Christopher Michael Lostegaard Mohs » Recipes

A Tasty Summer Treat!

Christopher — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 03:15:21 +0000

Peach Crumble

I absolutely LOVE quick and easy recipes and when I realized that the amazingly ripe peaches from the store were perfect for a summer snack I just couldn’t resist.

The fruit crumbles are by far one of the easiest and my favorite for a quick snack or wowing that dinner guest. The prep time on these is roughly 10 minutes and with a 45 minutes of lead time can be baked off and ready to eat in all their gooey goodness.

Here’s what you do… I’m laying this out in a two serving recipe so you don’t feel like you’ll be eating a dessert dish for the next week.

In a bowl mix together 1 peach (or really any fruit you can imagine) diced up, then sprinkle with a teaspoon of flour. If your so inclined a little zest of lemon and/or orange adds a nice kick to the filling. If your feeling extra daring a splash of caramel liquor or brandy can turn it up even more. Spoon the filling into a single serve ramekin (these I think are both practical and elegant).

Next mix up the “crumble” topping (Are you drooling yet?). 1 tablespoon each of flour, oatmeal and brown sugar. Sprinkle in a little cinnamon and add a tablespoon of chilled butter. Mash this together with a fork until the mixture forms a nice crumbled topping. Sprinkle this over the filling and its off to the oven.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees and bake the fruit crumble for 45 minutes to an hour, until its nice and bubbly and the crumble has browned slightly. Enjoy! Personally I like a nice ice cold glass of milk to accompany this treat.

Here are some great fruit ideas; Apples, Pears, Raspberries, Blueberries, Strawberries, Rhubarb (yes I’m Norwegian and from Minnesota – we HAVE to include Rhubarb as a birth right), Peaches, Plums and Cherries.

So next time you have a little craving for something sweet and tart, whip up a quick crumble, its really a lot faster and easier than you would think.

Creamy Balsamic Summer Salad

Christopher — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 16:06:30 +0000

This is a recipe that I conjured up one afternoon when wanting to add a little spice to an old classic I enjoyed as a kid. Those that grew up in Minnesota will remember the macaroni salad that made its appearance at every church pot-luck and summer event. You know the one…mayo, macaroni, shredded or cubed cheese, peas, celery and of course tuna for that protein. I think it was designed to capture all the food groups in one dish.

Well as we get older our tastes mature and well, I’ve been inspired by my favorite food network host to turn up the volume on pretty much everything. Thanks Ina! (the barefoot contessa). This recipe sticks true to this mantra with bold flavors and fun ingredients. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have over the past few years.

In a large bowl, mix the following together to form the dressing; 1 1/2 cups good mayonnaise, 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, 1 tspn minced garlic, 1 tsp pepper, 1 tsp salt. Wisk this together till well incorporated.

Next cook 1 package of rotinni pasta, make sure its al dente, this is not a time to overcook the pasta as it will absorb all the dressing once you let it sit over night. Drain the pasta and stop the cooking by running cold water over the pasta to rinse. Drain the pasta well and pour into the larger bowl with the dressing. Then add; 1 package frozen sugar snap peas in shell, 1 package mixed frozen berries, 1 pound of chicken, tuna, lobster or crab (your choice). Carefully fold the mixture together, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate over night. The next day serve it up as a new twist to an old favorite. Believe me the church ladies will be impressed!

Cocoa Roasted Almonds

Christopher — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 22:59:34 +0000

1 lb. raw almonds
3 tbls. vegetable oil
1/4 cup Milk Chocolate Hot Cocoa Mix (sweetened)

Place the raw almonds on a sheet pan, drizzle the vegetable oil over the almonds and toss so they are well coated. Then dust with hot cocoa mix (dry do not actually make the hot cocoa). Toss more until almonds are well coated. Make sure almonds are spread evenly in one layer on sheet pan and bake for 10 minutes at 350 degrees. You will want to stir after 5 minutes and 8 minutes. You’ll know they are done when you can smell the cocoa and the nuttyness of the almonds strongly but not burnt. Remove from oven and place almonds on paper towels to cool.

Enjoy!

Orange Cinnamon Marinade for Chicken

Christopher — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 07:10:51 +0000

This was a fast and furious throw together for a last minute dinner guest last week. I was so nervous about how it would turn out that I even phoned up my dad and asked, “do you think that a marinade with orange and cinnamon would taste good?” He confirmed that he thought it would be ok, so I crossed my fingers and grilled it up. Low and behold it was actually quite fantastic so I thought I’d share it with you.

Orange Cinnamon Marinade for Chicken

1 cup olive oil
1/2 cup vinager
2 tbsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
Zest and Juice of 3 oranges

Place 4 chicken breasts in a plastic zip bag and pour marinade over the chicken. Let sit about 4-6 hours in the fridge. Cook as usual (grilled was amazing).

Enjoy this cinnamon delight with a splash of fresh orange.

Christopher

Apple Crumble

Christopher — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 00:13:00 +0000

I threw this together last minute when heading off for Shabbat dinner with my roommates family. That was quite the treat and an incredibly fun experience. Inspired by my hero Ina Garten’s Plum Crumble, I’m giving this a little added pizzaz as Ina would say – we’re turning up the volume on a classic.

Apple Crumble

Topping:
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup toffee chips
1/4 cup walnuts chopped
1/2 lb. Cold butter cubed

Mix in stand mixer till mixture starts to come together (about the size of small peas)

Filling:
3 lbs cubed washington or fiji apples (pick your favorite)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 cup caramel liqueur (varies depending of moisture content of apples)

Mix together and spread out in a ceramic baking dish. Spread crumble topping over. Bake 40 to 45 minutes at 375 degrees.

Enjoy this with some vanilla ice cream and your favorite guests.

Christopher!

Stuffed Mushrooms – a Party Favorite

Christopher — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 00:09:22 +0000

I know – this is supposed to be a business strategist giving you ideas about how to grow the bottom line. Well as it turns out I’m also an obsessive compulsive when it comes to trying new things in the kitchen. This recipe is from a few weeks ago. I’d just moved to Minneapolis and the new roommate was throwing a game night party. So of course, naturally, my host skills went into overdrive and I decided to whip up a few delights for the guests.

Here’s one of them. Literally this was just thrown together and it turned out so well that I just had to share. Watch for it in the next version of mom’s famous favorite recipes cookbook.

Stuffed Mushrooms

1 pkg mushrooms
1/2 lb ground pork
1 cup diced celery
1/2 cup diced onion
2 tsp chili powder
1 tbs seasoned salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 cup bread crumbs
1 pkg cream cheese

Remove stems from mushrooms and chop finely, place mushroom heads upside down on baking sheet.

FILLING: Brown pork with celery, onion, and chopped mushrooms. Season with chili powder, seasoned salt, garlic powder. Add in bread crumbs at end. Let cool.

Place 1 tbs of cream cheese in each mushroom head and fill with heaping mounds of the filling. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes or until done.

Serve! This is a party favorite for sure. Just make sure to get those mushrooms stuffed, we found ourselves sampling a bit too much of the stuffing mixture before we even got them into the oven. So delicious!

And for those wondering – there isn’t a better way to bring friends together then great food, a couple innovative board games and amazing company around the living room fire. A little good wine goes a long way too.

Christopher