Puppy Chow

From Chex - makes 18 servings

We used to eat this by the handful on bus trips to away soccer games.

Photo courtesy of Blissfully Domestic

9 cups Chex cereal

1 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup butter

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

In large bowl, measure cereal; set aside.

In 1-quart microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter uncovered on High 1 minute; stir. Microwave about 30 seconds longer or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Stir in vanilla.

Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated.
Pour into 2-gallon resealable food-storage plastic bag.

Add powdered sugar. Seal bag; shake until well coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool.
Store in airtight container in refrigerator.

Cilantro Chicken Burgers

Courtesy of Cara. 
I recommend serving with your choice of dressing as well. I used a sesame ginger vinagrette.

 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks
4 large clove of garlic, minced
2/3 cup roughly chopped cilantro
zest from 1 lime (or lime juice)
dash of soy sauce
freshly ground salt & pepper
1/2 cup plain oatmeal

Preheat broiler. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.

Combine the burger ingredients in a food processor and pulse several times, until chicken is uniformly ground. Remove and divide into 6 or 8 portions. Shape each into a ball, place on the baking sheet, and flatten with your palm.

Broil the burgers for about 10-12 minutes total, flipping halfway through. Serve on sandwich thins with sauteed peppers and onions.

Bucket O' Spuds

Courtesy of Penny Cluse Cafe in Burlington, Vermont

Easily one of the best breakfasts I have ever eaten at a restaurant. We began with this dish. It lasted about a minute and a half between the five of us.

Chop potatoes into bite-size chunks. Boil & Saute, then season liberally with salt, pepper, and paprika and toss in a frying pan over medium-high heat with a little olive oil.

In separate pan, saute onions until translucent. Add in chopped scallions, parsley, salsa, and potatoes.

Plate and top with melted cheese, sour cream, and 2 fried eggs. Upon eating, break yolks open.

Not even mildly healthy, but certainly delicious.

Stuffed Mushrooms

Remove stems from large portabella mushrooms and gently wash the caps.

In a small pan, with a little olive oil, lightly saute:
chopped red bell pepper, onion, carrots, scallions,
mushroom stems from first step, red pepper flakes,
salt & pepper

Once heated through and beginning to soften (not entirely sauteed) transfer veggie mixture to a small bowl. Toss with breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese, then spoon into mushroom caps. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes or until tender.

Gen's Lentil Soup

Sorry, friends. No measurements on this one. I sort of made it up as I went along. Really simple, hearty recipe. If possible use all organic veggies, it makes the soup sweeter.

(some) carrots
(some) celery
(some) potatoes
(some) onion

Chop the veggies into bite-size pieces and saute in olive oil, with some pepper and sea salt, until slightly tender. Next add:

1 bag green lentils (I used a bag of Goya lentils from Wegmans International section)
2 small cans of chicken broth (once again, from Wegmans; i'm not sure how many ounces)

Stir mixture well, adding water, if needed, until the liquid level rises just above the solids. Simmer (medium) for about 1.5-2 hours, stirring every 15 mins or so and adding more water as the lentils absorb it. add fresh chopped parsley and more salt/pepper to taste. Cook until lentils are soft.

Garnish with freshly grated Parmesan and enjoy!
The batch I made was approximately 8 servings.

Asian Slaw Salad

This recipe goes well with Veggie Dumplings. 

2 c.   thinly sliced napa cabbage
2 c.    thinly sliced green cabbage
1/2 c. red cabbage
1/2 c. julienned carrots
1/3 c. thinly sliced red onion
1/2 c. thinly sliced red bell pepper
1/2 c. bean Sprouts
1/2 c. julienned snap peas

Sesame Ginger Dressing (courtesy Guy Fieri, 2007): 

In a small saucepan add 2 tablespoons olive oil, 3 tablespoons minced ginger, and 1 table spoon minced garlic. Sautee until lightly brown. Add 2 tablespoons brown sugar and 6 tablespoons soy sauce, continue to saute, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes, then remove from heat. When cool whisk in olive oil, sesame oil, and rice wine vinegar.

Mix all vegetables in a bowl and toss with dressing. Recipe does not keep well in fridge with dressing, so only toss whole salad if you plan on eating the entire thing!

Garnish with crushed wontons.

Veggie Potstickers (Dumplings)

This was my first dumpling attempt, made for a special friend who came to visit me at school. 

I used the following all-vegetable ingredients, but pretty much any veggie goes. Feel free to use zucchini, onions, bean sprouts, or any other kind of bean. Ground pork or shrimp can also be used (blend shrimp with other ingredients to make a paste or use ground beef).

In medium-sized bowl, combine:

1 can red kidney beans

1 c. finely chopped napa cabbage

3/4 c. finely chopped shiitake mushrooms

 1/2 c. shredded carrots

1/2 c. finely sliced red peppers

1-2 cloves garlic, minced
fresh ginger, peeled and minced

green scallion (optional)

4 tsp.  soy sauce

red pepper flakes

salt

pepper

Let filling marinate in bowl for at least an hour and up to 1 day. 

Convince a friend to help you fill and seal dumplings in exchange for dinner. This part is time consuming (the sealing, not finding a friend to help.)

Remove won ton wrappers from plastic, cover with moist paper towel when not in use. Have a small bowl of water handy to seal the edges of dumplings. Place 1/2-1 tsp. of filling in the center of each wrapper. Brush all four edges with water, then close up dumplings however you see fit. Alex and I used the following method:

1) Fold opposing edges to meet so that each side is triangular.

2) Fold open edges up and in to meet top point, sealing edges with water

Make throughally sure that your dumplings are not wet, breaking open (too much filling), or open in any spots or they will not hold together when you cook them! Place all dumplings on a plate until you're ready to cook them. 

To cook: You may steam the dumplings for 5-6 minutes, but I prefer them sauteed in a wok with sesame oil until crispy on each side (about 4-6 mins. total, medium heat). These should not be made too far ahead of time and do not keep well in the fridge, so be ready to serve when they come right out of the skillet or steamer. Serve with soy sauce or Sesame Ginger Dressing (see recipe for Asian Slaw Salad).

Note: If you have any left over wrappers, try filling them with a slice of Cabbot Jalepeno Cheese and sauteeing. Yum!

Neapolitan Ice Cream Cupcakes

I made these for my INTD 301/302 class this morning. Couldn't tell if they were a hit or not because no one really gave me any feedback. My housemates ate all the ones I left in the freezer though, so...

To make life easy, pick your favorite box of cake mix (chocolate or yellow) and make according to directions. Fill paper-lined cupcake tins HALF-WAY. If you fill more than half of the cup it will make it difficult to spread significant amounts of the next two layers. Bake in the oven according to box. Remove and let cool completely.

Once cooled, use the cone method to remove the center from each cupcake. Use tops of cupcake to make sundaes or throw to hungry housemates to distract them from eating your real cupcakes. (Try, "How'd you like to taste these mini cupcakes?!")


Drop whole, washed strawberries (can also use less costly frozen strawberries) into the open centers of cupcakes. Next, plop a tablespoon of slightly softened ice cream (chocolate or vanilla if you want to stick with the Neapolitan theme) on top of the cupcake/strawberry combination and use a small frosting spreader smooth ice cream out and down so that it fills any spaces left in the center of the cupcake that the strawberry does not fill.

Put trays in freezer for 45 mins - 1 hour until ice cream is re-frozen enough to spread on frosting. While cupcakes are setting, combine:

1 stick butter, softened
4 cups confectioners sugar
Some vanilla extract
Some (~1/2 cup) milk
1-2 cups Hershey's special dark cocoa powder

Beat with electric mixer, apply a liberal amount to spoon and take to room to snack on while waiting for cupcakes to finish setting. This recipe makes more frosting than you will need, so go back for seconds if you so desire. Spread on top of cupcakes and refreeze.

Pull out of the freezer 20 minutes before serving to let strawberries soften a little.
Yields 26-32 cupcakes.

Delectable Beginnings

"Let them eat cake."
- Marie Antoinette

Life Beyond Takeout was born out of a desire to chronicle and share my cooking experiences with family and friends, but also as a testament to indulgence. "Crave It! Make It! Enjoy It!" eaves out one critical command: "Imagine It!" Whether it be in produce, sugary treats, exotic, expensive, or simple ingredients, I encourage you to take the time to indulge (without worry for calories or cost) in the deliciousness of consuming something of your own creation.

If you should become frustrated with my lack of concrete measurements or ambiguity in listing specific ingredients, please remember that cooking, for me, is a chaotic, creative, fun experience. No recipe turns out the same twice and I am often prone to tossing a recipe aside and adding in whatever I want, or have at my disposal. I will not promise consistency. I do, however, promise to only post those recipes that I have found to be exceptionally delicious!

Please feel free to suggest recipes, substitutions, or tricks of the trade, and leave feedback if you try one of my recipes!

Buon mangia!