Vegetable Cornbread

i was lucky enough to have found a personal chef mentor four and a half years ago. i emailed EMA asking for any advice she had for someone starting out in the personal chef business and she wrote back saying "why don't you come cook with me sometime?" the rest, as they say, is history. i even do independent contracting with her and 95% of my clients have been through EMA.

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one of the best things about knowing other personal chefs is sharing recipes. this vegetable cornbread is a recipe EMA shared with me a long time ago and it is always a big hit with clients. it pairs just as well with pumpkin triple chili in the winter as it does with hot dogs and baked beans in the summer. i even like it for breakfast heated in the toaster oven with scrambled eggs.

this recipe calls for onions and chopped broccoli but is so versatile because you can really put anything in there you like - spinach, red peppers, sweet corn, jalapeno, green chilies, etc. i often make the batch and bake it in several smaller dishes (as you can see from the pictures of it round) and freeze several of them so i can thaw them and warm in the oven.

one bite and this will be your new favorite go-to cornbread - promise!

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Vegetable Cornbread

1 medium onion, diced
3/4 stick unsalted butter
1 box Jiffy corn bread mix
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup sugar
8 oz small curd cottage cheese
2-3 cups shredded cheddar
1 box chopped broccoli, thawed and drained

preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

melt butter in large bowl. add onion, eggs, corn bread mix, sugar, and cottage cheese. stir to combine. stir in shredded cheddar and chopped broccoli.

spread evenly into two 8x8 or one 9x11 greased baking dishes. bake for 35-45 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean (if top begins to get too brown, cover with foil).

remove and enjoy warm or at room temperature.

Black Truffle Popcorn

i just discovered the joy of stove top popcorn. i had no idea how many bad things are in microwave popcorn. i know, i know, i should know. but now i know and more importantly, now i know better.

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as it turns out, popcorn is really easy to make on the stovetop. as in super easy.

wanna know what's even better than pure, natural, stove popped popcorn without any nasty ingredients? two heavenly ingredients - truffle butter and black truffle salt. oh. my. goodness.

i simple popped plain popcorn and tossed it with melted truffle butter (you could use plain butter) and black truffle salt. it was out of this world. if you love black truffle, this popcorn will be an indulgent treat for you. its crazy easy and is surprisingly satisfying when you have a truffle fries craving (which i may or may not have on a weekly basis:)

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Black Truffle Popcorn
makes 4-5 cups (enough for 2 people)

3 tbs canola, peanut or grapeseed oil (i prefer grapeseed oil)
1/3 cup of high quality popcorn kernels
2 tbs truffle butter or regular butter (or more to taste)
1 tsp black truffle salt (or more to taste)

heat oil in 3-qt saucepan with lid over medium high heat. put 4 kernels in oil. when kernels start to pop, add remaining 1/3 cup of popcorn kernels. cover saucepan and remove from heat.

wait exactly 30 seconds, then return pan to heat. it should begin popping soon.

once the popping starts, shake pan back and forth occasionally to ensure even heating. once the popping slows to several seconds between pops, remove pan from heat and immediately dump popcorn into large bowl.

add butter to pan to melt and pour over popcorn. sprinkle with salt and toss well (your hands work best) to evenly distribute.

enjoy!

Thought for Sunday

my toes love spring.

 no april fools about it.