17 March 2014 Meatless Bolognese Sauce

Meatless Bolognese Sauce

March 17, 2014 By
Portobello

Portobello

I’m not 100% sure my grandma would approve of me using her meat sauce recipe to create a meatless version, but it’s deeply-flavored and satisfying with pasta, gnocchi and in a lasagna. Perfect for #MeatlessMonday.

Ingredients:

  • ¼ cup oil
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 5 celery ribs, diced
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 8 large Portobello mushrooms, small diced
  • 1 ounce dried porcini, ground to a powder
  • ½ Tbsp. red pepper flakes
  • 1/8 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
  • ½ Tbsp. chili powder
  • 1 bay leaf
  • salt & pepper
  • ¼ tsp. cloves
  • 1 tbs. sugar
  • 1-20 ounce can tomato juice
  • 1 small can of tomato paste
  • 1-28 ounce can Italian-style tomatoes, chopped
Grinding Porcini

Grinding Porcini

Directions:

  1. Sauté onion and celery in oil for 5 minutes in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. 
  2. Add garlic and sauté another minute. 
  3. Add the Portobello and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the porcini powder, the spices and sugar and cook 1 minute. 
  4. Add tomato juice, paste, and Italian-style tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer the sauce over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes. Re-season with salt and pepper if needed.

Makes 8 servings.

Filed Under: American, Entrees, Italian, Mushrooms, Vegetables, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , ,
18 February 2014 Easy Crawfish Etouffée

Easy Crawfish Etouffée

February 18, 2014 By

EtouffeeOne of my favorite restaurants in Fort Lauderdale, where I lived for over 20 years, was Creolina’s and it served some of the best crawfish etouffée I’ve ever had. I enjoy making this deeply-flavored dish at home as it seems rewarding for me to make a roux, let the holy trinity (typically onion, green bell pepper and celery) cook in the hot butter/flour and simmer crawfish in the concoction.

Holy Trinity

Holy Trinity

This version doesn’t go through the process of making a homemade stock from the crawfish heads and peels. The roux isn’t cooked for 45 so it’s lighter in color and flavor yet still delicious. Another tweak to the tradition recipe I’ve made here was to use red bell pepper instead of green as I like the flavor better and the red color looks pretty in this dish. Ingredients:

  • 4 Tbsp. butter
  • 4 Tbsp. flour
  • 1 cup onion, diced
  • ½ cup celery, diced
  • ½ cup red bell pepper, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp. thyme, chopped
  • 1 cup clam juice
  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • 1 cup tomato, diced
  • 1 Tbsp. creole seasoning
  • 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 pound cooked crawfish, shells and heads removed
  • 1 tsp. hot sauce (I use Crystal)
  • ½ tsp. each salt and pepper
  • 1 Tbsp. butter
  • Juice of ½ lemon
  • ¼ cup scallions, chopped
Roux after 10 Minutes

Roux after 10 Minutes

Directions:

  1. Melt the butter in a large cast iron pan over medium heat and cook until it starts to brown, about 2 minutes. Add the flour and whisk to incorporate and break up any lumps. Simmer over medium-low heat until it turns the color of peanut butter, about 15 minutes, whisking frequently.
  2. Add the onion, celery and red bell pepper to the roux and cook until tender, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  3. Add the garlic and thyme and cook for an additional minute.
  4. Whisk in the clam juice and broth ensuring any clumpy roux is broken down, Add the tomatoes, creole seasoning and Worcestershire sauce and simmer for 20 minutes.
  5. Add the crawfish and cook about 3 minutes to just warm the crawfish.
  6. Season with hot sauce, salt and pepper then add the butter and lemon juice.
  7. Serve the etouffée over white rice and garnish with scallions.

Serves 4.

Filed Under: American, Entrees, Seafood, Vegetables Tagged With: , , ,
17 February 2014 Hearty Vegetarian Lentil Soup

Hearty Vegetarian Lentil Soup

February 17, 2014 By

Lentil-SoupThose of you who know my typical cooking style might be surprised to see a vegetarian recipe on my blog, but this dish is hearty, rich and perfect on a cold winter day – or anytime you’re craving a delicious comforting soup.

Ingredients:

  • 3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
  • 1 cup diced heart of celery
  • 2 cups chopped onions
  • 2 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1 cup diced carrots
  • ½ tsp. each, dried thyme, salt and pepper
  • 32 ounces vegetable broth (homemade or from a carton)
  • 1 ¼ cups lentils, rinsed, drained
  • 1 14 ½ –ounce can stewed tomatoes

Directions:

  1. Heat oil in a large, heavy bottom saucepan over medium–high heat. Add the celery, the onions, the garlic and the carrots.  Season with thyme, salt and pepper. Cook until the mixture has softened and has begun to turn golden-brown, about 10-15 minutes.
  2. Add the broth, the lentils, and the tomatoes to the vegetable mixture and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium–low then simmer the soup, covered, for about 45 minutes or until lentils have softened.
  3. Reserve 1 cup of the soup mixture, then working in 2 batches, add the rest of the soup to a blender and puree until smooth, about 30 seconds. ***Be sure to remove the small venting cap from the blender to allow steam to come out and place a kitchen towel to cover the opening. Return the pureed soup to the saucepan, add the reserved un-pureed soup and gently heat for 2 minutes.
  4. To serve, ladle soup into bowls.

Serves 8 as a starter or 6 as a main course.

Note: If you prefer a completely smooth soup, puree all of the mixture without reserving any for texture.  Soup freezes well for up to a month.

Filed Under: American, Soups, Vegetables, Vegetarian Tagged With: , ,
16 February 2014 Bacon Collard Greens Crustless Quiches

Bacon Collard Greens Crustless Quiches

February 16, 2014 By

Collards in PanBreakfast is the most important meal of the day we’re told. Making breakfast from scratch each morning isn’t very realistic for most of us with busy lives. I’ve been making crustless quiches for the whole week on Sunday afternoons and and one of my favorite version is the one made using leftover collard greens.

Top the quiche with a little green salsa and start the morning right.

Ingredients:

  • 12 large eggs (sounds like a lot, but it’s really one egg per quiche)
  • ¼ cup water
  • ½ tsp. each salt and pepper
  • 1 cup leftover Bacon Collard Greens
  • 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Bacon Collard Greens QuicheDirections:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Generously coat a 12-muffin pan with cooking spray.
  3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs with the water, salt and pepper until fully blended, about 1 minute.
  4. Divide the leftover collards among the 12 muffin cups. Pour an equal amount of the egg mixture into the muffin cups over the Collards. Sprinkle the cheese equally over the egg mixture.
  5. Place the muffin pan on a sheet tray to catch any drips and bake for about 25 minutes, or until the egg is set and not giggly.
  6. Let the quiches cool in the pan for about 5 minutes then unmold and let cool completely. Store in an airtight container.
  7. To reheat, place two quiches on a plate, cover with a paper towel and microwave for 60-90 seconds.

Makes 6 servings (2 quiches each).

Filed Under: American, Breakfast, Cheese, Eggs, Vegetables Tagged With: , , , , , ,
7 February 2014 Sweet Potato Gnocchi in Sage Brown Butter

Sweet Potato Gnocchi in Sage Brown Butter

February 7, 2014 By
Gnocchi Dough

Gnocchi Dough

I find myself ordering gnocchi a lot when I go out to dinner. I love the pillowy, melt-in-your-mouth texture of gnocchi and last week, started wondering why I almost never make them at home. I had two sweet potatoes and decided to jump in one morning and make a batch for lunch – not a bad weekday treat, right?

Gnocchi Rope

Gnocchi Rope

Ingredients:

  • 2 large sweet potatoes, pierced all over with fork
  • 8-ounce container fresh ricotta cheese, drained in sieve 2 hours
  • ½ cup plus ½ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 Tbsp. light brown sugar
  • 1 tsp. plus 2 Tbsp. salt
  • ¼  tsp. freshly ground nutmeg
  • 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup (1 stick) butter
  • 5 Tbsp. chopped fresh sage
Uncooked Gnocchi

Uncooked Gnocchi

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place sweet potatoes on a cookie sheet and bake until tender, about 45 minutes. Cut in half and cool for 15 minutes. Remove the peel from the potatoes, place the flesh in a large bowl and mash. To the mashed potatoes, add the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, brown sugar, 1 teaspoons salt and nutmeg and stir until well incorporated. Mix in flour, about ½ cup at a time, until soft dough forms.
  2. Place dough onto a floured surface and divide in 6 equal portions. Create 20-inch long ropes by rolling each portion of dough between palms and floured work surface – sprinkle with flour as needed if sticky. Using a sharp knife, cut each rope into 20 pieces. Roll each piece over the tines of fork to indent (optional). Transfer to baking sheet sprinkled lightly with flour.
  3. Bring large pot of water to boil then add 2 tablespoons salt. When the water is boiling again, add one or two portions of gnocchi and boil until tender, 2-3 minutes. Transfer the boiled gnocchi to clean cookie sheet and cool completely. Repeat with remaining gnocchi.
  4. In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. Cook until butter is brown with a nutty aroma, about 3 minutes. Add chopped sage and turn off the heat. Season sage butter with a generous pinch of salt and pepper.
  5. Add the gnocchi to the brown butter and sauté until gnocchi are heated through, about 4 minutes.
  6. Divide gnocchi among small bowls and sprinkle with the remaining ½ cup Parmesan.

Makes 8 appetizer portions.                                                                                                                         

Inspired by this Bon Appetit recipe.

Filed Under: American, Entrees, Italian, Sides, Vegetables, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , , , ,
3 February 2014 Butternut Squash Ravioli in Sage Brown Butter

Butternut Squash Ravioli in Sage Brown Butter

February 3, 2014 By

Butternut Squash RavioliLast week I stopped at Eataly in Manhattan with some friends visiting from Florida. The place is a Mecca of all things Italian and I couldn’t pass up the pasta counter and the super cute butternut squash ravioli as I knew I’d be in a hurry to fix dinner for all of us when we returned to the burbs.

Well, dinner didn’t happen as we lunched at Barbuto and it was a feast and we simply weren’t hungry for dinner, so I made a quick lunch of the ravioli yesterday and the photo I took of that pasta had everyone liking and sharing on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

I couldn’t understand why folks would like this particular dish, yes, I can make my own ravioli, but what I didn’t grasp until later in the day is that so many of us who work longs days just crave delicious, elegant and simple to make meals during the week, albeit semi-homemade. Fair enough, here are the simple steps to making this pretty meal.

Ingredients:

  • ½ pound fresh ravioli (I used butternut squash as I love that in the winter)
  • ½ stick (4 Tbsp.) butter
  • 1 Tbsp. roughly chopped fresh sage
  • ¼ cup Pecorino or Parmesan cheese

Directions:

  1. Boil the pasta according to package directions, drain.
  2. In a medium skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Cook the butter until brown and nutty in aroma, about 90 seconds.
  3. Add the sage to the brown butter, turn heat off, add the ravioli and shake the pan to coat the pasta in brown butter.
  4. Plate the ravioli and sprinkle with Pecorino or Parmesan.

Serves one famished dinner.

Filed Under: American, Cheese, Entrees, Italian, Pasta, Sides, Vegetables Tagged With: , , ,
27 January 2014 Meatless Monday – Easy Roasted Carrots

Meatless Monday – Easy Roasted Carrots

January 27, 2014 By

Cooked CarrotsI just love roasting vegetables in the winter months to serve as a side dish with various foods, or on their own as a complete meal. Just drizzle a little oil, sprinkle S&P and roast!

In this case, large carrots are cut in half long ways and roasted until the natural sugars caramelize and create a slightly sticky coating that’s delicious.

Ingredients:

  • 4 giant carrots, cut in half then halved long ways
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • ½ tsp. each salt and pepper

Directions:

  1. Add the carrots to a baking sheet and drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat the carrots then roast, cut side down, in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes or until tender.

4 side servings.

Filed Under: American, Sides, Vegetables Tagged With: , , ,
20 January 2014 Meatless Monday – Easy Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Meatless Monday – Easy Roasted Brussels Sprouts

January 20, 2014 By

Raw SproutsRoasting Brussels sprouts couldn’t be simpler – cut the sprouts in half, drizzle a little oil, sprinkle S&P and roast for 20 minutes. The natural sugars of the sprouts caramelize and created little crunchy bits that are delicious.

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • ½ tsp. each salt and pepper

Directions:

  1. Add the Brussels sprouts to a baking sheet and drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat the spouts and roast them in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes, flipping them gently until caramelized and golden brown.

6 side servings.

Filed Under: American, Sides, Vegetables Tagged With: , ,
11 January 2014 Slow Cooker Oatmeal

Slow Cooker Oatmeal

January 11, 2014 By
Oatmeal Bowl

Oatmeal with Maple Syrup

How great is oatmeal on a cold winter morning? Pretty darn great if you ask me. Warm, comforting and simple to make, oatmeal is one of my favorite breakfast items.

I’ve come to learn to enjoy Irish steel cut oats and the Crockpot is a perfect way to cook it to its nutty, slightly al dente yet creamy texture. Set the oatmeal in the slow cooker when you go to bed and wake up to a perfect bowl in the morning!

Ingredients:

Oatmeal Cooking in Crockpot

Oatmeal Cooking in Crockpot

Directions:

  • Find a heatproof bowl that fits inside your Crockpot with a bit of space around it. Add enough water to the Crockpot for it to be half full. Place the empty bowl in the Crockpot.
  • Add the water, oats and salt in the bowl and stir to combine.
  • Turn the Crockpot on low and cook for 5-8 hours.

Serve with golden raisins, maple syrup and warmed, light cream.

Makes 6 servings.

Slow Cooker Oatmeal
Serves 6
How great is oatmeal on a cold winter morning? Pretty darn great if you ask me. Warm, comforting and simple to make, oatmeal is one of my favorite breakfast items. I’ve come to learn to enjoy Irish steel cut oats and the Crockpot is a perfect way to cook it to its nutty, slightly al dente yet creamy texture. Set the oatmeal in the slow cooker when you go to bed and wake up to a perfect bowl in the morning!
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Ingredients
  1. 4 cups water
  2. 1 cup steel cut oats ( I use McCann’s Steel Cut Irish Oatmeal)
  3. ½ tsp. Kosher salt
Instructions
  1. Find a heatproof bowl that fits inside your Crockpot with a bit of space around it. Add enough water to the Crockpot for it to be half full. Place the empty bowl in the Crockpot.
  2. Add the water, oats and salt in the bowl and stir to combine.
  3. Turn the Crockpot on low and cook for 5-8 hours.
Notes
  1. Serve with golden raisins, maple syrup and warmed, light cream.
Food & Wine Chickie Insider https://www.foodandwinechickie.com/
Filed Under: American, Breakfast, Vegetables Tagged With: , , , , ,
4 January 2014 Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup

Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup

January 4, 2014 By

Roasted Red Pepper SoupWe were just in Quebec celebrating Christmas with my family and one night, we went out to a neat restaurant in my town that served a comforting, delicious roasted red pepper soup. We loved it so much that my guy asked me to recreate it when we got back home.

The soup at the restaurant was sweet and a bit smoky from the roasted peppers and tangy from the tomatoes and had a small amount of cream to give it a luscious texture and…creaminess. This soup comes close to the “original” and would be ideal served with a simple grilled cheese but could also be dressed up with a drizzle of crème fraiche.

Ingredients:

  • 3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 large carrots, chopped
  • 3 celery stalks, chopped
  • 1 tsp. each dried thyme and Kosher salt
  • ½ tsp. each black pepper and granulated sugar
  • 28-ounce can of roasted sweet red peppers, drained (could also roast two large red peppers)
  • 28-can of San Marzano tomatoes
  • 32-ounces chicken or vegetable broth
  • ½ cup light or heavy cream

Directions:

  1. Warm the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat then add the onion, carrot and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes.
  2. Add the thyme, salt, pepper and sugar and cook for an additional minute.
  3. Add the red peppers, tomatoes and the broth to the vegetables and cook over medium-low heat for 30 minutes. Cool for about 5 minutes then use an immersion blender to pulse the soup to an almost smooth consistency. You could do this in batches in a blender also. If you like a completely smooth soup, strain the pureed soup through a sieve (I did).
  4. Stir in the cream into the soup and warm through, making certain the soup doesn’t boil again.

8 servings.

Filed Under: American, Soups, Vegetables, Vegetarian Tagged With: , , ,
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