Food Matters Project #32: Cardamom & Pistachio Pear Crisp

And we’re back with another installment of the Food Matters Project!  This past week, on February 1st, this little project celebrate it’s 1 year anniversary!  I’m really glad that I have been involved in these weekly posts- it’s given me an opportunity to think a little outside of the box, and encourage me to try different recipes.  Most of all, it’s been a wonderful opportunity to connect with other bloggers who enjoy a great cookbook!  Thanks to all those that participate, and all the readers at home!

This weeks recipe was chosen by Camilla, of Culinary Adventures with Camilla.  She chose Mark Bittman’s recipe for Cardamom-Scented Pear Crisp, from the Food Matters Cookbook.  Check out Camillas post on her Cranberry & Pear Cardamom-Scented Crisp.  Also, take a peak what other bloggers did with this recipe.

Camilla has also hosted these Food Matters Project dishes: Wheat Berries with Braised Beef & Parsnips, Fish Nuggets Braised in Rhubarb Sauce.  While we were still on our honeymoon during one of those recipes, here’s the fish version of our dish: Cod in Spicy Rhubarb Sauce.

Whenever I go to the grocery store and see that a bag of pistachio’s is “buy 1, get 1 free”- I always grab a bag (or two).  They are a versatile nut that can be used in many baked goods, or they’re a perfect mid-day snack.  How do you use or eat your pistachio’s?

This was a great dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  This dish was delicious since it was not overly sweet, a perfect pairing with tea in the morning.  Sam and I finished it off as breakfast leftovers with some honey-flavored Greek yogurt.

Cardamom & Pistachio Pear Crisp
Adapted from: The Food Matters Cookbook (pg 568)

4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup chopped unsalted pistachios
juice of 1 lemon
1 cup oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
pinch of salt
2 pears, cored & sliced
1 tsp cardamom

In a large bowl with a mixer, cream together butter, oil and sugar.  Then stir in the pistachios, lemon juice, oats, flour and salt.  Mix until the ingredients are combined.

Preheat the oven to 400ºF.  Spray a tart pan with cooking spray, or grease it with butter.

Press the dough into a tart pan, using only 3/4 of the dough.  Next lay out the pear pieces on top of the dough, then sprinkle with cardamom.  Lastly, sprinkle the last of the dough over the pears.

Bake the crisp for 30 minutes, or until the crust starts to brown.  Serve once it cools with a scoop of ice cream.

November 2012 Review

And we’re back with the monthly reviews on Fifth Floor Kitchen!  What photos did I capture on my iPhone this past month?

Interested in past months?  Check them out: May June July August

This was taken on our last day of our honeymoon in Phuket, Thailand.  Check out our posts about it here.

First week back from our honeymoon and we were excited for food from the farmer’s market!  We got: arugula, turnips, a pie pumpkin, apples, pears, sweet potatoes, cheese & eggs from the Penn Quarter Farmer’s Market.

Don’t know what to eat for breakfast?  Check out this post on making Fall Granola– perfect to mix with yogurt or milk!

Sam and I visited our friend Beth in Baltimore.  We loved this place: Abbey Burger Bistro, make your own burger (and it’s got some good beers as well).

While in Baltimore we stopped by the Baltimore Farmer’s Market & Bazaar (check out the post about it here).  Sam pickled the cucumbers, and we enjoyed the spicy cheese & duck eggs.  But the honey butter is the best- have you had honey butter?  If not, you’re missing out!

My friend Alix and I got a chance to see Deb Perelman from Smitten Kitchen!  There were so many people at Politics & Prose to see her!  Checkout her cookbook and blog for some great recipes!

We have 2 cats who have really enjoyed getting wedding gifts.  Well, mostly the boxes that the gifts come in- Van Gogh loves to relax among the bubble wrap and paper!  One of the many gifts was a cookbook- and we tried this Shepherd’s Pie recipe!

Another Penn Quarter Farmer’s Market week!  The goodies were: bok choy, yogurt (to go with Fall Granola), broccoli, cheese, apples, pear and arugula!

Last May, when I attended Eat, Write, Retreat (check out my post about it) I met a lot of wonderful bloggers.  One of them was Olga (blog: Mango & Tomato; Twitter: @MangoTomato), we tried out the new DGS Delicatessen in Dupont Circle for lunch, and I had a delicious Salmon Pastrami Sandwich on a bagel.

As I mentioned, we had a low-key Thanksgiving.  After running the So Others Might Eat Turkey Trot 5K– Sam, myself and his brother went to Hill Country Barbecue for an all-you-can-eat dinner.  As always, Hill Country did not disappoint!  Although my favorite was the green bean casserole- it’s been so long since I’ve had it!

The past week’s Penn Quarter Farmer’s Market finds were: eggs, turnips, cheese, pears, eggs & meat sticks!

Indian Chicken Curry Wrap

My apologies (once again) for not posting as often.  It’s just that busy time of the year- and with the beautiful weather outside, it’s hard to make yourself stay in the kitchen!  Last year at this time we were preparing for our amazing European Adventure (Kraków, Vienna and Munich), this year we’re getting ready for our wedding!

At times like these I try to find recipes which are really simple and don’t take too much time to prepare.  With the extra time we can sneak in a run, some extra time with friends, or watch our favorite football games!

For this recipe I used leftover chicken, making it a whole new dish with curry flavors.  This is perfect for a lunch or dinner, feel free to add some sides!

Indian Chicken Curry Wrap
Adapted From: Cooking Light (June 2011)

1 1/4 lb coooked chicken, shredded or cubed
5 nectarines, chopped
1 mango, peeled & chopped
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 cup chopped green onions
1 inch ginger, peeled & grated
6 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 tbsp chopped mint
1 jalapeño, chopped (optional)
1 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp chili powder
juice of 1 lime
lettuce or arugula
tortillas or wraps

In a large bowl, combine: chicken, nectarines, mango, red onion, green onions, ginger, garlic, cilantro, mint and jalapeño.

In a smaller bowl, whisk together the greek yogurt, salt, pepper, curry powder, chili powder, and lime juice.  Add the dressing to the chicken mixture.  Then stir everything together.

Add a handful of lettuce or arugula onto a tortilla, then add in the chicken curry mixture.  Roll the tortilla, and enjoy!

July Review

How time flies!  I can’t believe it’s August already!  If you’d like to catch up on monthly reviews, check out May and June!  So what photos did I capture on my iPhone this month?

We buy some fruits and veggies from the Penn Quarter Farmer’s Market every week.  This week we purchased: blueberry yogurt, watermelon, tomatoes, cucumbers, milk and eggs!  Check out the tomato tart and Lebanese salad with pita chips.

New this year is Gordy’s, they make small-batch artisanal pickles!

A fellow DC blogger, Thrifty DC Cook, introduced me to Saigon Cafe in Falls Church.  This was our 2nd visit in a month- the pho was that good!  So if any of my DC friends have a car, and have a craving for pho, I’ll be glad to introduce you to this new find!

Sam and I are always on the lookout for some great new beer.  I found this one at Cowgirl Creamery.  Baba black lager is from Uinta Brewery in Salt Lake City, Utah.  Love the cute label!

Another week of great finds at the Penn Quarter Farmers Market!  This weeks deliciousness was: eggs, green beans, corn, tomatoes and sweet melon.  Check out the tomato tart and fresh corn salsa we made this month!

A friend, and fellow DC blogger, Emily of Em-i-lis held a canning workshop at the Bethesda Strosniders Hardware Store.  If you’d like to learn more about canning she’s teaching another class on August 25th at the Silver Spring location (it’s free, just sign up!).

Sam and I tried out a new pizza place in Columbia Heights- Red Rocks!  The pizza above is the Funghi (fresh mozzarella, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes), the other we tried was the Boar Sausage (smoked mozzarella, wild boar, scallions, grana, parsley).  Both delicious, we’ll definitely be back!

Our friends Brittany and Ben will be having a baby any day now, we’re all so excited!  To celebrate, Stephanie threw a wonderful baby shower!  These were on all of the tables, with some delicious popcorn in them!  How cute is that?!?

I visited my parents for a week in Chicago- great view of a wonderful city!

While I was in Chicago, Sam went to the Penn Quarter Farmers Market.  What did he buy? Eggs, tomatoes, bacon, butter, blackberries, okra, peaches and peppers.  Check out the tomato tart!

While visiting my parents, my Mom showed me how to improve on my pierogi-making techniques!  We made blueberry pierogi’s- and they were delicious!

I attended a workshop at the Common City Good Farm on composting.  I’ve been wanting to learn more about it, and how to start.  Once everything is in place, I hope to do a couple of blog posts about the process.

We spent a couple of hours at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, and it had a great view from one of the terraces.  Definitely a museum all of you should check out while in DC!

More delicious food from the Penn Quarter Farmers Market!  This week we got: eggs, plums, peppers, tomatoes, cheese curds, peaches and peppers.  Check out the tomato tart!

Lastly, Sam and I began our scuba diving certification!  We got some log books to note all of our dives!  Cannot wait for Thailand to explore the underwater!

Goodbye 2011, Hello 2012!

Happy New Year Everyone!  Thank you for all of your support with this blog in the last year, it has been wonderful to document all of our culinary adventures.  We’re looking forward to a delicious 2012!

In the week between Christmas and New Year’s there is a relaxing pace in all of our lives.  People aren’t stressed at work and are enjoying the extra time with family and friends.  We have more time t0 read, sleep and relax.  I always look forward to this quiet time of the year.

In year’s past, Sam and I have gone out to a nice dinner on New Year’s Eve.  This year was similar, but rather than going out, we had two of our friends over for dinner.  While Sam had made the entree (filet mignon, roasted broccoli, shrimp and grits), our friends brought over a cream cheese soup and poached pears with cardamom cream (both were finger licking delicious- I can’t wait to try out both recipes).  It was a peaceful evening: wonderful conversations, mouthwatering food and amazing company!

Everyone has a list of resolutions as a new year begins.  There is something nice about starting with a fresh, new calendar.  Rather than resolutions, I make goals.  I was thinking about the goals I had for this blog, for our kitchen, and I decided to write them out for all of you to see them- then you can hold us accountable!  (these are in no particular order)

1. Make more breads from scratch.  Although we had made some breads (Double Rise Wheat Bread, Dinner Yeast Rolls), I’d like to make them more often, rather than buying.  This includes making bagels from scratch, it’d be a fun weekend project.  Any recommendations on good bread books?

2. Make more pasta from scratch.  Takes times, but it’s well worth it.  Any good recommendations for pasta cookbooks?

3. Try to make some Polish dishes, for example I’d love to make pierogi’s or gołąbki.  I’ve seen my mom make them, and they taste significantly better than store-bought.

4. Have less kitchen waste.  For the most part, I think we’re pretty good, but I would like to have a compost pail.  The problem is that I don’t know where we could drop off our compost (here in DC)- anyone have any ideas?  It’s definitely something I’d like to look into.

5. Take a food photo class.  As we make more recipes, I want them to look as appetizing and gorgeous as they taste!

6.  Try making a yogurt or cheese from scratch.  I’ve seen kits to make various cheeses- has anyone ever tried it?  If so, I’d love to hear recommendations!

7.  Travel more!  I actually make this a goal every single year, but it’s a good one to keep reusing.  What does it have to do with food?  You get to try new dishes, new flavors and enjoy every single bite!  Although it’s only January 1st, we have a couple of trips planned, they are:
a. Boston, MA
b. Charlottesville, VA
c. the Outer Banks (NC)
d. honeymoon (TBD- we’ll keep you updated, but it’ll be someplace warm!)
e. Philadelphia, PA
So if you have any suggestions/recommendations for things to do, places to visit, or foods/restaurants to try, we’d love to hear them!

8.  Grow our readership and community!  Check out our Fifth Floor Kitchen Facebook page!  We hope to do some updates to the blog, which is a day by day learning adventure.  Remember, we’d love to have feedback if you’ve tried a dish, made changes to a recipe, if you have questions or just want to say hello!  The three favorite blog posts from 2011 were: Blueberry-Rhubarb Crumble, Zucchini Enchiladas and Carmel, Pretzel and Nutella Bars (so if you haven’t tried one of these- definitely make them soon)!