Cookish: What's for dinner?

This is a really easy and pleasing pasta dish: http://www.bhg.com/recipe/pasta/avocado-basil-pasta/

My adaptations are below:

• 8 ounces dried bow tie and/or wagon wheel pasta
  2 medium avocados, halved, seeded, peeled, and coarsely chopped
  6 slices bacon, crisp cooked, drained, and crumbled
  2/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
  2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
  1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup finely shredded Pecorino Romano cheese
  2 ears of corn, roasted, kernels cut from cob
  1 small tomato, chopped
  
  
  Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain
  
  
  Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine the rest of the ingredients, except the cheese. Add the hot pasta and toss to combine. Transfer to a serving bowl. Sprinkle with cheese. Makes 4 servings.
  
  

Cookish: Dinner time

So, this "recipe" is not really exact. It was more an effort to use up some leftovers from the pasta spinach bake a little while ago. As such, I didn't measure anything, and you could change all of the amounts anyway, depending upon how many you're feeding, so here are just some general guidelines:

Ingredients
Pesto (I used a couple spoonfuls)
Toasted pecans (a handful, broken into pieces or chopped)
Whole wheat pasta (I had less than 1/2 pkg of egg noodles)
Cream cheese (a tablespoon or two, just enough to add some creaminess)
Chicken (I defrosted 3 boneless, skinless tenders)
Peas ( about 1/2 cup)
salt, pepper, red pepper, garlic powder (to taste)

I cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces, seasoned it, and sauteed til cooked through. Meanwhile, I cooked and drained the pasta. Then, I tossed everything together. Easy, tasty!

Cookish: Dinnertime

Spinach Pasta bake
Adapted from This Recipe from Rachael Ray Magazine

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2 lbs. baby spinach (I used frozen--a bag and a half)
• 4 tbsp. butter
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• Salt and pepper
• sprinkle of nutmeg
• 8 oz. wide whole wheat egg noodles
•  Bechamel Sauce (see below)
• 5-6 oz. fresh goat cheese (1 pkg)
• 3 tbsp. prepared pesto
• 1 1/2 cups coarse fresh breadcrumbs

1. Defrost the spinach and squeeze out any moisture. 
2. In a large skillet, melt 2 tbsp. butter over medium heat. Add the garlic and stir until golden, about 1 minute. Stir in the spinach. Season lightly with salt and pepper and nutmeg; remove from the heat.
3. Preheat the oven to 400°. In a large saucepan of boiling, salted water, cook the noodles, stirring often, until al dente. Drain— but do not rinse—and return to the saucepan. Stir in the white sauce to coat.
4. Lightly grease an 8-inch square glass baking dish. Layer in half of the noodles and press with a spatula. Dot with half of the goat cheese, spread the spinach on top and press down. Stir 3 tbsp. pesto into the remaining noodles and spoon over the spinach. Dot with the remaining cheese. Cover snugly with foil and bake until hot and bubbling, about 35 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, melt the remaining 2 tbsp. butter over medium heat. Add the breadcrumbs and cook, stirring, until golden and crisp, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. sprinkle  the crumbs on the baked pasta.
   Note: I think you could just use some panko and brown the top of the casserole with the crumbs on at the end of baking. I did like the fresh crumbs--I'd suggest adding them directly to each serving, and storing any extra in a ziploc outside of the fridge so they don't get soggy. 
   
   
   Bechamel
   • 2 tbsp. butter
   • 1 finely chopped shallot
   • 1/4 cup flour
   • 2 cups milk, warmed
   • 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
   • Salt and pepper

   DIRECTIONS:

   1. Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in flour for 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in warm milk; bring to boil and cook for 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Remove from heat and stir in parmesan and 1/4 tsp. each salt and pepper.

Cookish: What's for lunch?

Continuing with lunches to take to work or school, here's a dish that can be eaten hot or cold.

Peanut/Sesame Noodles
Ingredients
2 tbs peanut butter
1 tbs tahini
2 tbs soy sauce
1/4 tsp chili garlic sauce
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1 tbs rice vinegar
1 tbs honey
1/2 pkg whole wheat spaghetti
up to 1 cup pasta cooking water
1-1 1/2 cups shredded chicken
1 pkg broccoli slaw
sesame seeds

Mix the first 9 ingredients together for the sauce. Boil the noodles, setting aside 1 cup of the boiling water before draining. Toss the pasta, chicken, and broccoli slaw together. Add enough water to the sauce to make it the consistency of heavy cream. Toss with the other ingredients. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and eat, or refrigerate for lunch the next day.

Cookish: What's for Lunch?

Well, I am back in school now, so I have been looking for things to make for lunch that are good to eat cold or room temperature (access to a microwave is now limited for me!). One of the first things I went to was pasta salad: easy to put together and eat for a week. Here is the latest incarnation:

Ingredients

2 ears of corn, roasted my favorite way, kernels cut off the cob

1 large, ripe tomato, chopped

1 can black beans, rinsed

sliced carrots

1/2 box rotini pasta, cooked & cooled

tomatillo salsa, to taste (1/4-1/2 cup)

salt & pepper

Toss all of the ingredients together and there you go! You can certainly add onions if you are a fan. I don't even really like tomatoes, but since I was going for a quasi-Mexican dish, I figured they were appropriate, and they really were delicious.

Cookish: What's for dinner?

Mom's Pasta Salad

So my momma makes awesome Italian pasta salad, despite being not even a little bit Italian. I am going to include her recipe below, and then list my changes below that.

1 bag/box rainbow rotini (16 oz)

1/4 head broccoli, chopped

1/4 head cauliflower, chopped

Parmesan cheese

1 package pepperoni, sliced

garlic powder

1/2 large onion, thinly sliced

1 can artichoke hearts, drained

1 jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained, marinade reserved

1 bottle Wishbone Italian dressing

Boil the pasta. Two minutes before the pasta is done, add the broccoli and cauliflower to the pot. When pasta is done, drain. Chop the artichoke hearts. Coat the pasta and veggies with cheese while hot. Add garlic powder. When cool, add the rest of the veggies & pepperoni and add the dressing.

My changes: I leave out the onion and the pepperoni. I also use a whole head of broccoli and a whole head of cauliflower to up the veggie quotient. I also add a few chopped carrots and chopped sun-dried tomatoes and sliced black olives. I used the sun-dried tomatoes that come in a package, not the ones in the jar. They're a little salty, so I chop them pretty small. I also add everything together--except the dressing--while it's hot. I add about half the dressing while its hot--mainly because I always want to eat it, even while it's hot. Then I let it cool and add more as needed. I also use reduced-fat, store brand Italian dressing because I am cheap!

I love this pasta salad. It makes a really large amount, so it's great for a picnic or potluck, but I love it so much that I always eat way more than I should. Leaving out the pepperoni, it will make vegetarians happy, and if you've got vegans in the crowd, I guess you can leave out the cheese--but what a shame that would be!

Cookish: What's for Lenten dinner?

Continuing our theme, the next easy Lenten inspiration may be obvious: Tomato sauce! It is easy and cheap to make at home, and can really be delicious. Here are some ideas for what to do with it:

• Easiest one: pasta and sauce. Jazz it up by using some different pasta shapes: spaghetti, rotini, penne, cavatappi, farfalle--anything you like! You can also jazz it up with some extra vefggies: sauteed mushrooms, peas, eggplant, or spinach (call it Florentine!). You can add some cream to make a rosa sauce or turn it into vodka cream sauce.
• Pizza! Use refrigerated dough or make your own, and top it any way you like. You can also make individual bagel or English muffin pizzas.
• You can poach eggs directly in tomato sauce and serve over toast (assuming no one in your family is allergic to eggs!)
• Use it making rice (you need a little for the Mexican rice I posted the other day)
• Eggplant Parmesan.
• Lasagna!
• Shrimp fra Diavolo--shrimp cooked in a spicy tomato sauce

Usually, I sauté some onion and garlic and add canned crushed tomatoes and/or whole canned tomatoes, basil, oregano, crushed red pepper, a little sugar, and let it cook down, but I recently tried a new recipe from Smitten Kitchen (one of my favorite blogs, as you know). Here's the original recipe: http://smittenkitchen.com/2010/01/tomato-sauce-with-butter-and-onions/

It could not be easier and is so delicious! No chopping! Here's what I did:

Tomato Sauce with Butter and Onions

28 ounces whole peeled tomatoes from a can (I used generic San Marzano-style tomatoes with basil from my local grocery)

5 tablespoons butter

1 medium-sized yellow onion, peeled and halved

2 medium garlic cloves, peeled

red pepper flakes, to taste

Salt to taste

Put the tomatoes (do not drain), onion, garlic, red pepper, and butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Bring the sauce to a simmer then lower the heat to keep the sauce at a slow, steady simmer for about 45 minutes, or until droplets of fat float free of the tomatoes. Stir occasionally, crushing the tomatoes against the side of the pot with a wooden spoon. Remove from heat, discard the onion, add salt to taste.

Serve with pasta, with or without grated parmesan cheese to pass.

*When cooking your pasta, PLEASE add more salt than you think you should. The pasta water should be salty like sea water--it is the only way to add flavor to the pasta itself and it does make a difference.

** if making this for pizza, add some oregano

***I simmered with the lid on and the sauce was pretty thin. Next time I will simmer with the lid off to let the sauce thicken.

Cookish: What's for dinner?

Eggplant Parm Ravioli

This recipe is adapted from Rachael Ray Magazine.

1 large eggplant (1 1/2 lbs), peeled and coarsely chopped

EVOO

3 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled

salt and pepper

1 1/2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese

1/3 cup grated or shredded Parmesan cheese, plus more for topping

4 small vine-ripened tomatoes, chopped

fresh or dried basil

12 egg roll wrappers

Put on a large pot of salted water to boil. Put the eggplant in the food process and process until finely chopped. (You may have to do this in batches.) In a large skillet, heat enough olive oil to coat the bottom (1-1 1/2 tbs) over medium high heat. Add one smashed clove of garlic and cook until golden, 1-2 minutes. Remove the clove. Add the eggplant, salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until browned (about 10 minutes). Remove the eggplant to a bowl to cool for 5 minutes, then add the cheeses to the bowl and mix well. In the skillet add another 1-1 1/2 tbs of olive oil, the tomatoes, salt and pepper. If using dried basil, add it now, and cook about 4 minutes, until tomatoes are softened. (If using fresh basil, add at the end).

Fill each eggroll wrapper with about 2 tbs of the eggplant filling. Wet two sides of the wrapper and fold in half diagonally to make large triangular ravioli. Press out all of the air and seal tightly. Once the water boils, drop in the ravioli in batches. Depending upon the size of the pot, you can probably cook 4-5 at a time. Cook for 3-4 minutes per batch. Fill four bowls with 3 ravioli each and top with tomato sauce and a sprinkle of parm. (You can add a little of the cooking water to the sauce, if you wish, but my tomatoes were juicy enough).

These were really delish! Please give them a try.

Cookish: What's for dinner?

The grocery store had a sale on pasta this week. So, I bought myself some wagon wheel pasta. Yes, wagon wheels. I wanted to feel like I was 5.

But then I decided to grow up. So, I stopped eating them covered in nothing but grated cheese and made myself some tomato sauce.

It was a little healthier, but still fun, thanks to the wagon wheels.

Ingredients

2-3 small shallots

2-3 cloves of garlic

4-5 mushrooms (more or less based on your preference)

salt

pepper

olive oil

oregano

basil

red pepper flakes

one large can crushed tomatoes

one large can diced tomatoes

chicken stock

Heavy cream

Mince the shallots and saute in olive oil. Chop the mushrooms and add to the pot. Saute for a few minutes; add grated/minced garlic. Add black pepper, salt, oregano, basil, and red pepper flakes. Add the crushed tomatoes. Drain the diced tomatoes slightly and add to the pan. Use a small amount of chicken stock (or water) to swish out the crushed tomato can and add to the sauce, so you get every last drop! Simmer for 15-20 minutes (or longer, if you have more time). Taste for seasoning. Remove from the heat and add some cream (start with 1/4 cup and add more to taste). Creamy and delicious! Serve over wagon wheels (or pasta of your choice) with some Parmesan on top. (You could also add some mozzarella or ricotta, if you want extra creamy yumminess. Or use cream cheese in place of heavy cream. Ooh!)

Cookish: What's for dinner?

Creamy Linguine
8 oz mushrooms, sliced
1/4 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 bunch asparagus
1/2 box whole wheat linguine
olive oil
salt
pepper
flour
peas
tarragon (optional)
1/2 cup cream
chicken stock


Saute mushrooms & onions over medium-high heat. Let the liquid in the mushrooms cook out and continue cooking until liquid cooks off. Don't add salt until after mushrooms are sauteed. When mushrooms are brown and liquid has cooked off, push them to the side, add some more oil (or butter) and a couple teaspoons of flour. Let flour cook for a minute, then add some chicken stock and stir. Add salt and pepper. Add asparagus and a couple pinches of dried tarragon (optional). As sauce thinkens, add some more stock, and then a couple of handsful of peas and the cream. Stir. Allow peas and asparagus to cook. Add some parmesean cheese. Taste for salt and pepper.


Boil about 1/2 box of linguini. Reserve some of the pasta cooking liquid before draining. Toss with sauce, loosening with pasta water or chicken stock as needed.

Cookish: What's for dinner?

I guess we can call this an attempt at lo mein.
Ingredients
1/4 onion
8 oz mushrooms
2 carrots
olive oil
salt
garlic clove
1 pkg frozen snow peas
3/4 cup frozen peas
cabbage
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 cup water
1 boullion cube
sesame oil
sesame seeds
1 tsp chili-garlic paste
2 pkg soy sauce (take-out size)
1 heaping tsp hoisin

Chop onions and sweat in oil w/ a little salt. Sice mushrooms, add to onions, and saute. Add 1 cup water and boullion cube; let simmer and begin to reduce. Cut carrots into matchsticks or circles, add to pan and allow to cook for a few minutes. Grate in garlic (using your handy microplane. You have one, right?); add chili-garlic paste. Mix cornstarch with soy and add to the veggies. Add snow peas and peas. Add cabbage (I used the plain green stuff, but you could use napa). Add hoisin sauce and a drizzle of sesame oil. Toss with 1/2 pkg of whole wheat thin spaghetti. Top with sesame seeds, and enjoy!

Cookish: What's for Dinner?

I have watched many episodes of Rachael Ray where she has used anchovies to flavor pasta and every time she says they just add a nutty, salty quality, and they don't taste fishy. I'll be honest--I didn't believe her, and I was afraid to try it out.


But, when I recently went to visit a friend, he made us pasta with anchovies, and WOW, it was delicious! So, when I came home I had to replicate it.


I was cooking just for myself, but the quantities below will feed at least 2, and it can easily be doubled. Serve with a salad and some crusty bread--yum!


Anchovy pasta

1/2 tin of anchovies, chopped
Olive Oil
1/2 onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and cut into thick matchsticks
garlic
sun-dried tomatoes and/or black olives, chopped
italian seasoning
salt & Pepper
1/3 box of multi-grain or whole wheat thin spaghetti
1 chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
Fresh parsley, chopped (optional)
lemon juice (optional)


Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet--this is a large component of the sauce, so use some more than if you were just going to saute onions. Add the chopped anchovies and onions to the pan and caramelize the onions--this will take a while, so be patient. Put your water on to boil for the pasta, and in a separate skillet, add the chicken and season with salt, pepper, and italian seasoning. Go easy on the salt because the anchovies are pretty salty. (But don't skip salting the pasta water! Please tell me you always liberally salt your pasta water--it really does make a difference in flavor.) Once your onions have sauteed for a couple of minutes, add the carrots, garlic, italian seasoning, and pepper. Continue to saute until the onions are caramelized and carrots are tender. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and/or olives. When the pasta is done, the onions are caramellized, and the chicken is cooked, toss it all together, add parsely and a squeeze of lemon juice. Taste for salt and add if needed. Enjoy! (A little bit of feta cheese might be tasty in this, too...)