Banana bread... again?

I LOVE BANANA BREAD. I am sure I posted this already but I couldn't find my own recipe for it, so here's the brilliant one I used: http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/banana_bread/

Faux Paella

Done with didactic medical education. Onto the Socratic Method after the board exam this June. Made a faux paella to celebrate, out of wild rice, chicken, mushrooms, onions, white wine, and American saffron. Something was missing; perhaps the fact that I didn't use real saffron (which is more expensive), or the wrong rice, or... lack of sausage? Who knows. I don't mind eating it for the next three days though. Hurray!

i don't even know what's in this but i'm eating it

so. tired. in this: whole wheat pasta, free range chicken, frozen cilantro, roasted beets with dill, and artichoke hearts out of a can. approximately. no measurements. just do it. school, and my hemoglobin count, is kicking my ass.

Flaxen Strawbanana Smoothie

Shake shake shake! I'm all about the hand puree gadget these days. Pictured above: 6 strawberries, 1 whole banana, a cup of milk, a few dollops of vanilla yogurt, and ground flax seed. Yields 2 or 3 cups, or enough for a light lunch and dinner dessert.

Borscht (beet soup)

Modified DD's recipe, and drew it through the fandangled hand puree-er toy. Prep time: 20 minutes; stewing time: 30 minutes. Above, pictured with couscous/parsley, and the last of AB's venison.

Roasted Chicken with Zucchini

New favorite cooking method: throw drumsticks, chunks of veggies, and herbs in a dish, and bake.

That's it. 5 drumsticks, thick zucchini halves, julienne onions, parsley, herbs --- drizzle with salt, pepper, olive oil, white wine, and vinegar in liberal, non-measured proportions - 45 minutes under 375 degrees covered with foil --- and done.

Salted Fudge Brownies

Mmmm salty and sweet. Followed this recipe from food and wine mag. Except I have to admit that I put a smidge less salt in than written because I was a little wary at first. But after tasting, I actually wish I had put MORE than what was in the recipe! I ended up sprinkling some more sea salt on top of the brownie to really get that salty sweet yumminess. Definitely a dense fudgy brownie, just the way I like 'em!

Spinach Pesto on Whole Wheat Pasta

Tried out the whole wheat pasta at the Coop last night/this afternoon. It keeps surprisingly well in the fridge with a bit of oil, and I topped it with a homemade pesto. This hand-held puree thing (for soups, tampenades, etc) has changed my life.

DIY Vanilla Extract

4/1/10
UPDATE: Finally got around to getting the supplies to make this. Here she is, a week later. 1 madagascar bean, sliced lengthwise, in 1 cup of unflavored vodka.

1/3/10
I am cheap. So when I found out that vanilla extract was nothing more than vanilla beans soaked in vodka for 3+ months, I had to try it. It's gonna be a long wait for this photo op. Check the Italian Dish's post on the subject til then.

DIY Chocolate Truffles

Geektacular MIT students explain how to make chocolate truffles --- going into excessive, painstakingly researched detail on the 6 crystalline states of chocolate. Horribly sinful and awesome to watch. Click anywhere below to play, via howtoheroes.com.