely aesthetic because I like the look of a whole split chili pepper. Feel free to chop it if you prefer. The seeds can be removed to lessen the spiciness of the dish. Finely chop the parsley. 

Heat half of the olive oil along with the butter in a large non-stick skillet over a medium high flame.  Tip in the well-drained artichoke hearts. Cook for about 6-7 minutes on one side, until they are turning golden in places. Turn them gently so the artichokes can color on both sides. 

Add in the chopped garlic, tomatoes, the chili pepper and the rest of the olive oil. Lower the flame to medium and cook the garlic until softened, making sure to stir often to keep it from burning. 

When the garlic is starting to color slightly and the tomatoes have wrinkled, turn the heat off. Sprinkle the top with salt and a few good grinds of black pepper and stir again. Stir in the chopped parsley. 

Add the hot, cooked pasta to the pan and toss well to mix the garlicky artichokes with the pasta. In the spirit of tapas, serve with a cold beer or your favorite red wine. 

I also like to put out a block of Parmesan and a microplane grater and let everyone add their own cheese. 

Enjoy!

This month my Foodie Extravaganza friends are sharing recipes that start with a can in honor of National Canned Food Month, in some cases many cans! Many thanks to our host, Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm. 

• Baked Beans Curry from Sneha's Recipe
• Chicken Spaghetti from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Garlicky Artichoke Pasta from Food Lust People Love  
• Homemade “Better Than Canned” One-Pot Chili by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Italian Pot Roast from Making Miracles 
• Pulao from Magical Ingredients
• Scalloped Tuna Bake from Palatable Pastime  
• Spam Musubi by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Ragù Bolognese from  Karen's Kitchen Stories 

Foodie Extravaganza is where we celebrate obscure food holidays by cooking and baking together with the same ingredient or theme each month. Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you! If you're a spectator looking for delicious tid-bits check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board.

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Croissants aux Amandes - Almond Croissants

Sweet almond filling and almond syrup transform stale croissants into delicious, more-ish Croissants aux Amandes or Almond Croissants. They are perfect for breakfast or an afternoon snack. 

When we lived in Paris, we were fortunate to have an excellent bakery just up the block from our house. Many an afternoon found us taking a walk not only for exercise and to get out of the house but to pick up supplies for that afternoon meal the French call le goûter.

Le goûter literally translates to "the taste" but it's what the British would probably call afternoon tea and Americans an afterschool snack. It is an institution in France, meant to fill the hunger gap between lunch and the typically late (by American standards, anyway) family dinner. Le goûter was a tradition we heartily endorsed. 

Our bakery displayed a wide variety of baked goods every day but I was puzzled when I realized that almond croissants made a sporadic appearance. Upon inquiry, I was informed that they only made almond croissants when there were stale croissants leftover from the day before. Adding the almond filling and syrup was a way to salvage dry day-old croissants and turn them into a new delicious treat instead of letting them go to waste. Some days it seemed, I arrived too late if the supply had been small. 

Brilliant, right? With the consumer associations carefully monitoring the prices bakeries charge for bread, and competition from all the other many bakeries, I’m guessing margins are tight. According to NPR, there are more than 30,000 independent bakeries in France. All I know is that almond croissants are wonderful and it's a great idea not to waste. Win-win.

Croissants aux Amandes - Almond Croissants 

I used all-butter croissants bought at my nearby supermarket bakery department for this recipe. Mine were several days old but I kept them in the refrigerator from when they were purchased until I was ready to make them in to almond croissants. 

Ingredients

6 croissants, preferably day-old

6 tablespoons sliced almonds

For the almond paste aka frangipane:

3/4 cup or 75g almond flour (also called almond meal or ground almonds)

1/3 cup or 66g granulated sugar

1 large egg, at room temperature

1/4 cup or 57g unsalted butter, at room temperature

A few drops pure almond extract

Pinch fine sea salt

For the sugar syrup:

1/2 cup or 120ml water

1/4 cup or 50g granulated sugar

2 tablespoons amaretto (or substitute a drop or two of almond extract)

For serving:

Powdered sugar

Method

To make the almond paste or frangipane, beat together the almond flour, sugar, egg, butter, almond extract and salt in a mixing bowl until well combined, scraping the sides of the bowl down occasionally. Keep beating until the paste is light and fluffy, another minute or two. 

Preheat your oven to 375°F or 190°C and prepare a large baking pan by lining it with parchment paper or a silicone liner.

To make the syrup, measure your water into a microwaveable vessel and add in the sugar. Heat for 1 minute. Remove from the microwave and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. You can also do this step in a small pot on the stovetop. Stir in the amaretto or almond extract. 

Use a serrated knife to cut each croissant open horizontally, like a book, leaving one side uncut. 

Use a pastry brush to liberally and generously soak the insides of the croissants with the syrup. 

Put 2 tablespoons of the almond paste on one side of each croissant and spread it out to the very edges.

 

Close the croissants and press down gently. Divide the remaining almond paste between the croissants and spread it around to cover the tops. 

Sprinkle each croissant with 1 tablespoon of the sliced almonds and press them in slightly so they stick to the almond paste. 

Bake in your preheated oven for about 15 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Turn the pan around halfway through so the almond croissants will brown evenly. 

Let them cool for a few minutes, then sprinkle each filled almond croissant with powdered sugar.

Enjoy!

This Sunday FunDay we are sharing recipes for making croissants and recipes made with croissants because yesterday was National Croissant Day. Many thanks to our host, Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla. Check out the links below: 

• Bean and Chicken Cassoulet by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Cheesy Sausage and Croissant Casserole by Making Miracles
• Chocolate Croissants (Pain au Chocolate) by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Croissants aux Amandes (Almond Croissants) by Food Lust People Love
• Homemade Crescent Rolls by Amy's Cooking Adventures
• Mardi Gras Cream Cheese King Cake Croissants by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Sourdough Croissants by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Yeasted Croissant by Sneha's Recipe

We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.

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Almond Croissants!

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Maple Banana Cornbread Muffins #MuffinMonday

Sweet ripe bananas and maple syrup replace the sugar in these wonderful maple banana cornbread muffins. They make a fabulous breakfast or snack on the go!

The day before yesterday - Saturday - was my birthday so I asked my mom if she wanted to sleep over. She doesn’t like driving after dark so spending the night meant she could enjoy my birthday dinner with us. I seared some scallops and served them with garlicky greens and pasta along with a tomato mozzarella salad. It was all so good!

Yesterday morning I baked these muffins for breakfast and brought them up to Mom on a tray with coffee. Though not a big eater, she ate two! Then my daughter said, “Don’t give all the muffins to Grammy when she goes home. I like them!” With my final taste-tester husband chiming in that he likes them too, I’m calling this recipe a winner. 

And just for the record, I like them also. I’m not a big sweet eater but the maple syrup and banana make these just the right amount of sweet for me. 

Maple Banana Cornbread Muffins

This recipe was adapted from one on Pam’s Daily Dish for a cornbread loaf. I used the last of my small golden bananas for the muffins, the ones I discussed in my peanut butter banana waffle post. 

Ingredients 

3/4 cup or 94g flour

1 cup or 165g cornmeal (yellow or white)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

2 medium ripe bananas (about 6 1/2 oz or 185g, peeled)

1/2 cup or 120ml maple syrup

1/3 cup or 80ml milk 

2 tablespoons canola or other light oil, plus more for the pan

1 large egg

Method

Preheat oven to 375°F or 190°C. Prepare your 12-cup muffin pan by lining it with paper muffin cups or greasing with a little oil or butter. I used a little canola oil and a pastry brush. 

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

In another mixing bowl, mash the bananas and then add the maple syrup, milk, oil and egg.  Whisk to combine. 

Pour the wet ingredients in to the dry ingredients bowl. Fold until just combined. 

Divide the batter between the muffin cups in your prepared pan. Bake for about 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

Cool on a wire rack for five minutes then remove the muffins from the pan. 

Serve warm, plain or with butter. 

My mom always needs extra butter but you do you.

Enjoy! 

It's the last Monday of the month so that means it's Muffin Monday! For some reason, corn seems to be featured this month. It wasn't planned! Check out all the great muffin recipes we have for you today, both sweet and savory. 

• Bacon Cheddar Muffins from Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Coconut Cornbread Muffins from Passion Kneaded
• Cornmeal Cheese Bomb Muffins from Magical Ingredients
• Honey Cornbread Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Lemon Pound Cake Muffins from Jolene's Recipe Journal
• Maple Banana Cornbread Muffins from Food Lust People Love
• Onion Crunch Corn Muffins from Palatable Pastime
• Pineapple Coconut Muffins from Zesty South Indian Kitchen
• Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins from Making Miracles

 

 #MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all of our lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday can be found on our home page.

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