Welcome to the first post of the slimmed down Madhu Knits and Cooks - my recipe notes targeted to an audience of one, me. Most of these recipe attempts resulted in fine-but-not-repeatable-dishes, but one was a true standout that I look forward to making again.
This isn't so much a recipe review, as a "I should follow the recipe more closely" note. I improvised the seasonings a bit, though followed the cooking technique. I should try to make again, the next time actually following the recipe proportions (my attempt seemed heavy on the rice vinegar flavor) and by toasting and finely grinding the Sichuan peppercorns beforehand instead of just mashing them to throw on top of the final dish (too grainy a preparation).
Also a bit of an odd one - I substituted caviar lentils for the barley, resulting in a black soup. The lemon flavor was pretty good, and it was a nice light soup, but the color and blandness overall means I probably won't make again even if I make it properly with barley for the lentils.
Another bland soup. I substituted smoked paprika for the pimenton, and made this more into a soup than a stew with more water (4 cups?). I used fresh spinach instead of frozen, and threw the julienned pieces at the end of the cooking. I used black garbanzos (approx. 3 cups cooked, 1 cup dry which I pre-cooked).
Another bland soup. Pesto or another strong herb bomb would have helped (I omitted).
Pretty good dish - strong flavors, and great textures from the bell pepper and cabbage, neither of which was overcooked and retained their natural flavors.
I used some Trader Joe's high-protein tofu, which I seared pretty quickly without cornstarch. I used 2 tbsp. water instead of broth, omitted the walnuts, and just put sesame oil at the end because I forgot during the cooking period.
Excellent Onion Frittata with Sherry Vinegar Sauce
The winner of the bunch - a tangy, relatively easy frittata. Perfect for a brunch for 4 people, otherwise 2 meals for me and my husband. I'd pair this with a salad. I used dijon instead of whole grain mustard, which added more tanginess but still resulted in a great sauce. I'd probably reduce the sauce ingredients by half because you don't need that much for serving.
Easy Pancakes - Weekend Winner
For some reason, I can't find my past pancake posts so ended up searching for a new simple recipe. Enter America's Test Kitchen Easy Pancakes, which yes, were both very easy to make and delicious to consume. Fluffy with a lightly sweet flavor, I will probably make these frequently on weekends. I halved the recipe, which made the recipe appropriate for 2 adults and a toddler.