Stir Fried Rice Vermicelli with Garlic and Scallions

I have to confess, I cart dry goods around with me that can be more than 1 year old (and sometimes a lot more than 1 year old!) But they are dried goods, and I think that they probably are still edible, I just need to do something with them! This phenomenon has been particularly problematic in the past couple of years when I have had much of my belongings in a storage unit. So now that I have moved into my own place and all said storage unit items are now being unpacked, it is time to cook up my warehouse of dried goods!

Vermicelli Rice noodles definitely fell into this category and in the quest to find a fun and easy recipe (kitchen is still in an unpacked stage) I found this recipe. Super simple and really delicious! I did not have red onions but tons of scallions so that substitution was made. In the time it takes to chop the garlic, ginger and onions the rice noodles soak and then cooking taking no time at all.

Sauteed Swiss Chard with Cumin and Paprika

I cook and eat greens several times a week, and mostly they are simply sauteed in garlic and olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper. Yum! But sometimes a girl wants a little excitement in her life, so she trolls the food blogs until she finds something like this recipe. Not too much work but oh so exciting!

The original recipe used kale and an herb paste with zingy spices like cumin and paprika to disguise the bitterness of kale. While I am a huge kale fan, I am not as high on Swiss Chard so I thought I would use this technique on some green chard waiting patiently to be used. Fantastic!

Chipotle Corn Chowder

While most of the northern hemisphere is still praying for spring to arrive soon (very soon if you're still seeing white!) all of those smug cooks who froze sweet corn last summer can make this delicious chowder and pretend they have fast forwarded to the end of August!

In preparation for moving house I took a hard look at my freezer hoard to see how I could thin its ranks. Frozen sweet corn plus homemade corn stock made this soup an easy choice. While I grew up on New England Style chowders, heavy with cream and savory herbs, I decided to honor my new home - Santa Monica - and added some chipotle creaminess instead. Delicious!

Cranberry Relish with Blood Orange Juice

Yes, I know, Thanksgiving is long gone and cranberries are out of season. However, blood oranges ARE in season and when I was cleaning out the freezer I found a bag of cranberries tucked away in the corner. Eureka! Cranberries with blood orange juice was born.

My personal favorite cranberry relish for Thanksgiving is the fairly straight forward and traditional pairing of orange juice and zest with cranberries. Substituting blood oranges would simply add a bit of citrusy tartness. It was lovely!

Carpaccio of Blood Orange with Green Olives

It is blood orange season and you have to get them while the getting is good because when they are gone, that's all she wrote folks! Originally from Sicily, these tart and yes bloody looking citrus are so worth the extra bucks.

Unlike other oranges, these are not the kind you peel and eat - their peels are so thin that it is really hard to eat them in that manner.  So, juice them for an amazing margarita or make this easy side dish or hors d'oeuvres. Do not stray from the recipe since it is key, and just a few quality ingredients makes all the difference.

Homemade Vanilla Extract - Fresh Whipped Cream

Do you know how simple it is to make homemade vanilla extract? It is almost ridiculous, because it takes two ingredients and nearly no effort. Cut three dried but supple vanilla beans in half like a hinge and soak in your desired alcohol - vodka, rum - and in 8 weeks, voila, you have home brewed vanilla extract.

And let me tell you, nothing smells as good as this homebrewed extract! It's richness is unbelievable! You will want to add it to everything. And the best part, is that it is renewable. As you use a teaspoon here (in fresh whipped cream) and a tablespoon there (in homemade granola) you simple top off the jar with more of the alcohol and it will continue to renew for years!