Week 3: Cook More at Home
I almost passed on this week’s Healthy Every Week Challenge from the Food Network since I already cook almost all of my meals at home (unless of course I’m traveling). I love to experiment in the kitchen and try out new recipes, and cooking at home means I’m sure my meals are fresh, flavourful, satisfying and reasonably healthy. Instead of skipping Week 3 entirely, I decided to personalize it a bit by challenging myself to cook more of my pantry basics at home.
First up, I made a big pot of homemade chicken stock. I wasn’t entirely convinced of the value of a good homemade stock until I tried a little test. I made risotto twice this week, once with a store-bought chicken broth (Knorr Homestyle Stock) and then again with my homemade stock. What a huge difference! The risotto made with the store-bought chicken broth tasted way too salty, even though I didn’t add any salt to it at all.
Next, I cooked up a batch of Chipotle and Rosemary Roasted Nuts to snack on instead of store-bought granola bars. Trust me. The difference between these two is like the difference between flying first class and flying coach.
Last but not least, I made a jar of oven-roasted cherry tomatoes. These little beauties just burst with sweetness! They add great flavour to pasta dishes, pizza, salads or anywhere you would normally use sun-dried tomatoes.
Slow~Roasted Cherry Bombs
Makes about one cup- 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
- 2 garlic cloves
- fresh herbs of your choice (thyme, rosemary, oregano)
- olive oil
- sea salt
- fresh ground pepper
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Wash the tomatoes, slice them in half, then pile them on the baking sheet. Chop garlic and scatter over the tomatoes. Tuck in a few sprigs of fresh herbs. Drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Toss everything together to coat, then spread the tomatoes out so they aren’t touching either.
Bake in a slow oven at 250°F until the tomatoes pucker up and the garlic caramelizes, about 3 hours.
Once the tomatoes have cooled, discard the herbs and pack the tomatoes and garlic into a clean jar. Cover and keep in the refrigerator.
I’m glad I didn’t skip this week’s challenge. Making some of my pantry basics was worth the effort and I plan on doing more of it. Next up…homemade tomato sauce and pesto!
I am so hungry now
I was hungry all afternoon while these were roasting in the oven. The smell from the caramelized garlic, tomatoes and herbs was just fantastic!
Wow. I wanna try these!
They’re super easy to make…
Delicioso!
They are indeed! And I keep finding more ways to use them. Yesterday I chopped up a few and added them to some mayonnaise, along with a little lemon juice, chopped basil, salt and pepper to make a delicious roasted tomato aioli. Yum!
I get hungry!
Oh good. That’s the effect I’m aiming for
Thanks for taking the time to stop by.
OMG – they look awesome!!! Looks like a great gift for someone who likes to cook too!!!
Thanks Anita! Cooking them low and slow like that really intensifies their sweetness. Have a great day!
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These really look tasty!
Laura…I wanted to let you know I nominated you for the Kreativ Blogger Award. Congrats! http://jayjaysfavorites.wordpress.com Come to my page and see….
Thank you so much Judy! It’s so kind of you to nominate me! It really is an honour…especially coming from you. Congratulations to you as well on your numerous awards!
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Laura, I love these tomato photos. I was at the beach for a couple of days this week, staying in a friend’s house, and found the DVD of Julie and Julia on the coffee table, so I watched it and thought of you. It was interesting to see that Julie didn’t include food photos in her blog, only anecdotes about her culinary adventures. We saw the food being prepared in the film, but readers of the blog had to imagine it. Your blog has great photos that tempt me to try making things like slow-roasted cherry bombs. Thanks for the cooking and the photography of it.
Lucky girl spending time at the beach while we are mucking through the snow and slush
That’s a great observation about the lack of photos in Julie’s blog and something I had never really given much thought to before. I suppose digital cameras were less popular and more expensive back in 2002, and we can safely say she wouldn’t have had an iPhone, but still, it makes me curious as to the whole evolution of blogging. I wonder what the norm was ten years ago? Was Julie unique in that respect, or was media absent from most blogs back then? I wonder if she had a blogging platform that was as easy to use as WordPress is today? Whatever the reason, it certainly would have put the emphasis on the bloggers’ writing skills. Perhaps that’s why her blog translated so well into a book/movie.
I’m glad you enjoyed the photos. I really appreciate your thoughtful comments