The picture in this recipe looks soooo good and I love the fact that it uses my slow cooker. Seriously, click on the link below to see the picture and you'll be making this, too. My time with my crock pot is almost over.... 15 years and kicking for this amazing, $30 piece of equipment. There's a crack in the crock (lol) that'll pop one of these days, causing me a huge mess and anguish but I just can't bear to replace it yet. I've cooked hundreds and hundreds of meals in this thing and am now pretty convinced that its indestructible. My next one will totally be another Rival.
So, this is a somewhat embarrassing meal for me to blog about, but I'm going to go for it! I've been making soups more often than normal these past few weeks. Soups are one of those things that get easier and easier the more you make them. I remember once, in my early twenties, having a really strong craving for homemade chicken noodle soup. Maybe I was sick, nostalgic, who remembers.... but I decided to make some soup from scratch. I roasted a chicken, pulled it apart, made the stock, made the soup.... 8 hours later I had a just-ok bowl of homemade soup to work with. A decade later and I've learned to manage my time a little better and, thankfully, the taste as well. What's funny about these soups is that I'm pretty much the only one who likes soup in the house. John will try a little bit and Shawn will eat a bowl because he feels obligated. I just take the rest for lunch or freeze for when one of us gets sick. There is NOTHING like homemade soup when you're sick.
I had the ingredients for this at hand, with some light variations, and decided to try it out. On Friday night (yes, I stay home and prep veggies some Friday nights) I cut up 3 carrots and 3 stalks of celery.
Then I sauteed up a few pieces of diced bacon, removed most of the grease, and sauteed the veggies a touch. You don't have to sautee vegetables before putting them in the crockpot, but it really does improve the flavor a bit. While everything sauteed, I rinsed some small dried white beans and picked out the broken and off color ones. I combined the beans, the veggies, the bacon, some bagged cabbage, and a 1/4 cup of tomato paste; topped with water and turned it on. Then I went to bed.
Note- my sense of smell is terrible. My unprofessional diagnosis is that its part allergies and frequent sinus infections and partly because I smoked for so many years.
I woke up on Saturday morning and asked Shawn if it smelled good. He didn't smell anything. Uh-oh.... I checked the crockpot and it was on low. Then I realized..... I didn't plug it in. Total rookie mistake!! I was so annoyed with myself!! I debated for a while on what to do next. Part of me thought I should throw it away, part of me thought it would be ok to proceed. So, I put it out to my friends at Chowhound.com. Common consensus- Bacon is a smoked product that wouldn't spoil and I used water and not chicken stock. Proceed. I turned on the pot, rethought our lunch plans, and went on with my day.
7 hours later, my beans were cooked and the dish was ready for the next step. The recipe calls for stale bread, but I had half of a really good roll that had hardened over night. I put that in the cooker and let it sit a while. It took 2-3 times longer because of the crust and I needed to break it up after a while. The bread disintegrated into the soup, thickening it up nicely. Then I stirred in a 1/4 cup of parmesa cheese and some parsley. I skipped the toasted bread step, and sauteed sliced garlic in oil, adding it to the soup before serving.
The soup looked really, really good. Thankfully, it tasted really really good, too!! I liked the addition of the tomato paste. It gave it a nice note of flavor and color without the acidity of actual tomatoes. The cheese gets a little melty on your spoon as you eat it, which I enjoy. I can imagine that if I had spooned the soup over toasted bread, as suggested, that the cheese would stick to the bread a bit. I just am not a fan of wet bread.
There's a bunch leftover, so I look forward to enjoying some soup throughout the week. I'll give this a go, again. Oh, and I'll always check the plug before going to bed (hangs head in culinary shame).
Slow Cooker Ribollita- Food Network Magazine
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/slow-cooker-ribollita-recipe/index.html
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Mexican Mac & Cheese- Better Homes & Gardens
This month, I've been cooking and experimenting more often. I'm aiming to work with the food in my freezer and pantry as often as possible to cut back on spending a bit. I went through my handy dandy clipped recipe binder and pulled out those that I could make with whatever I have on hand, give or take an ingredient or two. Then I gave those recipes to Shawn to weed out the ones that he wasn't interested in trying. Its interesting to see what I think he'll like versus what he'll actually try. It surprises me sometimes! This one looked delicious and he seemed pretty interested in it, so I gave it a shot.
Some background on the recipe: Better Homes and Gardens magazine has a section where they give you a topic each month and people can contribute recipes for prizes. I aim to win this one day! In the meantime, I clip other people's recipes to try new things. This recipe won the $500 prize for "new ways with sausage" back in March 2011. I submitted my breakfast potatoes and didn't hear back. Their loss!
Recipe planning can be a little hard when you're working out of the freezer because you have to get your timing just right. You have to get the meat defrosted in time to cook but you can't always guarantee what you'll want to eat the next night. So, I had the sausage all ready to go for the evening and Shawn wasn't feeling pasta. I wasn't feeling sandwiches, so I made the pasta for John and I and cut aside some sausage to make him sausage & pepper sandwiches.
I used bulk sausage and sauteed up about 2/3 of the package with a chopped small onion in a sautee pan. I drained the fat, then added the meat back to the pan with a jar of salsa. I had about 3/4 of a jar from a local farmers market with a little heat to it. While this was going on, I cooked up approximately 12 oz of rigatoni. I've learned with time and practice to always undercook pasta when you're going to be baking it. It'll finish cooking in the oven! I got a hodge podge of cheese together- some colby jack, reduced fat cheddar, and a little sharp cheddar to finish it off. The recipe called for a pound, but I used around 2/3 of a pound to match the rest of the scaled down recipe.
I took a baking dish, coated with spray, and added a layer of pasta, a layer of meat, and a layer of cheese. Repeated the layers- snuck a bite to make sure it tasted good (it did) and put in the oven for 35 minutes. I topped it with some chopped tomatoes and cilantro.
Ooooohhhhh, I love baked pasta. Any kind, really. Its just one of those dishes that I can eat way more than I should. This was like a cross between mac and cheese and baked ziti, but with a Mexican flair. Aka- it was absolutely and ridiculously amazing! The cheese and meat sauce stayed separate, but kind of melted together at the same time. The edges were crispy and the salsa made it all pretty spicy but the chopped tomatoes helped tone it down.
One of my proudest moments was when John took a few bites and said it was spicy. Then he asked for a drink and kept on eating it. My little foodie in training!!! Leftovers were not as plentiful as they should be (I really love baked pasta) but heated up really well the next day. I'll definitely do this again with some turkey sausage and light cheese to lighten it up a bit. I bet some chopped peppers would be good, too.
http://www.bhg.com/recipe/pasta/mexican-mac-and-cheese/
Some background on the recipe: Better Homes and Gardens magazine has a section where they give you a topic each month and people can contribute recipes for prizes. I aim to win this one day! In the meantime, I clip other people's recipes to try new things. This recipe won the $500 prize for "new ways with sausage" back in March 2011. I submitted my breakfast potatoes and didn't hear back. Their loss!
Recipe planning can be a little hard when you're working out of the freezer because you have to get your timing just right. You have to get the meat defrosted in time to cook but you can't always guarantee what you'll want to eat the next night. So, I had the sausage all ready to go for the evening and Shawn wasn't feeling pasta. I wasn't feeling sandwiches, so I made the pasta for John and I and cut aside some sausage to make him sausage & pepper sandwiches.
I used bulk sausage and sauteed up about 2/3 of the package with a chopped small onion in a sautee pan. I drained the fat, then added the meat back to the pan with a jar of salsa. I had about 3/4 of a jar from a local farmers market with a little heat to it. While this was going on, I cooked up approximately 12 oz of rigatoni. I've learned with time and practice to always undercook pasta when you're going to be baking it. It'll finish cooking in the oven! I got a hodge podge of cheese together- some colby jack, reduced fat cheddar, and a little sharp cheddar to finish it off. The recipe called for a pound, but I used around 2/3 of a pound to match the rest of the scaled down recipe.
I took a baking dish, coated with spray, and added a layer of pasta, a layer of meat, and a layer of cheese. Repeated the layers- snuck a bite to make sure it tasted good (it did) and put in the oven for 35 minutes. I topped it with some chopped tomatoes and cilantro.
Ooooohhhhh, I love baked pasta. Any kind, really. Its just one of those dishes that I can eat way more than I should. This was like a cross between mac and cheese and baked ziti, but with a Mexican flair. Aka- it was absolutely and ridiculously amazing! The cheese and meat sauce stayed separate, but kind of melted together at the same time. The edges were crispy and the salsa made it all pretty spicy but the chopped tomatoes helped tone it down.
One of my proudest moments was when John took a few bites and said it was spicy. Then he asked for a drink and kept on eating it. My little foodie in training!!! Leftovers were not as plentiful as they should be (I really love baked pasta) but heated up really well the next day. I'll definitely do this again with some turkey sausage and light cheese to lighten it up a bit. I bet some chopped peppers would be good, too.
http://www.bhg.com/recipe/pasta/mexican-mac-and-cheese/
Monday, December 12, 2011
Sausage Stuffed Manicotti- Cooking Light
There are certain recipes that I just can't wait to try, but never get around to making. I can't even remember how long ago I printed this recipe up. I was searching for something else and loved the look and sound of it so much that I couldn't wait to try it. Of course, it took me at least a year to do it.
The best kind of recipe is one that features items that I usually keep in my house and seems easy, but is also a little outside of the box. This has it all for me. It also uses a cream sauce instead of ricotta cheese, which excited me. Shawn can't stand ricotta which really limits us in the baked Italian world. I will, sometimes, make it with half ricotta and half not but its just not the same for some reason. I hoped that the cream sauce would be a happy medium.
I started by browning up turkey sausage with chopped peppers and onions. In a separate pan, I used equal parts flour and butter and added 2 cups of skim milk. Boiled until it got thick, stirring constantly. I learned a long time ago to not do anything else while performing this step. The sausage was off the burner at this point and I had full focus on the sauce at hand. I really like the consistancy that it created and will give this a shot the next time that I make mac and cheese.
I added about half of the cream sauce to the meat mixture and set the rest aside. The recipe calls for uncooked manicotti shells. I started filling them by using a spoon and that got old really fast. I ended up using my (washed) hands to stuff the shells and placed them in a pregreased baking dish. The recipe doesn't call for it, but next time I will add some sauce to the bottom. I also would leave some more space between the shells, allowing sauce to fully envelop the shells. There was a little meat leftover, which I added to the open spots in the dish. Topped those bad boys with some mozzarella, then covered with the remaining cream sauce, 2 cups of marinara sauce, some parmesan cheese.
It looks like a lot of sauce, but trust me. It'll soak it all up.
I baked it all for 30 minutes and then let it sit for a while. The dish looked fantastic!! The sauce didn't cook the noodles completely through. They were a little al dente for my taste, but that's easily adjusted for next time. The taste was ridiculous, though!! So flavorful, creamy, and delicous. I would just encourage you to make a side vegetable or salad with it to keep you from eating way more than the recommended portion size. Oh, and the leftovers were just as good!
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/sausage-stuffed-manicotti-10000001886430/
The best kind of recipe is one that features items that I usually keep in my house and seems easy, but is also a little outside of the box. This has it all for me. It also uses a cream sauce instead of ricotta cheese, which excited me. Shawn can't stand ricotta which really limits us in the baked Italian world. I will, sometimes, make it with half ricotta and half not but its just not the same for some reason. I hoped that the cream sauce would be a happy medium.
I started by browning up turkey sausage with chopped peppers and onions. In a separate pan, I used equal parts flour and butter and added 2 cups of skim milk. Boiled until it got thick, stirring constantly. I learned a long time ago to not do anything else while performing this step. The sausage was off the burner at this point and I had full focus on the sauce at hand. I really like the consistancy that it created and will give this a shot the next time that I make mac and cheese.
I added about half of the cream sauce to the meat mixture and set the rest aside. The recipe calls for uncooked manicotti shells. I started filling them by using a spoon and that got old really fast. I ended up using my (washed) hands to stuff the shells and placed them in a pregreased baking dish. The recipe doesn't call for it, but next time I will add some sauce to the bottom. I also would leave some more space between the shells, allowing sauce to fully envelop the shells. There was a little meat leftover, which I added to the open spots in the dish. Topped those bad boys with some mozzarella, then covered with the remaining cream sauce, 2 cups of marinara sauce, some parmesan cheese.
It looks like a lot of sauce, but trust me. It'll soak it all up.
I baked it all for 30 minutes and then let it sit for a while. The dish looked fantastic!! The sauce didn't cook the noodles completely through. They were a little al dente for my taste, but that's easily adjusted for next time. The taste was ridiculous, though!! So flavorful, creamy, and delicous. I would just encourage you to make a side vegetable or salad with it to keep you from eating way more than the recommended portion size. Oh, and the leftovers were just as good!
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/sausage-stuffed-manicotti-10000001886430/
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Chocolate Bark- Food Network Magazine
Its been a while. Its funny, because I've been still using new recipes. I just haven't written then out. There's been a few awesome ones. Cabbage with Bacon and Onions from Emerill should have been written about, and I suggest you try it. But for now, I'll talk about one of my favorite things in the world. Chocolate.
I have been making a seriously awesome and super easy fudge recipe for the past few years. I wanted to try removing the sweetened condensed milk from the mix to see if I could make it a little lighter and remove a touch of the sweetness. I took out all the dessert recipes from my accordian recipe file (I have a slight obsession with clipping good recipes from magazines) and found the one that best suited my mood. The set up is simple. Split into 5 sections:
1. Prepare the pan. Line a baking sheet with foil, shiny side up; smooth out the creases
I was curious about using foil only, but it worked just fine. Peeled right off once the chocolate cooled.
2. Pick your ingredients
CHOCOLATE; 1 pound
Bittersweet, Semisweet, White
CRUNCH; 1/2 cup, chopped
Almonds, Walnuts, Macadamia Nuts, Pecans, Peanuts, Pistachios, Cashews, Pine Nuts, Hazelnuts, Peppermints, Toffee, Peanut Brittle, Toasted Coconut Flakes, Peanut Butter Chips, Banana Chips
CHEWY TOPPINGS; 1/2 cup, chopped
Dried Figs, Dried Apricots, Dried Cherries, Dried Cranberries, Dried Mango, Raisins,
Mini Marshmallow, Candied Orange Peel, Crystallized Ginger
SPICES (optional)
Red Pepper Flakes, Flaky Sea Salt, Crushed Cardamom Seeds, Toasted Fennel Seeds, Crushed Pink Peppercorns
I made 2 variations. One with Milk Chocolate, Mini Marshmallows, & Salted Peanuts and one with Semisweet Chocolate, Blueberry Craisins, & Peanuts. I prefer semisweet choclate but the milk was just as good, I loved the peanuts and the other toppings were decent. I didn't use the full amount in the recipe and wish that I had. It definitely needed more. Next time I plan on trying semisweet chocholate with crushed candy cane topping.
3. Melt the chocolate
A. Make sure that all of your tools are dry. Chop chocolate into 1/2 inch pieces with a large knife. Place all but 1 cup of the chopped chocolate in a mircowave safe bowl.
B Microwave 30 seconds, then stir with a rubber spatula. Continue microwaving and stirring at 30-second intervals until melted, 3 to 5 minutes total.
C. Immediately add the reserved chopped chocolate to the bowl. Stir vigorously until melted and shiny. Don't worry if there are a few small unmelted pieces.
I used chips for the chocolate so there was no chopping involved. The method worked perfectly, except I set the microwave for the full amount and kept forgetting to get the chocolate out. I didn't think it affected the taste at all. I only had to stir the extra chocolate for a minute or two and it melted beautifully.
4. Spread it out
Pour the chocolate onto the prepared baking sheet; use the rubber spatula to spread it into a 10-12 inch circle, about 1/4 inch thick.
This part was easy.
5. Add your toppings
Press your cruchy and chewy toppings into the choclate, arranging them so each bite has a mix of flavors and textures. Sprinkle with spices, if desired. Let the bark harden completely at room temperature, about 1 hour. (if the room is warm, you may need to freeze the bark for a few minutes). Break into pieces and store in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 to 2 weeks.
Don't rush the chocolate! You definitely want to give it enough time to harden and it'll come right off the foil and break or cut into pieces.
This was great! Affordable and easy. We loved it! I'll make this again and again and can't wait to try all different combinations!
I have been making a seriously awesome and super easy fudge recipe for the past few years. I wanted to try removing the sweetened condensed milk from the mix to see if I could make it a little lighter and remove a touch of the sweetness. I took out all the dessert recipes from my accordian recipe file (I have a slight obsession with clipping good recipes from magazines) and found the one that best suited my mood. The set up is simple. Split into 5 sections:
1. Prepare the pan. Line a baking sheet with foil, shiny side up; smooth out the creases
I was curious about using foil only, but it worked just fine. Peeled right off once the chocolate cooled.
2. Pick your ingredients
CHOCOLATE; 1 pound
Bittersweet, Semisweet, White
CRUNCH; 1/2 cup, chopped
Almonds, Walnuts, Macadamia Nuts, Pecans, Peanuts, Pistachios, Cashews, Pine Nuts, Hazelnuts, Peppermints, Toffee, Peanut Brittle, Toasted Coconut Flakes, Peanut Butter Chips, Banana Chips
CHEWY TOPPINGS; 1/2 cup, chopped
Dried Figs, Dried Apricots, Dried Cherries, Dried Cranberries, Dried Mango, Raisins,
Mini Marshmallow, Candied Orange Peel, Crystallized Ginger
SPICES (optional)
Red Pepper Flakes, Flaky Sea Salt, Crushed Cardamom Seeds, Toasted Fennel Seeds, Crushed Pink Peppercorns
I made 2 variations. One with Milk Chocolate, Mini Marshmallows, & Salted Peanuts and one with Semisweet Chocolate, Blueberry Craisins, & Peanuts. I prefer semisweet choclate but the milk was just as good, I loved the peanuts and the other toppings were decent. I didn't use the full amount in the recipe and wish that I had. It definitely needed more. Next time I plan on trying semisweet chocholate with crushed candy cane topping.
3. Melt the chocolate
A. Make sure that all of your tools are dry. Chop chocolate into 1/2 inch pieces with a large knife. Place all but 1 cup of the chopped chocolate in a mircowave safe bowl.
B Microwave 30 seconds, then stir with a rubber spatula. Continue microwaving and stirring at 30-second intervals until melted, 3 to 5 minutes total.
C. Immediately add the reserved chopped chocolate to the bowl. Stir vigorously until melted and shiny. Don't worry if there are a few small unmelted pieces.
I used chips for the chocolate so there was no chopping involved. The method worked perfectly, except I set the microwave for the full amount and kept forgetting to get the chocolate out. I didn't think it affected the taste at all. I only had to stir the extra chocolate for a minute or two and it melted beautifully.
4. Spread it out
Pour the chocolate onto the prepared baking sheet; use the rubber spatula to spread it into a 10-12 inch circle, about 1/4 inch thick.
This part was easy.
5. Add your toppings
Press your cruchy and chewy toppings into the choclate, arranging them so each bite has a mix of flavors and textures. Sprinkle with spices, if desired. Let the bark harden completely at room temperature, about 1 hour. (if the room is warm, you may need to freeze the bark for a few minutes). Break into pieces and store in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 to 2 weeks.
Don't rush the chocolate! You definitely want to give it enough time to harden and it'll come right off the foil and break or cut into pieces.
This was great! Affordable and easy. We loved it! I'll make this again and again and can't wait to try all different combinations!
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Creating My Own- Brisket Hash
I posted my breakfast potato recipe a while back. It's definitely one of my favorites because it's a recipe that's my own adaption of my father's idea and it just so happens to taste great, too. We had some leftover brisket from our recent party and I decided to try it out in the same method that I use for my breakfast potatoes. Kind of like a hash. Guess what? It's awesome.
I started by dicing up the brisket into large cubes and sauteed them in a hot 15" frying pan, sprayed with nonstick spray. Sauteed for a few minutes until they sweated a little grease and removed the meat from the pan. Added 2 small chopped onions, a chopped green pepper, and sauteed on med-high until slightly soft. Cut 4 red potatoes into a large dice and added to the pan. After a few minutes I turned the heat to low and covered the pan, tilting the lid to let the steam out. I let them go on low for about an hour, stirring every 20 minutes or so, and then added back the brisket cubes. 30 minutes later I topped it with American Cheese; another 15 minutes covered on low, and served.
Wow. This was amazing. Looked just as good as my breakfast potatoes, but darker. I was concerned that it would be too greasy, but the meat juices combined with the vegetables to make this awesome gravy. The brisket softened while cooking and the spices from it mixed throughout the dish. It was simply fantastic. Go me. :)
I started by dicing up the brisket into large cubes and sauteed them in a hot 15" frying pan, sprayed with nonstick spray. Sauteed for a few minutes until they sweated a little grease and removed the meat from the pan. Added 2 small chopped onions, a chopped green pepper, and sauteed on med-high until slightly soft. Cut 4 red potatoes into a large dice and added to the pan. After a few minutes I turned the heat to low and covered the pan, tilting the lid to let the steam out. I let them go on low for about an hour, stirring every 20 minutes or so, and then added back the brisket cubes. 30 minutes later I topped it with American Cheese; another 15 minutes covered on low, and served.
Wow. This was amazing. Looked just as good as my breakfast potatoes, but darker. I was concerned that it would be too greasy, but the meat juices combined with the vegetables to make this awesome gravy. The brisket softened while cooking and the spices from it mixed throughout the dish. It was simply fantastic. Go me. :)
A Party is a Great Excuse for New Dishes! Marinated Veggies & Succotash Salad
We had a big party this past weekend and lucked out with great weather for March. We brought out the smoker and I had a blast deciding what to put out with it. I love putting together a party menu! I put an obsessive amount of thought, reading, and brainstorming before making a final decision. I even buy a few back up things to have on hand just in case. Love it!! This year I browsed through all my books, jotting down tasty things that went well for a group and could sit out for the whole party. We had people arriving over the course of the day and I like to try and have fresh food at various intervals to keep things interesting. Here are a few things that I tested out on my friends.
Roasted Marinated Vegetables- Kitchen Secrets
The picture in this cookbook has been luring me for years. It shows all of the different vegetables, looking grilled and delicious. I love love love grilled vegetables, but they're such a pain to make and this particular picture looks pretty intimidating. When I was browsing through and finally read the method I realized that the veggies were baked and not grilled! I decided to make a grilled veggie try instead of my usual crudite and see how it went over. The recipe calls for a pound of new potatoes and I found miniature potatoes at Trader Joe's that were adorable. I thought it would be a fun substitute to the dish. I also used zucchini, red & green peppers, squash, eggplant and red onion. I decided to hold off on adding the mushrooms until the next day but ended up forgetting them the next day.
Sidebar- I hate slicing onions!!! No matter what I do or what tricks I try I end up with sore eyes for the next hour. These particular onions were a doozy.
After everything was cut up, I put all of the vegetables on a disposable baking tray, wrapped with saran wrap, and placed in the fridge for the next day. About an hour or so before the party started I removed the veggies & transferred everything into two pans; leaving a single layer on each pan. Baked everything for 15 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so. Once it was ready, I drizzled the marinade over everything and left out to cool. The original recipe stated to cook the potatoes first but since they were mini I cooked them all together. They were a little underdone, so I threw them back in the oven for a few minutes and all was well. I transferred everything to two platters and served with slices of fresh mozzeralla.
The trays were beautiful and exactly what I was hoping for! The vegetables were delicious, with the exception of the eggplant which was a little tough for my taste. The balsamic in the marinade was such a nice touch and it was nice to have a veggie option that was outside of the box. My only complaint was that I didn't put the leftovers away early enough and had to throw them away after being out all day. I would make this again and again! I want to try it next as a side dish to a pasta or lasagna meal, which is one that I often have trouble pairing veggies with.
Succotash Salad- Smoke &Spice
I love the new trend to use edamame beans as a replacement for lima beans in succotash recipes. Such a great idea! I knew that I wanted this type of salad for one of my side dishes and picked this one because it seemed fresh & simple. The recipe calls for baby string beans and I had planned on using frozen haricot verts that I keep in the freezer. Unfortunately, I didn't have them. All I had was frozen or canned green beans so I went the frozen route. They didn't thaw to the texture that I wanted so I grabbed a new bag at the last minute. The salad didn't take long at all. I combined the corn, green beans, edamame and celery and put them in the fridge the night before. On the day of the party, I added the shallots & parsley and mixed it all up with the vinaigrette before serving. Asthetically, it was a boring salad. In the future I would add carrots or something colorful to the mix to keep it from being boring. Maybe serve in a lettuce cup? It tasted very good, although I felt that there was way too much oil in the dressing. There was quite a bit leftover and I found it to be delicious when I heated it up as a dinner side dish later in the week. I would make the succotash again, but slightly altered the next time.
Roasted Marinated Vegetables- Kitchen Secrets
1lb small new potatoes, quartered
2T olive oil
1T chopped fresh rosemary or 1tsp dried rosemary, crumbled
1tsp salt
1 large sweet red pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into strips 1-inch wide
1 large sweet green pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into strips 1-inch wide
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1-inch slices
1 medium yellow squash, cut into 1-inch slices
2 small red onions, cut into slim wedges
8oz button mushrooms, stemmed & wiped clean
2 cloves garlic, minced
*For the marinade
3T balsamic vinegar, white wine vinegar, or lemon juice
1T olive oil
1T chopped parsley
2tsp chopped fresh thyme or 1/4 tsp dried thyme
2tsp Dijon mustard
1 small clove garlic, minced
1tsp finely grated lemon zest, optional
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1. Preheat oven to 450F. In a large shallow pan, toss potatoes with oil, rosemary, and salt. Bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes.
2. Stir in sweet peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, onions, mushrooms, and garlic. Bake, uncovered, stirring frequently, until vegetables are lightly browned and tender- 35 to 45 minutes.
3. To prepare the marinade: In a small bowl, whish together vinegar, oil, parsley, thyme, mustard, garlic, lemon zest, salt & pepper until smooth. Pour marinade over vegetables in a roasting pan and stir gently but thoroughly to coat. Cool to room temperature. Makes 6 servings
Succotash Salad- Smoke Spice
8oz fresh thin young green beans, trimmed, and halved or thirded diagonal
2c cooked baby limas, butter beans, or shelled edamame, fresh or frozen
2c cooked corn kernels
2 celery stalks, chopped fine
2 large shallots, minced
2T minced fresh parsley
*Dressing
6T extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tsp salt, or more to taste
pinch or 2 of sugar
2T cider vinegar
1. Steam the beans over simmering water for a few brief minutes, just until tender. Run cold water over the beans to retain their bright green color and drain. Transfer the green beans, limas, corn, celery, shallots, & parsley to a large bowl.
2. Prepare the dressing, whisking together their ingredients in a medium bowl. Pour the dressing over the salad, toss until completely combined, and chill covered for at least 1 hour. Serve chilled or at room temperature.
Roasted Marinated Vegetables- Kitchen Secrets
The picture in this cookbook has been luring me for years. It shows all of the different vegetables, looking grilled and delicious. I love love love grilled vegetables, but they're such a pain to make and this particular picture looks pretty intimidating. When I was browsing through and finally read the method I realized that the veggies were baked and not grilled! I decided to make a grilled veggie try instead of my usual crudite and see how it went over. The recipe calls for a pound of new potatoes and I found miniature potatoes at Trader Joe's that were adorable. I thought it would be a fun substitute to the dish. I also used zucchini, red & green peppers, squash, eggplant and red onion. I decided to hold off on adding the mushrooms until the next day but ended up forgetting them the next day.
Sidebar- I hate slicing onions!!! No matter what I do or what tricks I try I end up with sore eyes for the next hour. These particular onions were a doozy.
After everything was cut up, I put all of the vegetables on a disposable baking tray, wrapped with saran wrap, and placed in the fridge for the next day. About an hour or so before the party started I removed the veggies & transferred everything into two pans; leaving a single layer on each pan. Baked everything for 15 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so. Once it was ready, I drizzled the marinade over everything and left out to cool. The original recipe stated to cook the potatoes first but since they were mini I cooked them all together. They were a little underdone, so I threw them back in the oven for a few minutes and all was well. I transferred everything to two platters and served with slices of fresh mozzeralla.
The trays were beautiful and exactly what I was hoping for! The vegetables were delicious, with the exception of the eggplant which was a little tough for my taste. The balsamic in the marinade was such a nice touch and it was nice to have a veggie option that was outside of the box. My only complaint was that I didn't put the leftovers away early enough and had to throw them away after being out all day. I would make this again and again! I want to try it next as a side dish to a pasta or lasagna meal, which is one that I often have trouble pairing veggies with.
Succotash Salad- Smoke &Spice
I love the new trend to use edamame beans as a replacement for lima beans in succotash recipes. Such a great idea! I knew that I wanted this type of salad for one of my side dishes and picked this one because it seemed fresh & simple. The recipe calls for baby string beans and I had planned on using frozen haricot verts that I keep in the freezer. Unfortunately, I didn't have them. All I had was frozen or canned green beans so I went the frozen route. They didn't thaw to the texture that I wanted so I grabbed a new bag at the last minute. The salad didn't take long at all. I combined the corn, green beans, edamame and celery and put them in the fridge the night before. On the day of the party, I added the shallots & parsley and mixed it all up with the vinaigrette before serving. Asthetically, it was a boring salad. In the future I would add carrots or something colorful to the mix to keep it from being boring. Maybe serve in a lettuce cup? It tasted very good, although I felt that there was way too much oil in the dressing. There was quite a bit leftover and I found it to be delicious when I heated it up as a dinner side dish later in the week. I would make the succotash again, but slightly altered the next time.
Roasted Marinated Vegetables- Kitchen Secrets
1lb small new potatoes, quartered
2T olive oil
1T chopped fresh rosemary or 1tsp dried rosemary, crumbled
1tsp salt
1 large sweet red pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into strips 1-inch wide
1 large sweet green pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into strips 1-inch wide
1 medium zucchini, cut into 1-inch slices
1 medium yellow squash, cut into 1-inch slices
2 small red onions, cut into slim wedges
8oz button mushrooms, stemmed & wiped clean
2 cloves garlic, minced
*For the marinade
3T balsamic vinegar, white wine vinegar, or lemon juice
1T olive oil
1T chopped parsley
2tsp chopped fresh thyme or 1/4 tsp dried thyme
2tsp Dijon mustard
1 small clove garlic, minced
1tsp finely grated lemon zest, optional
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1. Preheat oven to 450F. In a large shallow pan, toss potatoes with oil, rosemary, and salt. Bake, uncovered, for 15 minutes.
2. Stir in sweet peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, onions, mushrooms, and garlic. Bake, uncovered, stirring frequently, until vegetables are lightly browned and tender- 35 to 45 minutes.
3. To prepare the marinade: In a small bowl, whish together vinegar, oil, parsley, thyme, mustard, garlic, lemon zest, salt & pepper until smooth. Pour marinade over vegetables in a roasting pan and stir gently but thoroughly to coat. Cool to room temperature. Makes 6 servings
Succotash Salad- Smoke Spice
8oz fresh thin young green beans, trimmed, and halved or thirded diagonal
2c cooked baby limas, butter beans, or shelled edamame, fresh or frozen
2c cooked corn kernels
2 celery stalks, chopped fine
2 large shallots, minced
2T minced fresh parsley
*Dressing
6T extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tsp salt, or more to taste
pinch or 2 of sugar
2T cider vinegar
1. Steam the beans over simmering water for a few brief minutes, just until tender. Run cold water over the beans to retain their bright green color and drain. Transfer the green beans, limas, corn, celery, shallots, & parsley to a large bowl.
2. Prepare the dressing, whisking together their ingredients in a medium bowl. Pour the dressing over the salad, toss until completely combined, and chill covered for at least 1 hour. Serve chilled or at room temperature.
Monday, March 14, 2011
London Broil II- AllRecipes.com
I have to start by saying that this might be the most boring title of any recipe that I've prepared so far.... I guess that I could have prepared London Broil I, but this one caught my eye first! London broil is a tempermental piece of meat. I grew up thinking that I hated steak until I was older and had steak prepared the right way. By "the right way", I mean medium to medium rare so it's tender, bloody, and delicious. The wrong way, which is how my mother always prepared it, was medium well to well done, little to no seasoning, and cut thickly on the grain. I have memories of spitting pieces of steak into my napkin simply because my jaw was too tired to keep chewing them. I remember the first time that I had london broil prepared properly and my amazement at how delicious it could be! After Shawn made a successful attempt on the grill, I was exited to have an affordable option for steak. I bought some on sale this week and in a measure to conserve time, energy, and propane I found a recipe with a broil option.
I scored the meat in a diamond pattern. They said to cut about 1/8 inch in but apparantly my knife is sharper than I realized and I cut in about 1/4-1/2 inch in some spots. I mixed up the marinade (halving the ingredients to accommodate the size of meat that I was cooking) and poured it into a plastic bag with the steak. Put it in the fridge to marinade until dinner.
Dinner was ready very quickly. I sauteed up some pierogies with onions, heated up leftover broccoli & cauliflower from the day before, and they were ready by the time that the steak was. I broiled it for 8 minutes on each side and it was cooked to a perfect medium with a cripsy crust. Looked beautiful! The end result..... well, I think that I need to marinade it longer next time. The flavor was good, but didn't shine through and the steak was pretty tough. Kind of a disappointment. I'll try again but marinade overnight to try and toughen up the meat and really bring out the flavor.
London Broil II- AllRecipes.com
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/london-broil-ii/Detail.aspx
I scored the meat in a diamond pattern. They said to cut about 1/8 inch in but apparantly my knife is sharper than I realized and I cut in about 1/4-1/2 inch in some spots. I mixed up the marinade (halving the ingredients to accommodate the size of meat that I was cooking) and poured it into a plastic bag with the steak. Put it in the fridge to marinade until dinner.
Dinner was ready very quickly. I sauteed up some pierogies with onions, heated up leftover broccoli & cauliflower from the day before, and they were ready by the time that the steak was. I broiled it for 8 minutes on each side and it was cooked to a perfect medium with a cripsy crust. Looked beautiful! The end result..... well, I think that I need to marinade it longer next time. The flavor was good, but didn't shine through and the steak was pretty tough. Kind of a disappointment. I'll try again but marinade overnight to try and toughen up the meat and really bring out the flavor.
London Broil II- AllRecipes.com
http://allrecipes.com//Recipe/london-broil-ii/Detail.aspx
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