Even though we are eating out of the freezer, I am using recipes that I have found in Cooking Light, Mix and Match. Cooking light is owned by Sunset magazine in CA. I stopped taking Cooking Light as I found my favorites were in Sunset and it took about 137 pages of ads to get to a recipe in Cooking Light The nutty cheesy filling of the chicken breasts was wonderful. However, I was using Purdue Chicken Breasts that are frozen and I know that they remove the chicken tender. So they are very thin and it took a lot of toothpicks. Buy regular skinless breasts from the store and your life will be easier. Also I froze ½# of green beans without steaming them, didn’t work. They were really tough. If you have left over green beans, cook them and freeze;. nuke to defrost and serve.
Ingredients:
1/3 C light garlic and herbs spreadable cheese
¼ C slivered almonds, toasted, coarsely chopped, and divided
3 T chopped fresh parsley, divided
4, 6 oz skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
½ t salt
¼ t peppers
1 ½ t butter (I can’t stand cooking only in butter. I used half EVOO)
Directions:
1. Combine spreadable cheese, 3 T almonds, and 2 T parsley in a small bowl. Set aside
2. Cut a horizontal slit through thickest portion of each breast half to forum a pocket. Stuff 1 ½ T almond mixture into each pocket; secure each pocket with a wooden pick. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper.
3. Heat butter/EVOO in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add chicken to pan; cook 6 minutes on each side. Remove from pan; cover and let stand 2 minutes. I put all the stuffing inside, but if you divide tic, top the chicken evenly with 1T almonds and 1T parsley.
The suggestion was green beans and couscous. I boiled fingerling potatoes and as above we did serve green beans. As followed the chicken is 428 cal. Per serving. Jim loved this meal.
He served a Glen manor, 2008 Cabernet Franc from VA with the meal. It was really good
Monday, February 28, 2011
Mango and Black Bean Salad with Shrimp
We are still eating out of our freezer. Tonight’s meal was spectacular and we also eliminated some items from the pantry and the refrigerator as well. This is also from the Cooking light Mix and Match Cookbook. It is listed as a lunch, but we had it for dinner and really enjoyed it. I didn’t follow directions to a t, but will explain what I did that did not comply. The recipe says that adding 1/3 C of cooked shrimp to the recipe adds 85 calories. I thought it was unclear whether it was 1/3 C per serving or over all since the calories are listed per serving. If you follow the recipe exactly it is to be 334 calories per serving.
Ingredients:
1 ½ C chopped peeled ripe mangos. (I used frozen)
1 C thinly sliced green onions
3 T finely chopped fresh cilantro
½ C cooked wild or brown rice. I put ½ C red rice and one cup of water in a pot, soaked it and cooked it. I added the whole amount.
2 T fresh salsa, (I added some leftover chutney and a very hot veggie salsa that I had made.)
2T fresh lime juice
2 T EVOO
½ t salt
¼ t pepper
1 15 oz can of black beans, rinsed and drained
½ C precooked shrimp (I used ½# frozen shrimp thawed)
Directions:
1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Toss gently to mix.
2. Yield is 3 servings
Ingredients:
1 ½ C chopped peeled ripe mangos. (I used frozen)
1 C thinly sliced green onions
3 T finely chopped fresh cilantro
½ C cooked wild or brown rice. I put ½ C red rice and one cup of water in a pot, soaked it and cooked it. I added the whole amount.
2 T fresh salsa, (I added some leftover chutney and a very hot veggie salsa that I had made.)
2T fresh lime juice
2 T EVOO
½ t salt
¼ t pepper
1 15 oz can of black beans, rinsed and drained
½ C precooked shrimp (I used ½# frozen shrimp thawed)
Directions:
1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Toss gently to mix.
2. Yield is 3 servings
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Restaurant Reviews and Julia's Scrambled Eggs
I’ve had a couple days off from cooking. Friday we went to the Baltimore Craft Show and met with our friend Jim T. After the show we went to Ze Mean Bean Café which specializes in Slavic food. This was Cynthia’s favorite restaurant. With a menu containing stuffed cabbage, Pierogi, sauerkraut and beets, Jim was totally out of his element. He finally chose borscht and a Polish sausage sandwich. I had a salad of beet green and beets. I followed this with and a platter of stuffed cabbage, Polish Sausage and 4 different Pierogi. We drove home and decided to skip dinner as we were stuffed.
Saturday we joined friends at Magnolias at the Mill in Purcellville, VA. It is a lovely old grain mill converted into a restaurant. We had a wonderful dinner. I had a starter of fried green tomatoes. Perfectly done and followed this with a delicious piece of salmon, moist and perfectly done, not overcooked at all. They even provided pickled ginger and wasabi mashed potatoes. The other three all ordered steak, 2 medium rare, one of the medium, one of the rare with blue cheese mashed potatoes instead of garlic. Joan got Rich’s order. Jim got Joan’s, etc. We had a great time. Jim ordered a chocolate dessert.
I have been reading a delightful book of letters between Julia Child and her friend Avis DeSoto. In one letter Avis describes how perfect scrambled eggs were according to Julia’s recipe. I tried it this morning and it does really make a difference. I have always used these ingredients, but never in precise measurement and I believe that the low heat made the difference. Our eggs this AM were creamy and divine.
Scrambled Eggs 4-5 servings
Julia states in the beginning of the recipe that the preparation is entirely a matter of stirring the eggs over gentle heat until they slowly thicken as a mass into a custard.
Utensils:
Wire whip
Mixing bowl
Heavy-bottomed skillet 7-8” in diameter
Rubber spatula
Ingredients:
8 eggs
¼ t salt
Pinch of pepper
2T softened butter
2T whipping cream
Directions:
1. Beat the eggs in the bowl with the seasonings for 20-30 seconds to blend yolks and whites.
2. Smear the bottom and sides of the pan with the butter.
3. Pour in the eggs and set over moderately low heat. Stir slowly and continually, reaching all over the bottom of the pan. Nothing will seem to happen to 2-3 minutes as the eggs gradually heat. Suddenly they will begin to thicken into a custard. Sir rapidly, moving pan on a off heat, until the eggs have almost thickened to the consistency you wish. Then remove from heat, as they will continue to thicken slightly.
4. Just as soon as they are of the right consistency, stir in the cream, which will stop the cooking.
This recipe easily divides in half. Usually I look to Julia for difficult food items explained in a way I can actually accomplish it. In the movie Julia and Julie the premise is cooking through the entire book in a year. I think we all could lean a million lessons by doing this.
Saturday we joined friends at Magnolias at the Mill in Purcellville, VA. It is a lovely old grain mill converted into a restaurant. We had a wonderful dinner. I had a starter of fried green tomatoes. Perfectly done and followed this with a delicious piece of salmon, moist and perfectly done, not overcooked at all. They even provided pickled ginger and wasabi mashed potatoes. The other three all ordered steak, 2 medium rare, one of the medium, one of the rare with blue cheese mashed potatoes instead of garlic. Joan got Rich’s order. Jim got Joan’s, etc. We had a great time. Jim ordered a chocolate dessert.
I have been reading a delightful book of letters between Julia Child and her friend Avis DeSoto. In one letter Avis describes how perfect scrambled eggs were according to Julia’s recipe. I tried it this morning and it does really make a difference. I have always used these ingredients, but never in precise measurement and I believe that the low heat made the difference. Our eggs this AM were creamy and divine.
Scrambled Eggs 4-5 servings
Julia states in the beginning of the recipe that the preparation is entirely a matter of stirring the eggs over gentle heat until they slowly thicken as a mass into a custard.
Utensils:
Wire whip
Mixing bowl
Heavy-bottomed skillet 7-8” in diameter
Rubber spatula
Ingredients:
8 eggs
¼ t salt
Pinch of pepper
2T softened butter
2T whipping cream
Directions:
1. Beat the eggs in the bowl with the seasonings for 20-30 seconds to blend yolks and whites.
2. Smear the bottom and sides of the pan with the butter.
3. Pour in the eggs and set over moderately low heat. Stir slowly and continually, reaching all over the bottom of the pan. Nothing will seem to happen to 2-3 minutes as the eggs gradually heat. Suddenly they will begin to thicken into a custard. Sir rapidly, moving pan on a off heat, until the eggs have almost thickened to the consistency you wish. Then remove from heat, as they will continue to thicken slightly.
4. Just as soon as they are of the right consistency, stir in the cream, which will stop the cooking.
This recipe easily divides in half. Usually I look to Julia for difficult food items explained in a way I can actually accomplish it. In the movie Julia and Julie the premise is cooking through the entire book in a year. I think we all could lean a million lessons by doing this.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Fresh Salmon-Cilantro Burgers and Spinach Salad with Feta
Luckily we did not want to eat until late as it was a class day and I had to make these burgers. This meal is again from Mix and Match, Cooking Light. Yield 4 servings, 414 calories
Ingredients:
¼ C reduced-fat mayonnaise
3 T chopped fresh cilantro, divided
3 T fresh lime juice, divided, 1 whole lime
5/8 t salt, divided
3/8 t pepper, divided
1# salmon fillet, skinned and cut into 1” pieces
¼ C dry bread crumbs
2 T chopped green onions
1 T chopped seeded jalapeno pepper
Cooking Spray
4 hamburger buns (we used ½ of an English muffin per burger)
12 (1/4 slices) English cucumber
4 green leaf lettuce leaves
Directions:
1. Combine the first 5 ingredients but only 1/8 t salt and 1/8 t pepper.
2. Place salmon in a food processor; pulse until coarsely chopped. Add breadcrumbs and the next 3 ingredients plus the remaining salt and pepper. Divide into 4 equal portions.
3. Heat a pan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add patties to pan; cook 2 minutes each side or until done.
4. Spread one quarter of the mayonnaise mixture on the bottom half of the bun. Place the burger on top. Top with 3 cucumber slices and a piee of lettuce. Top with bun if using a usual hamburger bun.
We liked these very much. We thought there was too much dressing for the salad as follows. I would do half the dressing or twice the spinach and bell pepper. The salad is only 73 calories, how much could extra spinach and pepper add?
Salad
Ingredients:
2 T hoisin sauce
1 T rice vinegar
2 t canola oil
2 t water
¼ t chile paste
½ (5 oz) pkg. baby spinach
½ C yellow bell pepper strips
¼ C thinly sliced red onion
¼ C crumbled feta cheese
Directions:
1. Combine the first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; stir well with a whisk.
2. Add spinach and remaining ingredients to bowl; toss to coat
Ingredients:
¼ C reduced-fat mayonnaise
3 T chopped fresh cilantro, divided
3 T fresh lime juice, divided, 1 whole lime
5/8 t salt, divided
3/8 t pepper, divided
1# salmon fillet, skinned and cut into 1” pieces
¼ C dry bread crumbs
2 T chopped green onions
1 T chopped seeded jalapeno pepper
Cooking Spray
4 hamburger buns (we used ½ of an English muffin per burger)
12 (1/4 slices) English cucumber
4 green leaf lettuce leaves
Directions:
1. Combine the first 5 ingredients but only 1/8 t salt and 1/8 t pepper.
2. Place salmon in a food processor; pulse until coarsely chopped. Add breadcrumbs and the next 3 ingredients plus the remaining salt and pepper. Divide into 4 equal portions.
3. Heat a pan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add patties to pan; cook 2 minutes each side or until done.
4. Spread one quarter of the mayonnaise mixture on the bottom half of the bun. Place the burger on top. Top with 3 cucumber slices and a piee of lettuce. Top with bun if using a usual hamburger bun.
We liked these very much. We thought there was too much dressing for the salad as follows. I would do half the dressing or twice the spinach and bell pepper. The salad is only 73 calories, how much could extra spinach and pepper add?
Salad
Ingredients:
2 T hoisin sauce
1 T rice vinegar
2 t canola oil
2 t water
¼ t chile paste
½ (5 oz) pkg. baby spinach
½ C yellow bell pepper strips
¼ C thinly sliced red onion
¼ C crumbled feta cheese
Directions:
1. Combine the first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; stir well with a whisk.
2. Add spinach and remaining ingredients to bowl; toss to coat
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Surprises from the Freezer
Still eating out of the freezer and we used up two packages of the Sauerkraut Pierogi and one package of the pork burgers that I made a while back. These burgers had ras al hanout as the mixed in ingredient. It came from Food Network get Grilling; I blogged about it at the time. It is an excellent combination of spices and I can’t wait to use it this summer grilling. Supposedly it is great on chicken also. I fixed the Pierogi exactly according to Jim’s brother’s directions and they were better. Not sure about the ¼ # of butter though. Tomorrow is school. Hope I am up to dinner fixing when I come home. Wednesday’s are knitting day. Having furan learning.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Speghetti with Meatballs
This is the second night of eating out of the freezer. I found during my inventory ½# veal, ½# turkey, ½# chicken, all ground. I thought must be leftover from a meatloaf. There was a Spaghetti and meatball recipe from Viansa lying on the counter from a recent shipment. It wanted a pound of sweet Italian sausage. Also in the freezer were 3 partial packages of chunked prosciutto that added up to ½#.. So I had double the meat required. I figured that there are probably as many recipes for meatballs as there are Italian grandmothers, so I decided to improvise as meatballs and meatloaf are close. I doubled the recipe and then added half of them to the sauce. Unfortunately, I now have added meatballs to the freezers I am trying to empty. I was also able to use up a container and a half of the basil sauce that I made this past summer when I was overwhelmed with basil from the garden. Here is Viansa’s recipe. I will put in () how I changed it. If I had added some red pepper flakes and some Italian seasoning, I too could be an Italian Grandmother.
Ingredients:
2/3C fresh bread crumbs ( I used Panko bread crumbs)
3 T milk
1/3 C Parmesan cheese
¼ C finely chopped onion
3 T minced fresh basil (I used dried, use 1/3rd less.)
1 large egg
1 clove garlic minced
¼ t black pepper
1 # sweet Italian sausage, casing removed ( I used the meats described above.)
2 T pine nuts, toasted and coarsely chopped (I did not chop them and felt the texture great in the meatball)
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix bread crumbs and milk in a bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Mix in Parmesan cheese, onion, basil, egg, garlic and pepper. Add meat and pine nuts.
3. Blend well (using latex throw away gloves). (I used an ice cream scoop and made 24 meatballs. But because I was doubling the recipe, it was obvious that I had to bake them longer.) The single recipe say it will make 24 1 ¼ “meatballs. So half the size scoop I used.
4. Place on a rimmed baking sheet covered with non-stick aluminum foil.
5. Bake until the meatballs are light brown and cooked through, turning as needed about 30 minutes. (I baked for 45 minutes and did not turn. They were great looking.
6. Next I added them to the simmering sauce that I had defrosted and cooked the pasta.
I added the pasta to the sauce and served with more parmesan cheese. Jim really liked these meatballs. I could have used them a little spicier. I liked the idea that the meatballs were baked rather than fried. The sauce kind of overwhelmed the meatballs in my opinion. I have some Paul Newman vodka sauce in the pantry. I will try these meatballs with it. It could be that Italian grandmothers have multiple recipes to fit the sauce.
Ingredients:
2/3C fresh bread crumbs ( I used Panko bread crumbs)
3 T milk
1/3 C Parmesan cheese
¼ C finely chopped onion
3 T minced fresh basil (I used dried, use 1/3rd less.)
1 large egg
1 clove garlic minced
¼ t black pepper
1 # sweet Italian sausage, casing removed ( I used the meats described above.)
2 T pine nuts, toasted and coarsely chopped (I did not chop them and felt the texture great in the meatball)
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix bread crumbs and milk in a bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Mix in Parmesan cheese, onion, basil, egg, garlic and pepper. Add meat and pine nuts.
3. Blend well (using latex throw away gloves). (I used an ice cream scoop and made 24 meatballs. But because I was doubling the recipe, it was obvious that I had to bake them longer.) The single recipe say it will make 24 1 ¼ “meatballs. So half the size scoop I used.
4. Place on a rimmed baking sheet covered with non-stick aluminum foil.
5. Bake until the meatballs are light brown and cooked through, turning as needed about 30 minutes. (I baked for 45 minutes and did not turn. They were great looking.
6. Next I added them to the simmering sauce that I had defrosted and cooked the pasta.
I added the pasta to the sauce and served with more parmesan cheese. Jim really liked these meatballs. I could have used them a little spicier. I liked the idea that the meatballs were baked rather than fried. The sauce kind of overwhelmed the meatballs in my opinion. I have some Paul Newman vodka sauce in the pantry. I will try these meatballs with it. It could be that Italian grandmothers have multiple recipes to fit the sauce.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Chicken Breasts with Mushroom Sauce
This week we are approaching the development of meals differently than I usually do. We have 2 refrigerators with freezers and they are stuffed. So this morning I inventoried both freezers and quite frankly relieved us of some things that I could not determine according to George Carlin, “Is it meat or is it cake?” I then proceeded to make up recipes that would use up the contents. I had a problem today so Jim went to the store for me and I guarantee that the 2 bags of fresh ingredients that he returned with will probably do us for 9 days. After I empty the freezers, I will attack the pantry. To give an example, I found that between the 2 freezers, I have ever type of almond in existence, in quantity.
I turned first to the new Mix and Match Cooking Light. This again was a very good meal. It serves 6, but I cut it to 4, and is listed as 452 calories. It is heavy on chicken. How many calories can mushrooms have? If you make it add more mushrooms. I served peas and frozen small white onions as an accompaniment.
Ingredients:
6 (6oz)skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
3 T butter, divided
½ t salt
¼ t freshly ground black pepper (I used more)
4 oz. morel mushrooms (I hydrated from dried)
4 oz button mushrooms, thinly sliced (I bought sliced and feel you could use double and not significantly add to the calories.)
2 C fat-free, lower sodium chicken broth
¼ C heavy cream
4 ½ C hot cooked egg noodles
Parsley for garnish
Directions:
1. Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; flatten to ¼” thickness using a meat mallet. ( I did not do this as I had chicken breasts from Costco by Purdue and I think they remove the tender and they are already thin.)
2. Heat 2 t butter in a skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle chicken evenly with S&P. Do not crowd the pan, but fry in batches about 3 minutes per side. Place in a dish and after all are cooked cut in strips. Keep warm.
3. Melt the remaining 1T of butter in the pan over medium heat and cook the mushrooms for about 5 minutes. Add the broth to the pan. (As my morels were dried, I soaked them in 2C hot water. I added concentrated chicken stock to the mushroom stock and heated it in the microwave and added this to the pan.)
4. After it reduced by half I added the cream. I did not remove the mushrooms. I then added back the chicken strips and turned the heat to low, stirring all together.
5. Meanwhile I cooked the egg noodles according to pkg. directions about 8 minutes.
6. I served it in one pasta dish. First the noodles and then the sauce, chicken and mushrooms evenly distributed. Topped with chopped parsley.
Mine was easy to divide as I had reduced to 4. Otherwise you are to serve separately. Whatever is easiest for you. Per their suggestion and remember we are emptying the freezer, I cooked up a leftover bag of small white onions in butter and then added peas, salt and pepper. They were delicious and probably more than the 88 calorie addition suggested by the cookbook. So far, so good with this book. I am about to recommend it at the end of this week. Stay tuned for more pantry deletions tomorrow. Jim served a white wine, but not a good one as it was a "diet" recipe.
I turned first to the new Mix and Match Cooking Light. This again was a very good meal. It serves 6, but I cut it to 4, and is listed as 452 calories. It is heavy on chicken. How many calories can mushrooms have? If you make it add more mushrooms. I served peas and frozen small white onions as an accompaniment.
Ingredients:
6 (6oz)skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
3 T butter, divided
½ t salt
¼ t freshly ground black pepper (I used more)
4 oz. morel mushrooms (I hydrated from dried)
4 oz button mushrooms, thinly sliced (I bought sliced and feel you could use double and not significantly add to the calories.)
2 C fat-free, lower sodium chicken broth
¼ C heavy cream
4 ½ C hot cooked egg noodles
Parsley for garnish
Directions:
1. Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; flatten to ¼” thickness using a meat mallet. ( I did not do this as I had chicken breasts from Costco by Purdue and I think they remove the tender and they are already thin.)
2. Heat 2 t butter in a skillet over medium heat. Sprinkle chicken evenly with S&P. Do not crowd the pan, but fry in batches about 3 minutes per side. Place in a dish and after all are cooked cut in strips. Keep warm.
3. Melt the remaining 1T of butter in the pan over medium heat and cook the mushrooms for about 5 minutes. Add the broth to the pan. (As my morels were dried, I soaked them in 2C hot water. I added concentrated chicken stock to the mushroom stock and heated it in the microwave and added this to the pan.)
4. After it reduced by half I added the cream. I did not remove the mushrooms. I then added back the chicken strips and turned the heat to low, stirring all together.
5. Meanwhile I cooked the egg noodles according to pkg. directions about 8 minutes.
6. I served it in one pasta dish. First the noodles and then the sauce, chicken and mushrooms evenly distributed. Topped with chopped parsley.
Mine was easy to divide as I had reduced to 4. Otherwise you are to serve separately. Whatever is easiest for you. Per their suggestion and remember we are emptying the freezer, I cooked up a leftover bag of small white onions in butter and then added peas, salt and pepper. They were delicious and probably more than the 88 calorie addition suggested by the cookbook. So far, so good with this book. I am about to recommend it at the end of this week. Stay tuned for more pantry deletions tomorrow. Jim served a white wine, but not a good one as it was a "diet" recipe.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Ossobuco alla milanese
This meal was in a word, divine. This recipe came from Marcella Hazan’s The Classic Italian Cook Book. Nothing beats my older cookbooks for clarity and good results. The only difficulty is reading the parts about having your butcher do this or that. Today you are on your own and just have to hope you have enough of the ethnic group from the meal you would like to make in your neighborhood to have the proper ingredients. VA is the first area that I have lived in with not enough Italians. I found these wonderful veal shanks at the Costco in Fairfax. This recipe feeds 6. It really will as I cut it down for 4 and Jim only ate for 2.
Ingredients:
1 C finely chopped yellow onion
2/3 C finely chopped carrot
2/3 C finely chopped celery
¼ C butter
1 t finely chopped garlic
2 strips lemon peel
½ C vegetable oil
8 shanks of veal, about 2” in length
¾ C all-purpose flour, spread on a plate or on waxed paper
1C dry white wine
1 ½ C Homemade Beef Broth. If using canned, do not add salt!
¼ t dried thyme
4 leaves fresh basil
2 bay leaves (One for each of us to find in our meal)
3 sprigs parsley
6 twists of the mill ground pepper
Salt, if necessary (I did not find it necessary and Jim did not add any)
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Choose a heavy casserole with a tight-fitting lid that is just large enough to contain the veal pieces in a single layer. ( I used my Staub pot shaped like a chicken. Filled, it was so heavy Jim had to lift it in and out of the oven.) If you need two skillets, use an extra T of butter per pot.
3. Put the onions, carrot, celery and butter and cook over medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Add the chopped garlic and lemon peel at the end. Remove from the heat.
4. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Turn the veal in the flour shaking off any excess. When the oil is quite hot, brown the veal on all sides. (Be very careful. We are so used to fat free cooking that I had hot oil everywhere as I lowered in the first piece. ) Also dip and brown immediately as you do not want the flour to become gummy.
5. Place the veal on top of the vegetables.
6. Tip the skillet and draw off nearly all the fat with a spoon. Add the wine and boil briskly for about 3 minutes, scraping up and loosening any browning residue stuck to the pan. Pour over pieces of veal in the casserole.
7. Bring the broth to a simmer, I used the microwave, and pour into the casserole. Add the chopped tomatoes with their juice, the thyme, basil, bay leaves, parsley, and pepper. The broth should come to the top of the veal. If it does not, add more broth. Mine did not so rather than resorting to canned broth; I added my left over Madeira sauce from the Valentine dinner.
8. Bring the contents to a simmer on top of the stove. Cover tightly and place in the lower third of the preheated oven. Cook for about 2 hours, carefully turning and basting the veal pieces every 20 minutes. (I did it at 30 minutes and one hour. After that I left it alone as the veal had shrunk below the sauce.
9. I had to thicken my sauce slightly on top of the stove. I did not make a Gremolada as is traditional. I added the juice of one fresh lemon and felt it really made the sauce sparkle.
I did not follow tradition and made a very plain couscous to serve it on right out of the box. The sauce was straight from heaven. I hope it is good if you made it without the Madeira sauce added. Lidia had a recipe for Ossoboco that sounded very interesting, but it was for a larger group and much more difficult to divide down. Maybe someday I will find a crowd and make hers. Jim served a Trader Joe's Syruah. It was good, but I would rather have had a good full bodied Chianti.
Ingredients:
1 C finely chopped yellow onion
2/3 C finely chopped carrot
2/3 C finely chopped celery
¼ C butter
1 t finely chopped garlic
2 strips lemon peel
½ C vegetable oil
8 shanks of veal, about 2” in length
¾ C all-purpose flour, spread on a plate or on waxed paper
1C dry white wine
1 ½ C Homemade Beef Broth. If using canned, do not add salt!
¼ t dried thyme
4 leaves fresh basil
2 bay leaves (One for each of us to find in our meal)
3 sprigs parsley
6 twists of the mill ground pepper
Salt, if necessary (I did not find it necessary and Jim did not add any)
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Choose a heavy casserole with a tight-fitting lid that is just large enough to contain the veal pieces in a single layer. ( I used my Staub pot shaped like a chicken. Filled, it was so heavy Jim had to lift it in and out of the oven.) If you need two skillets, use an extra T of butter per pot.
3. Put the onions, carrot, celery and butter and cook over medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Add the chopped garlic and lemon peel at the end. Remove from the heat.
4. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Turn the veal in the flour shaking off any excess. When the oil is quite hot, brown the veal on all sides. (Be very careful. We are so used to fat free cooking that I had hot oil everywhere as I lowered in the first piece. ) Also dip and brown immediately as you do not want the flour to become gummy.
5. Place the veal on top of the vegetables.
6. Tip the skillet and draw off nearly all the fat with a spoon. Add the wine and boil briskly for about 3 minutes, scraping up and loosening any browning residue stuck to the pan. Pour over pieces of veal in the casserole.
7. Bring the broth to a simmer, I used the microwave, and pour into the casserole. Add the chopped tomatoes with their juice, the thyme, basil, bay leaves, parsley, and pepper. The broth should come to the top of the veal. If it does not, add more broth. Mine did not so rather than resorting to canned broth; I added my left over Madeira sauce from the Valentine dinner.
8. Bring the contents to a simmer on top of the stove. Cover tightly and place in the lower third of the preheated oven. Cook for about 2 hours, carefully turning and basting the veal pieces every 20 minutes. (I did it at 30 minutes and one hour. After that I left it alone as the veal had shrunk below the sauce.
9. I had to thicken my sauce slightly on top of the stove. I did not make a Gremolada as is traditional. I added the juice of one fresh lemon and felt it really made the sauce sparkle.
I did not follow tradition and made a very plain couscous to serve it on right out of the box. The sauce was straight from heaven. I hope it is good if you made it without the Madeira sauce added. Lidia had a recipe for Ossoboco that sounded very interesting, but it was for a larger group and much more difficult to divide down. Maybe someday I will find a crowd and make hers. Jim served a Trader Joe's Syruah. It was good, but I would rather have had a good full bodied Chianti.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Brunch for Two
Jim was going to play golf today, but although it was not as warm as yesterday, we had 60 mile per hour winds. So I come wandering out in my PJ’s looking for tea and there he sits reading the paper. He had not eaten yet and wanted to work out so we agreed on brunch. Again the Cooking light Mix and Match had a perfect venue, Herb and Goat Cheese Omelet with sautéed Peppers and Zucchini. Instead of toast we each had half a Wolferman’s Sweet Harvest Wheat muffin. They say the omelet is 233 calories and with ½ muffin add 110. We added juice and Jim had bacon so for him it was more calories.
Ingredients:
4 large eggs
1 T water
11/4 t pepper, divided
1/8 t salt
1 oz crumbled goat cheese
1 t chopped fresh parsley
½ t chopped fresh tarragon
2 t EVOO, divided
½ C thinly sliced zucchini (I just bought a small one and sliced it.)
½ C julienne-cut red bell pepper (left over from last night)
1t chopped fresh chives.
Note: If you do not have fresh herbs, use 1/3 less dried.
Directions:
1. Combine 2 eggs and 1/2 T water in two small bowls, stirring with a whisk. Stir in 1/8 t black pepper and salt.
2. Combine goat cheese, parsley and tarragon in a bowl. As I had dried chives, I also added these to the mixture.
3. I then cooked the bacon and put it on a plate with paper towel in the microwave.
4. Next add I t of EVOO to the skillet and over medium heat cook the pepper and zucchini. Add pepper and salt and cook till tender, about 6 minutes. I then divided on 2 plates and put them in the warming drawer.
5. Add another ½ t EVOO to the skillet and add the mixture of one omelet. Read Julia Child for making an omelet and proceed to make two. Adding the goat cheese in the middle.
So each plate has a creamy goat cheese omelet, vegetables, and ½ muffin. It was very good and carried us through to dinner. We packed all day. No we have not sold, but I have been advised to remove as much as my “scary” modern artwork as possible.
Ingredients:
4 large eggs
1 T water
11/4 t pepper, divided
1/8 t salt
1 oz crumbled goat cheese
1 t chopped fresh parsley
½ t chopped fresh tarragon
2 t EVOO, divided
½ C thinly sliced zucchini (I just bought a small one and sliced it.)
½ C julienne-cut red bell pepper (left over from last night)
1t chopped fresh chives.
Note: If you do not have fresh herbs, use 1/3 less dried.
Directions:
1. Combine 2 eggs and 1/2 T water in two small bowls, stirring with a whisk. Stir in 1/8 t black pepper and salt.
2. Combine goat cheese, parsley and tarragon in a bowl. As I had dried chives, I also added these to the mixture.
3. I then cooked the bacon and put it on a plate with paper towel in the microwave.
4. Next add I t of EVOO to the skillet and over medium heat cook the pepper and zucchini. Add pepper and salt and cook till tender, about 6 minutes. I then divided on 2 plates and put them in the warming drawer.
5. Add another ½ t EVOO to the skillet and add the mixture of one omelet. Read Julia Child for making an omelet and proceed to make two. Adding the goat cheese in the middle.
So each plate has a creamy goat cheese omelet, vegetables, and ½ muffin. It was very good and carried us through to dinner. We packed all day. No we have not sold, but I have been advised to remove as much as my “scary” modern artwork as possible.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Tuna Noodle Casserole
This recipe also came from the Cooking Light Mix and Match Cookbook. The deal with the cookbook is 1500 calories a day, 3 meals and 2 snacks. Quite frankly I do not have enough time to eat that many meals. This casserole reminded me of grade school and we are trying to empty our freezers and pantry as too much food has built up. I had a lot of tuna and was disappointed to learn that my cans were 7 ½ oz. They looked like normal tuna cans, but I had one of the packets and combined with that I came to 9.5 oz. As far as tuna canned tuna is concerned, less is more.
Ingredients:
8 oz wide egg noodles
2T EVOO
½ C yellow onion
1/3 C chopped carrot (Don’t you love recipes like this, cut a small onion and chop up a carrot.)
2 T AP flour
2 ¾ C fat free milk
4 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened. (I had reduced fat Borsin cheese.)
2 T Dijon mustard
½ t salt
½ t pepper
1 C frozen peas, thawed
½ C grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided
10 oz of caned albacore tuna in water, drained and flaked
Cooking spray
Directions:
1. Preheat broiler.
2. Cook noodles according to package direction, omitting salt and fat. I did not omit salt as when you cook noodles this is your only chance to get flavor in. Drain.
3. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion and carrot; cook 6 minutes or until carrot is almost tender, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually stir in milk; cook 5 minutes, stirring constantly with a whisk until slightly thick. Stir in cream cheese, mustard, salt, pepper and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly until thickened.
4. Stir in the noodles, peas, half the P-R cheese and tuna. I used the same pan, but if you need to change to a shallow 2QT. broiler safe baking dish coated with cooking spray.
5. Top with the remaining P-R cheese and broil for 3 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes.
6. A 475 calorie serving is 1 ½ C. This is more than enough for most people.
"We" had as an appetizer, while I was cooking, Costco Guacamole. I had cut up a red pepper for dipping, but Jim had traditional chips. Jim pronounced the casserole very good, and I would have to say it sure did not taste like a diet meal.
Ingredients:
8 oz wide egg noodles
2T EVOO
½ C yellow onion
1/3 C chopped carrot (Don’t you love recipes like this, cut a small onion and chop up a carrot.)
2 T AP flour
2 ¾ C fat free milk
4 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese, softened. (I had reduced fat Borsin cheese.)
2 T Dijon mustard
½ t salt
½ t pepper
1 C frozen peas, thawed
½ C grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided
10 oz of caned albacore tuna in water, drained and flaked
Cooking spray
Directions:
1. Preheat broiler.
2. Cook noodles according to package direction, omitting salt and fat. I did not omit salt as when you cook noodles this is your only chance to get flavor in. Drain.
3. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion and carrot; cook 6 minutes or until carrot is almost tender, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle with flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually stir in milk; cook 5 minutes, stirring constantly with a whisk until slightly thick. Stir in cream cheese, mustard, salt, pepper and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly until thickened.
4. Stir in the noodles, peas, half the P-R cheese and tuna. I used the same pan, but if you need to change to a shallow 2QT. broiler safe baking dish coated with cooking spray.
5. Top with the remaining P-R cheese and broil for 3 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes.
6. A 475 calorie serving is 1 ½ C. This is more than enough for most people.
"We" had as an appetizer, while I was cooking, Costco Guacamole. I had cut up a red pepper for dipping, but Jim had traditional chips. Jim pronounced the casserole very good, and I would have to say it sure did not taste like a diet meal.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Steamed Pork Buns and Soup
Learning to knit and today was knitting day. For me it is very intense. I am making a scarf. I knitted the first 9 rows today. I came home and took carrot soup that I had blogged about earlier out of the freezer. We had this with my favorite Chinese dish, steamed pork buns. Almost no restaurants have them. They take hours to make do to the filling. These pre made by Tastywok purchased at Costco were quite acceptable. But please steam them. In the store they were microwaving them. Microwaves make bread tough. These, steamed were pillow soft and the filling was good, but not as good as homemade. When you are knitting all day, having worked out in the AM they were really good. I hope Costco keeps carrying them.
Roasted Tilapia with Orange-Parsley Salsa
This was a very good meal. It serves 4 and is 451 calories per serving. This is from the new Cooking Light cookbook called Mix and Match.
Ingredients:
3 oranges, about 1 pound
¼ C chopped fresh parsley, divided
2T EVOO, divided (I used orange EVOO)
4 6 oz tilapia fillets
½ t pepper, divided
2 C hot cooked rice (1 C rose’s rice equals 2 C cooked)
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. I used my Advantium oven so I could skip this step.
2. Grate 2 teaspoons of orange rind. I just grated one orange instead of measuring.
3. Peel and section oranges over a bowl, reserving 2T juice. Chop sections.
4. Combine rind , chopped orange, 2T parsley, 5 t oil, and ¼ t salt and pepper. Toss well.
5. Sprinkle fish evenly with ¼ t salt and pepper. Place fish in an ovenproof skillet coated with remaining 1 t. oil. Bake for 14 minutes. With the Advantium oven you go to seafood, then tilapia and then 4 and hit on. The fish is done perfectly. Top each filet with ¼ C of the orange salsa.
6. Combine 2 T of the juice with the remaining 2T parsley, remaining ¼ t salt and pepper and rice. Actually I do not use instant rice. I use Japanese rice called Roses. I soak for about an hour or more, does not matter. I put the above ingredients in the water with the rice and cooked together. I turn the burner on high and when it comes to a boil, cover and cook on low for 10 minutes. Perfect rice every time. I also had more rind and added it to the rice.
Ingredients:
3 oranges, about 1 pound
¼ C chopped fresh parsley, divided
2T EVOO, divided (I used orange EVOO)
4 6 oz tilapia fillets
½ t pepper, divided
2 C hot cooked rice (1 C rose’s rice equals 2 C cooked)
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. I used my Advantium oven so I could skip this step.
2. Grate 2 teaspoons of orange rind. I just grated one orange instead of measuring.
3. Peel and section oranges over a bowl, reserving 2T juice. Chop sections.
4. Combine rind , chopped orange, 2T parsley, 5 t oil, and ¼ t salt and pepper. Toss well.
5. Sprinkle fish evenly with ¼ t salt and pepper. Place fish in an ovenproof skillet coated with remaining 1 t. oil. Bake for 14 minutes. With the Advantium oven you go to seafood, then tilapia and then 4 and hit on. The fish is done perfectly. Top each filet with ¼ C of the orange salsa.
6. Combine 2 T of the juice with the remaining 2T parsley, remaining ¼ t salt and pepper and rice. Actually I do not use instant rice. I use Japanese rice called Roses. I soak for about an hour or more, does not matter. I put the above ingredients in the water with the rice and cooked together. I turn the burner on high and when it comes to a boil, cover and cook on low for 10 minutes. Perfect rice every time. I also had more rind and added it to the rice.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Valentine's Day dinner
Valentine's dinner was lobster with friends at their house. We had the best baked French fries I have ever had. Jim bought them at Giant and they were called, fast food fries. WE have to go back together as he doesn't remember the brand. They were long and thin and nice and crispy. We also had coleslaw. This, to me, is a perfect accompaniment to lobster. For starters we had calamari, cheese, olives and liver pate that I brought. We drank champagne with the lobster. For dessert the host made homemade vanilla ice cream and I brought my chocolate pie. They were a wonderful ending to great dinner and evening with friends. Jim supplied a Viansa dessert wine.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Early Valentine Dinner
I love staying in on holidays. Restaurants always seem to be over stressed. This year I am having two Valentines meals, one on Saturday and the other on the 14th. Jim has invited his friend from work and his new girlfriend over for dinner.
Ingredients:
# meaty beef bones, such as ribs or marrow bones. I used a combination of different cheap cuts and 1# of marrow bones
¼ C vegetable oil
1 large yellow onion, quartered
1 large carrot, thickly sliced
1 medium leek, washed and thickly sliced
1 medium celery stalk, thickly sliced
3 ½ oz white mushrooms, quartered
1 C dry vermouth
2 medium tomatoes, I used a can of diced tomatoes
10 sprigs fresh thyme
5 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley
3 dried bay leaves
Directions:
1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Arrange the beef bones in a single layer in a large flameproof roasting pan. Drizzle with 2T oil and rub the oil all over the bones.
3. Roast, turning the bones every 20 minutes, until deep brown, about 1 hour.
4. Put the remaining 2 T oil and the onion, carrot, leek, celery, and mushrooms in an 8 qt. stockpot. Cover and cook over low heat, stirring once or twice, until tender, about 15 minutes. Uncover, raise the heat to medium and cook until the vegetables are browned in spots, about 3 minutes.
5. Transfer the bones to the pot with the vegetables, leaving any rendered fat in the pan. Discard the fat from the pan, and set the pan over medium heat. Add the vermouth and bring to a boil, using a wooden spoon to scrape up and stuck on bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the liquid to the bones and vegetables. Add one gallon of wither and bring to a boil over medium heat.
6. Add the tomatoes, thyme, parsley and bay leaves. Reduce the heat to low ans simmer gently, uncovered for 6 hours. The stock should barely bubble. Top up the water level occasionally to keep the solids covered.
7. To get the stock stained, I first set a colander over a smaller bowl and using a Chinese spider strainer take as much of the large stuff out of the broth. Next I put a fine strainer over a large bowl and pour out the stock. This is a two man job. Let the large stuff drain in the small bowl and then put it through the fine strainer also.
8. Let it cook and place in the refrigerator overnight so the fat congeals. Skim off the fat and you are ready to make the sauce.
But next I made the Duxelles and the Chicken Liver Pate
Ingredients for the Duxelles:
2T unsalted butter, softened
1T vegetable oil
¼ C finely chopped shallots
1 ½ Cp finely chopped Portobello mushrooms (from 4 large caps;remove the stems and gills before chopping preferably in a food processor
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1T finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Directions:
1. Heat the butter and oil in a 10” skillet over low heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring often, until translucent, 3-4 minutes.
2. Add the mushrooms and stir well. Raise the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms have cooked down to a thick, almost black mixture about 15 minutes. Season with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.
3. Stir in the parsley and cool completely. Cover and refrigerate until you make the pate.
Ingredients for the chicken liver pate:
4 oz unsalted butter, melted
9 oz chicken leavers (about a cup)
2 medium shallots, chopped (1/4 C)
1 medium clove garlic, chopped
3 sprigs fresh thyme
2 ½ T Madeira
2 ½ T brandy
2 eggs
Salt and pepper
Directions:
1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Butter 2-8oz ramekins
2. Cut each live in half.
3. Put shallots, garlic, thyme, Madeira and brandy in a small pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Simmer, checking frequently, until reduced to about 1 T of liquid, 2-3 minutes. Strain and reserve liquid.
4. Put the chicken livers in a food processor. Add the eggs, the reserved liquid, ½ t salt, and ¼ t pepper. Process until smooth about 30 seconds. Gradually pour in the melted butter while the motor is running. Pour the mixture in the ramekins.
5. Put the ramekins in a 9x 13” baking dish and pour in enough hot water to come about 1” up the sides of the ramekins. Bake until puffed, golden brown and set, 25-30 minutes.
6. Cool and cover with plastic wrap.
7. You only need one of the ramekins for the Duxelles/pate mixture.
Begin the Madeira Sauce
Ingredients:
1C Madeira
Slat and pepper
2T cold unsalted butter, diced
6 C beef stock
Directions:
1. Bring 6 cups of beef stock to a boil in a wide pan. I actually have a sauce reduction pan. It is a pan with flared open sides. Over medium high heat boil until reduced to 2 C, about 25 minutes.
2. Add the Madeira and continue boiling until you reduce to 2C again.
3. Do not finish the sauce until serving the Wellington.
Next the Crepes
Ingredients:
½ C all purpose flour
1/8 t kosher salt
2 large eggs
¾ C whole milk
2T unsalted butter
Directions:
1. In a large bowl, whisk the flour and salt. Make a well in the center and add ¼ C of milk.
2. Whisk in the eggs and the remaining milk.
3. Poor the butter in a 10” skillet and swirl. Remove 1 T and add to the crepe batter.
4. Using a ¼ C measure, add batter to the pan and swirl to coat the bottom.
5. Grease between crepe and you will get 6, you only need 4 so choose the best 4.
By now you can figure out why this is not a one day operation. I started Thursday night to serve on Saturday. I did nothing but cook and set the table. Jim cleaned the house.
Final Assembly
Ingredients:
3# center-cut beef tenderloin, trimmed, side muscle removed. I got mine at Costco and it was perfect.
1 t vegetable oil
2/3 C chicken liver pate
1# puff pastry
1 large egg
1 t butter or butter spray
Directions:
1. Remove the beef from the refrigerator at least 1 hour before browning. Pat dry and season all over with salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over high heat until very hot. Sear is about 450 degrees. I have an infrared thermometer to determine this as my stove is so lame.
2. Brown evenly on all 4 sides about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a baking sheet and cool.
3. On wax paper lay out the four best crepes to form a square about 13 x13”. Dot the mixture of chicken liver and the Duxelles on the crepes and with an offset spatula spread evenly.
4. Roll the puff pastry into a 13 x16” rectangle, fussing the seam if using store bought pastry. I used store bought. I do not have a pastry chief in house.
5. Place the cooled beef on the pate spread crepes and roll them around the beef. Let the wax paper help you so you don’t tear the crepes. Press and mold around the beef. Mine was a great fit so the crepes did not stick beyond the beef.
6. Transfer the wrapped beef to the puff pastry. Beat the egg with a few drops of water. Bring the pastry together and seal the seam with egg wash. Turn under the ends but not too much. Trim any excess pastry. Place on a buttered baking sheet. I also lined mine with non-stick aluminum foil. Brush all over with the egg wash and place slits in the pastry being careful not to slice through the crepes.
7. As I had a few hours, I refrigerated and let again come to temperature for one hour before baking.
8. About 20 minutes before baking heat the oven to 475 degrees. Place the Wellington in the middle of the oven and reduce the heat to 425 for 10 minutes.
9. Reduce the heat again to 400 degrees and roast an additional 20 to 25 minutes. Your thermometer inserted into the center of the Wellington should register 135 degrees.
10. Meanwhile finish the Madeira sauce. Heat to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and whisk in the butter a few pieces at a time. Do not allow to boil. Season to taste, but if you seasoned the beef stock properly, you should not need any more.
The beef was stupendous. But after spending two days making the sauce from scratch, I forgot to pass it at the table. Obviously you can shortcut the whole process by buying good beef stock. The only beef stock I have ever liked that I purchased is Wolfgang Puck, hard to find at times. You can buy the crepes, but I find if you have a nonstick pan, crepes are easy. Having the crepes between the puff pastry and the chicken liver mixture was good as the puff pastry did not get soggy which has happened to me before.
My first course of the heart shaped Costco cheese filled ravioli was a failure. Most opened even though I followed the directions to a T. So the cheese was mostly in the water. I did my green beans as usual. I had the very thin green beans from Costco and Microwaved them with a little lemon EVOO and salt and pepper.
Dessert is another story in itself. Never make a recipe out of a magazine that food is not it’s first agenda. Jim found this dessert in the Wine Spectator, Jan 2011, by pastry chef Marc Aumont of The Modern in NYC. The recipe was obviously not checked for the home cook. Professional ovens and stoves are faster and just cook differently. This was evident when baking the custard. Someone did not proof read. ½ T of vanilla paste is in the ingredient list for the crust and missing in the directions. None is in the Ganache, but I guarantee that 1# of bittersweet chocolate would not taste right with our some flavoring, vanilla or orange. Each step of the way, I said why did I start this. The results with adjustments were sensational.
Chocolate Tart
Ingredients for the Crust
1 ¼ C all-purpose flour
1 oz unsweetened cocoa powder
½ C confectioners’ sugar
¼ t salt
¾ C cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3 egg yolks
½ T vanilla paste (paste and the liquid vanilla are interchangeable equally)
Directions:
1. In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine the flour, cocoa powder, sugar and salt. Pulse to blend. Add the butter and pulse 8 to 10 times, until the butter pieces are about the size of peas. With the machine running, add the egg yolks and vanilla. Pulse in small bursts until combined—don’t overwork it.
2. Gather dough together and shape it into a rough circle. Press to compress it slightly and wrap in plastic. Chill at least 30 minutes.
3. When ready to bake, heat the oven to 325 degrees. Roll out the dough to ¼” thickness and place in a 10”tart pan, lightly sprayed. Top with parchment paper and beans.
4. Prebake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool.
For the Custard
Ingredients:
½ qt heavy cream
½ qt milk
¾ C sugar
1 t pure vanilla extract
9 egg yolks
1 C semisweet chocolate (Nestles chips will do)
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 325. Pour cream, milk, sugar and vanilla into a saucepan and place over medium heat. Stir to dissolve the sugar, and heat until mixture begins to simmer. Remove from heat. Place yolks in a large bowl and slowly whish in the hot cream mixture, about 2 T at a time to temper the eggs, until you have added about 1 C of the cream. Pur in the remaining cream and whisk until smooth.
2. Strain the mixture over the chocolate letting it set for 5 minutes. Then stir the mixture until the chocolate is smooth and evenly distributed. Then stir the mixture until the chocolate is smooth and evenly distributed. (See #1 under Ganache.)
3. Pour into the tart shell. (I had two 1 C pudding cups full left over) and bake in preheated oven until the center is just set, 20 minutes. (In my oven it took 40 minutes. In 20 minutes it was as runny as it was when I put it in. )
4. Remove from oven and cool for 45 minutes and then place into the freezer, chilling until solid (about 6 hours).
For the Ganache
Ingredients:
1 C milk
4 T confectioners ‘sugar
3 egg yolks
1# bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped (58-64% cacao)
Directions:
1. In a saucepan over medium heat, mix milk, heavy cream and sugar, then temper in yolks until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. (Should have done this with the custard) Remove from heat and strain.
2. Add the chocolate and let stand, without stirring, for 1 minute to allow the chocolate to melt. Whisk just until combined, then spread an even layer on top of the frozen tart.
3. Chill until the chocolate is firm.
The Ganache worked perfectly. The tart tasted fabulous and not as deadly chocolate as I thought it would. But sorry Wine Spectator, the stress of what was going wrong or about to go wrong was too much.
As far as wine goes, Jim brought out the big guns. With the appetizer we had a Louis Latour Montagny premier Cru. With the beef we had Chateau Lynch Bages, 1995. Lynch Bages is Jim’s favorite wine and he has a vertical collection. With dessert we had a port. I love port but prefer it after dinner with my cigar, just joking! I would rather have had a dessert wine.
Was the meal worth the time and effort; yes. And more than that, it was a great learning experience for me.
Saturday Dinner Menu
Accompaniment to drinks in the wine cellar
Olives, cheese and crackers, nuts
Appetizer
Heart shaped Cheese Ravioli from Costco with truffle butter sauce
Main Course
Beef Wellington and green beans
Dessert
Chocolate Tart
Ever since the Classic Beef Wellington spread appeared in the December Fine Cooking, I have been dying to make it. I made Beef Wellington once before when we lived in Gulph Mills. I guarantee that it was not this involved. I made everything from scratch except the Puff Pastry. It was a long 3 day process. The first thing you need to do is make the beef stock for the Madeira Sauce. No you do not have to make it, but I did. There is not a beef stock out there as good as homemade. Ingredients:
# meaty beef bones, such as ribs or marrow bones. I used a combination of different cheap cuts and 1# of marrow bones
¼ C vegetable oil
1 large yellow onion, quartered
1 large carrot, thickly sliced
1 medium leek, washed and thickly sliced
1 medium celery stalk, thickly sliced
3 ½ oz white mushrooms, quartered
1 C dry vermouth
2 medium tomatoes, I used a can of diced tomatoes
10 sprigs fresh thyme
5 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley
3 dried bay leaves
Directions:
1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Arrange the beef bones in a single layer in a large flameproof roasting pan. Drizzle with 2T oil and rub the oil all over the bones.
3. Roast, turning the bones every 20 minutes, until deep brown, about 1 hour.
4. Put the remaining 2 T oil and the onion, carrot, leek, celery, and mushrooms in an 8 qt. stockpot. Cover and cook over low heat, stirring once or twice, until tender, about 15 minutes. Uncover, raise the heat to medium and cook until the vegetables are browned in spots, about 3 minutes.
5. Transfer the bones to the pot with the vegetables, leaving any rendered fat in the pan. Discard the fat from the pan, and set the pan over medium heat. Add the vermouth and bring to a boil, using a wooden spoon to scrape up and stuck on bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the liquid to the bones and vegetables. Add one gallon of wither and bring to a boil over medium heat.
6. Add the tomatoes, thyme, parsley and bay leaves. Reduce the heat to low ans simmer gently, uncovered for 6 hours. The stock should barely bubble. Top up the water level occasionally to keep the solids covered.
7. To get the stock stained, I first set a colander over a smaller bowl and using a Chinese spider strainer take as much of the large stuff out of the broth. Next I put a fine strainer over a large bowl and pour out the stock. This is a two man job. Let the large stuff drain in the small bowl and then put it through the fine strainer also.
8. Let it cook and place in the refrigerator overnight so the fat congeals. Skim off the fat and you are ready to make the sauce.
But next I made the Duxelles and the Chicken Liver Pate
Ingredients for the Duxelles:
2T unsalted butter, softened
1T vegetable oil
¼ C finely chopped shallots
1 ½ Cp finely chopped Portobello mushrooms (from 4 large caps;remove the stems and gills before chopping preferably in a food processor
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1T finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Directions:
1. Heat the butter and oil in a 10” skillet over low heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring often, until translucent, 3-4 minutes.
2. Add the mushrooms and stir well. Raise the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms have cooked down to a thick, almost black mixture about 15 minutes. Season with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.
3. Stir in the parsley and cool completely. Cover and refrigerate until you make the pate.
Ingredients for the chicken liver pate:
4 oz unsalted butter, melted
9 oz chicken leavers (about a cup)
2 medium shallots, chopped (1/4 C)
1 medium clove garlic, chopped
3 sprigs fresh thyme
2 ½ T Madeira
2 ½ T brandy
2 eggs
Salt and pepper
Directions:
1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 325 degrees. Butter 2-8oz ramekins
2. Cut each live in half.
3. Put shallots, garlic, thyme, Madeira and brandy in a small pot and bring to a boil over medium heat. Simmer, checking frequently, until reduced to about 1 T of liquid, 2-3 minutes. Strain and reserve liquid.
4. Put the chicken livers in a food processor. Add the eggs, the reserved liquid, ½ t salt, and ¼ t pepper. Process until smooth about 30 seconds. Gradually pour in the melted butter while the motor is running. Pour the mixture in the ramekins.
5. Put the ramekins in a 9x 13” baking dish and pour in enough hot water to come about 1” up the sides of the ramekins. Bake until puffed, golden brown and set, 25-30 minutes.
6. Cool and cover with plastic wrap.
7. You only need one of the ramekins for the Duxelles/pate mixture.
Begin the Madeira Sauce
Ingredients:
1C Madeira
Slat and pepper
2T cold unsalted butter, diced
6 C beef stock
Directions:
1. Bring 6 cups of beef stock to a boil in a wide pan. I actually have a sauce reduction pan. It is a pan with flared open sides. Over medium high heat boil until reduced to 2 C, about 25 minutes.
2. Add the Madeira and continue boiling until you reduce to 2C again.
3. Do not finish the sauce until serving the Wellington.
Next the Crepes
Ingredients:
½ C all purpose flour
1/8 t kosher salt
2 large eggs
¾ C whole milk
2T unsalted butter
Directions:
1. In a large bowl, whisk the flour and salt. Make a well in the center and add ¼ C of milk.
2. Whisk in the eggs and the remaining milk.
3. Poor the butter in a 10” skillet and swirl. Remove 1 T and add to the crepe batter.
4. Using a ¼ C measure, add batter to the pan and swirl to coat the bottom.
5. Grease between crepe and you will get 6, you only need 4 so choose the best 4.
By now you can figure out why this is not a one day operation. I started Thursday night to serve on Saturday. I did nothing but cook and set the table. Jim cleaned the house.
Final Assembly
Ingredients:
3# center-cut beef tenderloin, trimmed, side muscle removed. I got mine at Costco and it was perfect.
1 t vegetable oil
2/3 C chicken liver pate
1# puff pastry
1 large egg
1 t butter or butter spray
Directions:
1. Remove the beef from the refrigerator at least 1 hour before browning. Pat dry and season all over with salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over high heat until very hot. Sear is about 450 degrees. I have an infrared thermometer to determine this as my stove is so lame.
2. Brown evenly on all 4 sides about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to a baking sheet and cool.
3. On wax paper lay out the four best crepes to form a square about 13 x13”. Dot the mixture of chicken liver and the Duxelles on the crepes and with an offset spatula spread evenly.
4. Roll the puff pastry into a 13 x16” rectangle, fussing the seam if using store bought pastry. I used store bought. I do not have a pastry chief in house.
5. Place the cooled beef on the pate spread crepes and roll them around the beef. Let the wax paper help you so you don’t tear the crepes. Press and mold around the beef. Mine was a great fit so the crepes did not stick beyond the beef.
6. Transfer the wrapped beef to the puff pastry. Beat the egg with a few drops of water. Bring the pastry together and seal the seam with egg wash. Turn under the ends but not too much. Trim any excess pastry. Place on a buttered baking sheet. I also lined mine with non-stick aluminum foil. Brush all over with the egg wash and place slits in the pastry being careful not to slice through the crepes.
7. As I had a few hours, I refrigerated and let again come to temperature for one hour before baking.
8. About 20 minutes before baking heat the oven to 475 degrees. Place the Wellington in the middle of the oven and reduce the heat to 425 for 10 minutes.
9. Reduce the heat again to 400 degrees and roast an additional 20 to 25 minutes. Your thermometer inserted into the center of the Wellington should register 135 degrees.
10. Meanwhile finish the Madeira sauce. Heat to a simmer, reduce the heat to low and whisk in the butter a few pieces at a time. Do not allow to boil. Season to taste, but if you seasoned the beef stock properly, you should not need any more.
The beef was stupendous. But after spending two days making the sauce from scratch, I forgot to pass it at the table. Obviously you can shortcut the whole process by buying good beef stock. The only beef stock I have ever liked that I purchased is Wolfgang Puck, hard to find at times. You can buy the crepes, but I find if you have a nonstick pan, crepes are easy. Having the crepes between the puff pastry and the chicken liver mixture was good as the puff pastry did not get soggy which has happened to me before.
My first course of the heart shaped Costco cheese filled ravioli was a failure. Most opened even though I followed the directions to a T. So the cheese was mostly in the water. I did my green beans as usual. I had the very thin green beans from Costco and Microwaved them with a little lemon EVOO and salt and pepper.
Dessert is another story in itself. Never make a recipe out of a magazine that food is not it’s first agenda. Jim found this dessert in the Wine Spectator, Jan 2011, by pastry chef Marc Aumont of The Modern in NYC. The recipe was obviously not checked for the home cook. Professional ovens and stoves are faster and just cook differently. This was evident when baking the custard. Someone did not proof read. ½ T of vanilla paste is in the ingredient list for the crust and missing in the directions. None is in the Ganache, but I guarantee that 1# of bittersweet chocolate would not taste right with our some flavoring, vanilla or orange. Each step of the way, I said why did I start this. The results with adjustments were sensational.
Chocolate Tart
Ingredients for the Crust
1 ¼ C all-purpose flour
1 oz unsweetened cocoa powder
½ C confectioners’ sugar
¼ t salt
¾ C cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3 egg yolks
½ T vanilla paste (paste and the liquid vanilla are interchangeable equally)
Directions:
1. In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine the flour, cocoa powder, sugar and salt. Pulse to blend. Add the butter and pulse 8 to 10 times, until the butter pieces are about the size of peas. With the machine running, add the egg yolks and vanilla. Pulse in small bursts until combined—don’t overwork it.
2. Gather dough together and shape it into a rough circle. Press to compress it slightly and wrap in plastic. Chill at least 30 minutes.
3. When ready to bake, heat the oven to 325 degrees. Roll out the dough to ¼” thickness and place in a 10”tart pan, lightly sprayed. Top with parchment paper and beans.
4. Prebake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool.
For the Custard
Ingredients:
½ qt heavy cream
½ qt milk
¾ C sugar
1 t pure vanilla extract
9 egg yolks
1 C semisweet chocolate (Nestles chips will do)
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 325. Pour cream, milk, sugar and vanilla into a saucepan and place over medium heat. Stir to dissolve the sugar, and heat until mixture begins to simmer. Remove from heat. Place yolks in a large bowl and slowly whish in the hot cream mixture, about 2 T at a time to temper the eggs, until you have added about 1 C of the cream. Pur in the remaining cream and whisk until smooth.
2. Strain the mixture over the chocolate letting it set for 5 minutes. Then stir the mixture until the chocolate is smooth and evenly distributed. Then stir the mixture until the chocolate is smooth and evenly distributed. (See #1 under Ganache.)
3. Pour into the tart shell. (I had two 1 C pudding cups full left over) and bake in preheated oven until the center is just set, 20 minutes. (In my oven it took 40 minutes. In 20 minutes it was as runny as it was when I put it in. )
4. Remove from oven and cool for 45 minutes and then place into the freezer, chilling until solid (about 6 hours).
For the Ganache
Ingredients:
1 C milk
4 T confectioners ‘sugar
3 egg yolks
1# bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped (58-64% cacao)
Directions:
1. In a saucepan over medium heat, mix milk, heavy cream and sugar, then temper in yolks until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. (Should have done this with the custard) Remove from heat and strain.
2. Add the chocolate and let stand, without stirring, for 1 minute to allow the chocolate to melt. Whisk just until combined, then spread an even layer on top of the frozen tart.
3. Chill until the chocolate is firm.
The Ganache worked perfectly. The tart tasted fabulous and not as deadly chocolate as I thought it would. But sorry Wine Spectator, the stress of what was going wrong or about to go wrong was too much.
As far as wine goes, Jim brought out the big guns. With the appetizer we had a Louis Latour Montagny premier Cru. With the beef we had Chateau Lynch Bages, 1995. Lynch Bages is Jim’s favorite wine and he has a vertical collection. With dessert we had a port. I love port but prefer it after dinner with my cigar, just joking! I would rather have had a dessert wine.
Was the meal worth the time and effort; yes. And more than that, it was a great learning experience for me.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Awesome Grits
You probably wonder where I have been. I last blogged about the mac n’ cheese soup, I planned to have the boneless pork chops and grits on Wednesday, but instead went to PF Chang’s. I was terribly disappointed that they have taken the peanut noodles off the menu, but otherwise good. We had leftover soup on Thursday as I had class and then had to stop at Costco to pick up some items that we needed for Sat. So finally Friday night I cooked. We had the pork chops with Marion’s dry rub on them again. See I do make things twice. I served it with salad and Anson Mills yellow grits. You have never had grits until you have had them from Anson Mills. You have to order them from most areas of the country. Go to www.ansonmills.com . I order white and yellow. For some reason I like white for breakfast and yellow for dinner. The directions had you soak overnight and it was a cooking method that rivaled Arborio rice. But recently they introduced a slow cooker method and it worked beautifully.
Ingredients:
1 C (6 ounces) Anson Mills Antebellum Course Grits
3 C water
Fine sea salt
2-3 T unsalted butter
½ t freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
1. Place the grits in the slow cooker and cover with 3 cups of water. Stir once. Allow the grits to settle a full minute, tilt the vessel, and skim off and discard the chaff and hulls with a fine tea strainer.
2. Cover, stirring one or twice, until the grits are creamy and tender, but not mushy. Set the timer on high for about 2 hours.
3. Stir in 1 t of salt and the butter. Sprinkle with pepper.
I put them under the pork chops. Awesome meal. Jim served a Pinot Noir called Roots, 2006 from Oregon. It was very good.
Ingredients:
1 C (6 ounces) Anson Mills Antebellum Course Grits
3 C water
Fine sea salt
2-3 T unsalted butter
½ t freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
1. Place the grits in the slow cooker and cover with 3 cups of water. Stir once. Allow the grits to settle a full minute, tilt the vessel, and skim off and discard the chaff and hulls with a fine tea strainer.
2. Cover, stirring one or twice, until the grits are creamy and tender, but not mushy. Set the timer on high for about 2 hours.
3. Stir in 1 t of salt and the butter. Sprinkle with pepper.
I put them under the pork chops. Awesome meal. Jim served a Pinot Noir called Roots, 2006 from Oregon. It was very good.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Mac n' Cheese Soup
This was Ok, but I wouldn’t make it again. It again was from the Cuisine at home Magazine. I am trying it out still to see if it is worth it. My guess is not. This was called Buffalo Chicken Fingers with Mac n’ Cheese Soup. I did not make the fried chicken. I was at Costco and they had Purdue Bourbon Chicken that you baked. They were good so I bought them.
Soup Ingredients:
1 ½ C dry elbow macaroni (6 oz)
½ C minced onion
¼ C minced celery
2 T unsalted butter
1/3 C all-purpose flour
½ C dry white wine
2 C low sodium chicken broth
1 t dry mustard
1/8 t ground nutmeg
1/8 t cayenne pepper
2 C whole milk
4 C shredded sharp Cheddar
1 T fresh lemon juice
Salt to taste
¼ C crumbled blue cheese
2 T minced fresh chives
Directions:
1. Cook macaroni in a pot of salted water according to package directions; drain and set aside
2. Sweat onion and celery in butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes
3. Stir in flour to coat and cook 1 minute. Deglaze with wine and simmer until nearly evaporated. Stir in broth, mustard, nutmeg, and cayenne. Simmer until slightly thickened, 5 minutes, then whisk in milk and warm through. Do not let boil or base may become grainy.
4. Add cheddar, 2 C at a time, allowing it to melt completely before adding the next cup. Stir in macaroni, lemon juice and salt if needed.
5. Serve topped with a garnish of the blue cheese and chive mixture.
It was ok. Kids would probably love it.
Soup Ingredients:
1 ½ C dry elbow macaroni (6 oz)
½ C minced onion
¼ C minced celery
2 T unsalted butter
1/3 C all-purpose flour
½ C dry white wine
2 C low sodium chicken broth
1 t dry mustard
1/8 t ground nutmeg
1/8 t cayenne pepper
2 C whole milk
4 C shredded sharp Cheddar
1 T fresh lemon juice
Salt to taste
¼ C crumbled blue cheese
2 T minced fresh chives
Directions:
1. Cook macaroni in a pot of salted water according to package directions; drain and set aside
2. Sweat onion and celery in butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes
3. Stir in flour to coat and cook 1 minute. Deglaze with wine and simmer until nearly evaporated. Stir in broth, mustard, nutmeg, and cayenne. Simmer until slightly thickened, 5 minutes, then whisk in milk and warm through. Do not let boil or base may become grainy.
4. Add cheddar, 2 C at a time, allowing it to melt completely before adding the next cup. Stir in macaroni, lemon juice and salt if needed.
5. Serve topped with a garnish of the blue cheese and chive mixture.
It was ok. Kids would probably love it.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Lobster Ravioli and Bok Choy
Dinner tonight combined east and west was possibly unusual, but good. Back in 1996, I bought a cookbook called The Taste of China. There was one recipe that stood out and I have made it several times. It is called Stir-Fried Bok Choy. This and other recipes that I have tried from this book I thought were too oily until I went to China. This cookbook is dead on as to what you get in China.
Ingredients:
1# bok choy (I actually had very baby Bok choy so did not do the chopping that I called for)
1 T peanut oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
½ t salt
1T water
Directions:
1. Prepare the bok choy by removing the stalks with leaves from the stem. If the stalks are wide, split them in half. Cut the stalks with leaves into 3” pieces. Peel the stem and cut it thinly at a slight angle. Wash the bok choy in several changes of cold water. Drain and set aside. (Mine were really young, so I did not do any of the above except the washing. However in the past, I have done this with regular bok choy.)
2. Heat a wok or large skillet until it is hot. If you have a surface temperature reader, heat to 425 degrees F. Add the oil and garlic and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add the salt and bok choy and stir-fry for 1 minute over high heat. Continue stir frying for 4 minutes. Add water if it seems dry.
3. Turn out onto a serving dish and serve at once.
This may seem strange, but we also had Lobster Ravioli. I bought it at Costco. I mixed Béarnaise Butter with ½ container of crème fraiche and poured it over the ravioli. It was delicious.
Ingredients:
1# bok choy (I actually had very baby Bok choy so did not do the chopping that I called for)
1 T peanut oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
½ t salt
1T water
Directions:
1. Prepare the bok choy by removing the stalks with leaves from the stem. If the stalks are wide, split them in half. Cut the stalks with leaves into 3” pieces. Peel the stem and cut it thinly at a slight angle. Wash the bok choy in several changes of cold water. Drain and set aside. (Mine were really young, so I did not do any of the above except the washing. However in the past, I have done this with regular bok choy.)
2. Heat a wok or large skillet until it is hot. If you have a surface temperature reader, heat to 425 degrees F. Add the oil and garlic and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add the salt and bok choy and stir-fry for 1 minute over high heat. Continue stir frying for 4 minutes. Add water if it seems dry.
3. Turn out onto a serving dish and serve at once.
This may seem strange, but we also had Lobster Ravioli. I bought it at Costco. I mixed Béarnaise Butter with ½ container of crème fraiche and poured it over the ravioli. It was delicious.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Super Bowl Dinner for 2
It is Super Bowl night and Jim wanted steak. I had a leftover tornado wrapped with bacon form Omaha Steaks. I bought Jim a strip steak, his favorite. He cooked them on the grille. I sprinkled them with Chicago Seasoning from Penzeys, our favorite for steak. I have been reading a great book of letters between Julia Child and Avis DeVoto. I also learned from Cuisine magazine that when you reach the bottom of your mustard jar, make it into vinaigrette. Avis mentioned in the book that she put vinaigrette on cauliflower and everyone loved it. So I had leftover Brussels sprouts and squash. I mixed up some vinaigrette in a jar of mustard from France that was at its ends and put it on the sprouts and squash before baking at 400 degrees for 30 minutes, turning it every 10 minutes. Jim really loved the veggies this way. We also had a salad of arugula, blueberries, orange sections and half an apple chopped. I dressed it with Newman’s light raspberry vinaigrette. It was delightful. Later I am going to try to talk Jim into ice-cream with that wonderful raspberry, wine and chocolate sauce that my brother sent me for Christmas. Our wine tonight was from Viansa. It was according to Jim a Barbara grape.
Do any of you use Skype? I love it. My brother takes his computer to Brentwood and I try to talk to my mother. Today was a bad day. But bad or good, I get to see her and talk. All and all a good day.
Do any of you use Skype? I love it. My brother takes his computer to Brentwood and I try to talk to my mother. Today was a bad day. But bad or good, I get to see her and talk. All and all a good day.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Breakfast Creations
Where have I been? Well, after class on Thursday we had to make dog food, so we had leftover chili. Just as good the second time and there is more in the freezer. The next day was Jim’s doctor appointment and we went out to lunch after. The Roadhouse in Manassas has completely changed their menu and there is nothing there that is good for you. They are now off our list as places to eat lunch. We then spent hours picking out a pot for our plant. We were still so full from lunch we did not have dinner.
This morning however, I was in a creative mood. I made a wonderful smoothie out of what I could find in the fridge.
Ingredients:
1 banana
1 pear
1 C apple juice
¼ C POM juice
5 ice cubes
Directions:
Place all in a blender and blend on high until smooth.
Jim pronounced it delicious.
I like eggs with green stuff. You can imagine how well this goes over here, but he liked it.
Ingredients:
Pancetta, I had a ¼” thick piece that I cut in tiny squares
2 slices Colby Jack cheese
1 Wolfermann muffin split
Arugula, about a handful
2 eggs
Directions:
1. Split the muffin and toast in the toaster.
2. Put the pancetta in a skillet and cook it to slightly crisp and rendering all the fat. Drain on a paper towel.
3. Put each muffin on a plate, top with arugula and sprinkle the pancetta in the arugula. Put a slice of cheese on top of each and place in the microwave for 30 seconds.
4. Meanwhile fry over easy 2 eggs and place on top of the cheese. You could also poach the eggs.
I would call this our brunch this AM as we finished before noon, barely.
This morning however, I was in a creative mood. I made a wonderful smoothie out of what I could find in the fridge.
Ingredients:
1 banana
1 pear
1 C apple juice
¼ C POM juice
5 ice cubes
Directions:
Place all in a blender and blend on high until smooth.
Jim pronounced it delicious.
I like eggs with green stuff. You can imagine how well this goes over here, but he liked it.
Ingredients:
Pancetta, I had a ¼” thick piece that I cut in tiny squares
2 slices Colby Jack cheese
1 Wolfermann muffin split
Arugula, about a handful
2 eggs
Directions:
1. Split the muffin and toast in the toaster.
2. Put the pancetta in a skillet and cook it to slightly crisp and rendering all the fat. Drain on a paper towel.
3. Put each muffin on a plate, top with arugula and sprinkle the pancetta in the arugula. Put a slice of cheese on top of each and place in the microwave for 30 seconds.
4. Meanwhile fry over easy 2 eggs and place on top of the cheese. You could also poach the eggs.
I would call this our brunch this AM as we finished before noon, barely.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Roasted Red Pepper and Artichoke Cheese Tortelini
I got this one off the interned called kitchen daily.com. It was ok, but I filed it in the round file. It was certainly easy, but a little vinegar tasting.
Ingredients:
1 8 to 9 oz bag dried cheese tortellini
1 12 oz jar roasted red pepper, drained and chopped real fine
2 6oz jars marinated artichoke hearts, drained
½ stick unsalted butter
½ C chopped basil
Directions:
1. Cook tortellini according to package directions.
2. While tortellini boils, sauté red peppers, artichoke hearts and ¼ t each of salt and pepper in butter in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally 4-5 minutes.
3. Put the pasta in a large bowl and pour the sauce over. You can add pasta water, but I did not. Toss well and if you desire, add more salt and pepper.
It was a beautiful looking dish, but only ok to the taste buds.
Ingredients:
1 8 to 9 oz bag dried cheese tortellini
1 12 oz jar roasted red pepper, drained and chopped real fine
2 6oz jars marinated artichoke hearts, drained
½ stick unsalted butter
½ C chopped basil
Directions:
1. Cook tortellini according to package directions.
2. While tortellini boils, sauté red peppers, artichoke hearts and ¼ t each of salt and pepper in butter in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally 4-5 minutes.
3. Put the pasta in a large bowl and pour the sauce over. You can add pasta water, but I did not. Toss well and if you desire, add more salt and pepper.
It was a beautiful looking dish, but only ok to the taste buds.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Spicy Italian Chili
Tonight Jim wanted Chili. In the January wine shipment from Viansa came a recipe for Spicy Italian Chili. It was very good. It said serves 6, even with Jim’s appetite; I would say 8-10. I have half the leftovers in the freezer and will probably serve the other half on Super Ball Sunday. I served it with saltines. We drank the remaining wine with dinner.
Ingredients:
1/3 C EVOO
2 Red bell peppers
3 large yellow or white onions, I prefer the white
12 cloves of garlic minced
2# spicy Italian sausage, peeled and broken into large pieces
2 (28 oz can) Italian whole tomatoes, including liquid
1 6 oz can of tomato paste
4 cans (15 oz each) red kidney beans, drained
2 C hearty red Italian wine (Viansa Farneta Carneros Primitivo) Wonderful.
3 T dried Italian seasoning
2 t salt
½ t ground black pepper
2 dashes of Tabasco sauce
1 ½ C freshly grated parmesan cheese
Directions:
1. I heated the EVOO in a large pot.
2. I chopped the peppers, onions, and garlic in my food processor. I added this to the oil and cooked for about 10 minutes. I cooked the sausage for about 10 minutes in a separate skillet and added it to the vegetables without the oil. I then opened and added the tomatoes, kidney beans, wine, and spices.
3. Stir frequently and simmer this mixture for 2 hours.
4. Serve hot with Parmesan cheese and saltine crackers.
Ingredients:
1/3 C EVOO
2 Red bell peppers
3 large yellow or white onions, I prefer the white
12 cloves of garlic minced
2# spicy Italian sausage, peeled and broken into large pieces
2 (28 oz can) Italian whole tomatoes, including liquid
1 6 oz can of tomato paste
4 cans (15 oz each) red kidney beans, drained
2 C hearty red Italian wine (Viansa Farneta Carneros Primitivo) Wonderful.
3 T dried Italian seasoning
2 t salt
½ t ground black pepper
2 dashes of Tabasco sauce
1 ½ C freshly grated parmesan cheese
Directions:
1. I heated the EVOO in a large pot.
2. I chopped the peppers, onions, and garlic in my food processor. I added this to the oil and cooked for about 10 minutes. I cooked the sausage for about 10 minutes in a separate skillet and added it to the vegetables without the oil. I then opened and added the tomatoes, kidney beans, wine, and spices.
3. Stir frequently and simmer this mixture for 2 hours.
4. Serve hot with Parmesan cheese and saltine crackers.
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