Roasted Cauliflower Pasta in a Lemon Cream Sauce

Chef Chris DiMinno at Clyde Common in Portland is my new hero.  He made a dish of roasted cauliflower with a lemon cream pasta that blew my mind.  Of course I had to try to make something similar, and this looked like just the recipe to start me off, even though the reviews are pretty hit or miss with some people loving it and others thinking it was too bland.
To start things off, I oven roasted my cauliflower with olive oil and garlic powder - 400 for about 30 minutes, with a quick stir in the middle until it's soft and a bit golden brown.
I put on some whole wheat rotelli pasta once the cauliflower was done and while that was cooking, I started on the sauce.
The juice of one lemon to start, with a packet of concentrated chicken stock from Trader Joe's (I love that stuff), then a little bit of pasta water once the pasta was done to make a sauce.  I cooked the pasta til it was still a bit underdone so it could continue to cook with the sauce.  I used some fat free half and half, and a scoop of fat free sour cream to thicken the sauce and make it creamy - though it really just went kind of gritty - I guess I DO need some fat in there somewhere.  I seasoned it up with a bit more garlic powder and the juice of another lemon, some salt & a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.
I had some (boiled - I know, shush) chicken that I used to give the dish a bit of protein power.
The texture was all wrong, but the taste was really good.  I'll keep working on it.

The recipe I mentioned above seems like it might offer up better results - I should've taken my own advice.

3 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 lemon, quartered
2 teaspoons garlic powder, divided
1 teaspoon ground black pepper, divided
2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 (8 ounce) package rotelle pasta
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest  

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place chicken in a lightly greased baking dish. Squeeze lemon over both sides of the chicken breasts and season both sides using 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder and 3/4 teaspoon pepper. Bake for 40 minutes, or until juices run clear and chicken is no longer pink inside. 

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, season the chicken broth with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Bring to a boil and add lemon juice and pasta. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until all liquid is absorbed, about 25 minutes. 

Cut cooked chicken into bite-sized pieces and stir into cooked pasta, along with the cream and lemon zest. Cook, stirring, over low heat for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Stir thoroughly before serving.

Pasta with sausage and peas

I know I've had delicious pastas before that featured crumbled sausage and peas.  I had some chicken (uh, jalapeno chicken actually) sausages in the fridge, and my roommate had some cream and frozen peas that looked stealable.  This could've gone horribly wrong, but actually turned into a pretty tasty Scavenged Dinner.
I sliced up the sausage (it had no casing, and is pre cooked or something so I couldn't crumble it) and set it aside.
I heated two minced garlic cloves in some olive oil til fragrant, then added the sausage.  Once I felt like things were probably pretty close to heated through, I added the frozen peas, the last of my 1% milk, some cream, salt and pepper, and 1 tbsp or so of butter.  I wanted to add lots of romano or parmesan, but only had like, 2 tbsp, boo.  I let it thicken up and added a little bit of the pasta water to make it nice and saucy.  :)
It actually turned out really well - the sauce was super flavorful and I will totally make it again.

Here is a really close recipe, though I did not use anywhere NEAR the amount of cream or butter it calls for!

Wild. Boar. Ragu. . . . Oink.

I'm finally doing it y'all.
Wild Boar Ragu.

Patrick and I stopped in to Bud's Custom Meats in Penngrove and picked up a couple of hunks of wild swine (and Bloody Mary jerky, of course) and I set to work marinating for my ragu.
I found this recipe on Chow and proceeded to screw it up immediately by combining ALL ingredients into a bag and allowing them to marinate overnight.  :/
Luckily I did not destroy it (wild piggies are spency) - in fact, it was amazing.

I also stopped into Whole Paycheck and picked up some gnocchi and a little hunk of Parmesan and I am ready to get pan searing and give those Myth gnocchi of my memories a run for their money.

2 pounds wild boar tenderloin, cut into large chunks
carrot, small dice (about 1/2 cup) - I used baby carrots since that's what I had, but you could use 1 large one
2 ribs celery, small dice (about 1/2 cup)
1 medium yellow onion, small dice
4 medium garlic cloves, crushed
1 bay leaf

3 fresh thyme sprigs or 2-3 teaspoons dried
1 cup hearty Italian red wine, such as Sangiovese - I used a Pinot Meunier I got from my wine club that I wasn't wild about, but was good quality so I felt bad chucking it and kept it to cook with
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 -4 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cups low-sodium beef broth (or brown veal stock if you'd prefer)
sliced mushrooms
Parmesan or Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

 

Combine boar with carrot, celery, onion, garlic, bay leaf, thyme,tomatoes, tomato paste, broth and red wine in a sealable plastic bag and refrigerate overnight.

Heat the oven to 300°F and arrange the rack in the middle. Remove meat from the marinade and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Reserve marinade for later.

Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven or a large heavy-bottomed pot with a tightfitting lid over medium-high heat. When it shimmers, add meat and sear until nicely browned, about 6 minutes per side. (You may have to do this in 2 batches.)

Add reserved marinade, and bring to a simmer.

Cover the pot and place in the oven until meat is fork tender, about 2 hours (but check it - ours was ready after an hour and a half). 

 

I thought it wasn't quite rich enough at this point, so I added another tablespoon or two of tomato paste and stirred it through, and added some sliced brown mushrooms and put it back in the oven for 10 or 15 minutes.

 

When meat is tender, shred it with two forks and mix well. Keep ragu warm over low heat until ready to combine with pan seared gnocchi. 

For those pan seared gnocchi?  I just put a tablespoon of unsalted and a tablespoon of salted butter in my pan (because I had them, not because I think you have to - I think all of one or the other would be fine and if you use unsalted you can season to taste) and allowed it to melt.

I chucked in the gnocchi and tossed them about to brown on most sides and crisp up a little.  A couple of scoops of the ragu and a hearty dusting of grate Parmesan and you're ready to swoon.

It would also be great over tagliatelle.

I don't know if there are many things better for a chilly December night.

Short Ribs

One of my many mailing lists (snooth.com) got me all worked up for some yummy ribs.  Especially after I watched Giada make some the other day.  Here are both recipes for two very different takes on short ribs.  There has got to be a way to do Giada's in the slow cooker, so I'll have to work on that.

Zinfandel Short Ribs
2 cups good-quality Sonoma Zinfandel
3 tablespoons butter
1 small red onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups low-sodium beef broth
4 pounds cross-cut beef short ribs, 1/2 inch thick
Steak seasoning salt, as needed

To make the sauce: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat the Zinfandel. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes, until reduced by half. Remove from the heat and set aside. In another medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and garlic and cook for about 4 minutes, stirring often until the onion is tender. Add the flour and mix well until blended. Add the beef broth and the reduced Zinfandel and mix well. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, until thickened.

Prepare the grill for cooking over direct medium heat. Season the ribs on both sides with the steak seasoning salt. Place the ribs directly on the cooking grate. Cook for 5 minutes. Flip and brush with the sauce. Cook for another 5 minutes and repeat. Continue flipping and brushing for about 40 minutes, until the ribs are browned and tender. Discard any remaining sauce. Remove to a platter to serve.

Penne with Braised Short Ribs

4 pounds beef short ribs

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

1 large onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

5 Roma tomatoes, cut into eighths

1 cup red wine, such as Cabernet Sauvignon

3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 cups low-sodium beef broth

1 pound penne pasta

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Place an oven rack in the lower 1/3 of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Season the ribs with salt and pepper. In a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or ovenproof stock pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. In batches, add the ribs and brown on all sides, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the ribs and set aside. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, wine and mustard. Bring the mixture to a boil and scrape up the brown bits that cling to the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Return the ribs to the pan. Add the beef broth, cover the pan and place in the oven for 2 1/2 hours until the meat is fork-tender and falls easily from the bone.

Remove the ribs from the cooking liquid. Using a large spoon, remove any excess fat from the surface of the cooking liquid. Using a ladle, transfer the cooking liquid in the bowl of a food processor. Process until the mixture is smooth. Pour the sauce into a saucepan and keep warm over low heat. Remove the meat from the bones. Discard the bones. Using 2 forks, shred the meat into small pieces. Stir the shredded meat into the sauce. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain the pasta and place in a large serving bowl. Using a slotted spoon, remove the meat from the sauce and add to the pasta. Pour 1 cup of the sauce over the pasta. Toss well and thin out the pasta with more sauce, if needed. Sprinkle the pasta with Parmesan cheese and chopped parsley before serving.

** Reader reviews add a bunch of great ideas:
- add tomato paste toward the end to thicken the sauce and add a little depth of flavor
- serve with apple and acorn squash puree versus pasta
- use pork or a traditional roast instead of short ribs
- serve the ribs whole rather than shredding them

Butternut Squash Ravioli

(uncooked)

When I need to get my mind off of something, I tend to retreat to the kitchen. The more involved and complicated the recipe, the better. Which means when I'm stressed out or sad, my place is a great spot for time intensive dishes that I don't usually make or have never tried before. (Come by, bring Tupperware.)
This weekend I bought my very first mandolin down at Soko (plus some plates, and bowls, and spoons, and some slippers over at Ichiban Kan, and maybe a couple of other random things because it's Japantown and THA CUTE and who can help themselves, yes?). I was all excited to make a tian and was feeling ready to cook my cares away with some nice, comforting, roasted veggies. As I wandered around Nijiya Market waiting for something to tickle my fancy (once I realized they wouldn't have any of the veggies I was wanting for my tian), my eyes fell on the wonton and gyoza wrappers.
Ravioli.
Yes.
Another hoof over the bridge to Safeway, a 20 minute search for a shopping cart (seriously? I ended up with one from Ikea that I found hidden in a corner of the parking lot; please note that the nearest Ikea is like 12 miles away, over the Bay Bridge), and I got down to business. Spinach and ricotta? Butternut squash? Something mushroomy? I went with the squash thinking that since I was being so healthy with my tian, a little brown butter sage sauce wouldn't hurt anyone.
I got my inspiration here, was immediately side tracked by this,* bookmarked for a later date * and then got down to business.

Butternut Squash Ravioli
1 butternut squash - I'm guessing it was about 2 pounds
4 tbsp room temperature butter
2-3 tbsp honey
salt & pepper
a pinch of pumpkin pie spice - maybe 1/4 tsp (or to taste)
1 pkg dumpling wrappers
water
4 tbsp butter
1 tbsp of chopped sage

Heat the oven to 400 and cut the squash in half lengthwise. Scrape out the pumpkiny seeds and strings and throw those away. Smear the halves with 2 tbsp of the butter (1 tbsp for each half) and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake until fork tender; I think this took me about 45 minutes - you know I don't pay attention to that stuff.
Let the squash cool a bit and then scrape out the flesh into the bowl of your food processor. Add the remaining 2 tbsp of butter, the pumpkin pie spice and the honey, and puree until smooth. Give it a taste and decide what you think it needs - more salt, honey, butter, whatever. I was happy with this blend, but you might like it sweeter or richer. The original recipe I looked at for butternut squash ravioli called for you to add heavy cream which you could also do.

Get yourself a little "finger bowl" of water for sealing the ravioli. Dollop about 1 tbsp of filling onto each pastry square and wet two of the sides with the water. Press closed, and then seal by pressing firmly with a fork (but not so hard that you tear the dough). The goal here is to get a nice plump ravioli, but without having the filling smoosh out when you try to close it (which makes it tough to seal, and they're more likely to bust open when you cook them). I fold mine in half like triangles, but you could go a step further and bring the ends around to make them look more like tortellini.

They don't take much to get cooked - a couple of minutes in boiling, salted water and they're done. Be careful though - they're super delicate.

While mine were in the water I put 4 tbsp of butter into a pan and once it was melted down I added the sage. I let that cook until it was brown, then carefully drained each ravioli and put it into the butter to coat. A little sprinkling of some parmesan cheese, some crushed, toasted walnuts; maybe some biscotti or something, and voila. Nom.

I served mine with the veggie tian I love making, and a mixed greens salad with roasted onion vinaigrette with goat cheese and tomatoes.

Joe's Spaghetti Bolognese

My roommate makes the most amazing, homey, hearty, rich, robust, delicious spag bol I've ever had in my life. Aside from the wild boar ragu at Myth (* sob *). note to self to get resos at Zinnia for Sean O'Briens wild boar meat sauce; nom.

He's made it twice now and every time I smell it cooking I come running. The first time I just had to have a taste, even though I had already eaten. The second time I was lucky enough to get my own gigantic portion. I determined then and there, that I simply must have this dish for my birthday dinner. He seemed to think I was teasing him, but oh no. This spag bol is the way I think spag bol was meant to taste. It's perfect.

Since he'll be off in lalaland (psh) for my birthday, I can't demand he make it for me and my friends as a gift in honor of the kickoff to my 32nd year on Earth. Damn.

What's a girl to do except to insist that he divulge all of his Mexican-English based Italian cuisine secrets? Last night was the night that he looked over my shoulder and walked me through it and well; I came close. There is just something that I can't quite grasp. Some weird, teeny tiny little spark that I was just unable to capture. Is it umami? Bay leaf? Acidity? I cannot tell but it was woefully absent from last night's attempt. To say I'm devastated is to put it mildly. That spark is what I wanted to serve! Without it, it's just spag bol! Good spag bol, but not Joe's LIFE ALTERING spag bol. It's a depth of flavor that I can't quite figure out, but I know I felt like I wanted to add a little wine to the sauce thinking that's what it was.

My birthday sucks already. :o( I hope someone brings cake.

Joe's Spaghetti Bolognese
serves 4-5
1 half of a medium/large white onion, finely chopped
1 half of a shallot, finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, smashed
8 oz of sliced mushrooms
1 lb ground beef (80/20 or 85/15 - you need some fat)
Mild Italian sausages - enough for each person to have one (I also used some of those Aidell's sundried tomato ones)
1 jar of Ralphs/Cala Foods tomato basil pasta sauce
pasta of your choice
olive oil
1-2 tbsp butter
salt & pepper
dried basil
oregano
4-5 bay leaves
Italian seasoning
red pepper flakes
Parmesan cheese

Put a tbsp of olive oil into a large saute pan over med-hi. Add the butter and let melt.
Toss in the clove of garlic, the shallots, and about half to 2/3 of the onion and saute for a minute. Add mushrooms and saute just til the mushies get some color and start to soften. Pour the onion/mushie mixture into a bowl and set aside.

In the same pan, add a teeny bit more oil (only if necessary to prevent sticking), and add the ground beef and remaining raw onion. Cook until browned and then pour off fat.
While meat is cooking in one pan, cook the sausages in another pan. Add a little oil so they don't stick, and sprinkle them with some Italian seasoning.

Add the jar of pasta sauce to the drained meat and stir the onion/mushie mixture back in. Toss in a tbsp or so of dried basil, a few dashes of red pepper flakes (you don't want it SPICY per se, just with a little bit of an undertone from the peppers), some oregano (1 - 2 tsps maybe?), and the bay leaves, and give it a good stir.
If the sausages are done, nestle them into the sauce as well, if not, you can do so once they are ready.

Let the sauce come to a boil, then reduce the heat and cover. Let simmer for 45 minutes or so; stirring a couple of times.

With 15 or so minutes left, get your pasta going.

Drain pasta, serve, and top with a generous portion of pasta sauce and a sausage. Top with a sprinkling of cheese.

Cry because of some undetermined depth of flavor that is missing that makes it not quite Joe's.
No wait, you don't even know what you're missing, so just enjoy it. I'll cry.

The clever gang over at Chowhound has plenty of nommy sounding suggestions too.

Mushroom pasta

After my bus decided to blow past me yesterday rather than stopping to pick me up, I decided to walk on a little further along the Embarcadero to the ferry building. I knew I had to come up with something for dinner, and what better place for culinary inspiration than there?
After impulse shopping with the hordes at Sur La Table (but I got one thing I actually needed, plus pirate cupcake papers and toppers), I ran right smack dab into one of my favorite shops in the whole wide world. Just like that, my decision was made - mushrooms it was. They had little mixed variety baskets for $5 so I picked up two.
But mushrooms and what? Steak or chicken? Pizza? Pasta?
Pasta!
Oh, but mushrooms and goat cheese are so good together. . . . okay, so I'll use some goat cheese too, why not?

Mushroom & Goat Cheese Pasta
Whole wheat egg noodles (or other whole wheat pasta you have on hand - probably not spaghetti)
2 baskets of assorted wild mushies (I'm guessing it was about a pound, but we could've happily eaten twice this amount)
chive goat cheese (make your own by mixing fresh chives in with softened goat cheese, or make life easy)
1 large chicken breast
seasonings of your choice for chicken - I typically use a combo of poultry seasoning, salt, pepper, and garlic and onion powders
4 tbsp I can't believe it's not butter (ICBINB)
1 large shallot, minced
2 large cloves of garlic, minced
olive oil
salt
lemon juice
black truffle oil

Clean and cut up the mushrooms. Place on a baking sheet, drizzled with olive oil and salt, and roast at 450 or 500 degrees until mushrooms are soft and browned - I have no idea how long this took because I am bad at this part. Stir once part way through.
Season and cook chicken in a pan over medium-high. You might want to butterfly the chicken to speed up cooking time.
In one tbsp of ICBINB, cook the shallots and garlic over medium heat until soft and fragarant - 4-5 minutes.
Once the mushrooms are done, add them to the shallots and garlic and add 1-2 more tbsp ICBINB as needed/desired.
Chop up chicken into bite sized pieces and add to mushroom mixture.

Drain pasta of most of the water, leaving a tablespoon or so behind. Add 1 tbsp ICBINB and leave on heat to melt down - 1-2 minutes. Add the mushroom mixture and stir to combine.
Stir in 1-2 tbsp of lemon juice.

Dish up pasta, sprinkle with chunks of goat cheese, and drizzle lightly with the truffle oil.
NOM.

Twain Harte Pasta

I don't know what else to call this since I think it was the pasta sauce that was the magical ingredient here. I have scoured the interwebs trying to find this sauce to refer to it here, but I can't remember what it's called and Twain Harte Market's website doesn't work quite like Safeway's. (Mel, if you feel like digging through your trash and reading the label for me, please post it in the comments!).
Melissa & Piia and I had some girl talk to catch up on so we decided to have a nice healthy South Beach dinner over at Mel's. She had all sorts of goods to choose from in whipping something up, and I brought over some of my homemade pesto. We cooked up some whole wheat rotini. I baked some chicken with Italian spices and gourmet sea salt on Mel's gorgeous Le Crueset grill pan which I covet, even though some of my fellow home cooks struggle with them. I browned the chicken on both sides (four breasts) and then popped it in the oven at 350 until it looked done.
We heated up this magical sauce from TH Market, and I added about 3/4 of a cup of my homemade pesto to the full can of sauce. We cut up the chicken, tossed that with the other 1/4 cup of pesto that I thinned out a bit with some extra olive oil and then added it to the sauce and pasta. A sprinkling of parmesan and voila. It was possibly the best pasta I have had in a long time. Thank God Mel sent home leftovers since I am about to pull a Dickerson and eat it for breakfast.
We also had a great salad with oranges (expertly supremed by Piia), sliced dried apricots, avocado, tomatoes, and red onions with a citrus vinaigrette. Num.

Zucchini & Sausage Carbonara

Another recipe you may not want to quote me on since I was inspired by a couple of recipes when making it. I'd say I was inspired by Emeril's use of sausage, but more closely followed Jamie's.

Zucchini & Sausage Carbonara
2 Johnsonville sweet Italian sausages, removed from casings
1/4 lb ground turkey (I had it on hand and threw it in, but you could easily just use another sausage link)
2 green zucchini
2 yellow squash
(I also used one variegated green/yellow squash, but you can just use one more of a green or yellow)
1 pound of freshly made whole wheat fettuccine from the farmer's market (or dry, whole wheat penne)
4 large egg yolks
1/2 c cream (I filled my measuring cup half to 2/3 of the way with cream, and then filled it the rest of the way with ff half and half)
2 good handfuls freshly grated Parm (I had shredded, so that's what I used)
1 tsp of thyme (smoosh it up in your hand or between your fingers before adding)
olive oil
salt and pepper

Put a large pot of salted water on to boil.
Halve and then quarter any larger zucchini lengthwise. Cut out and discard any fluffy middle bits, and slice the zucchini at an angle into pieces roughly the same size and shape as the penne. Smaller zucchini can simply be sliced finely. Your water will now be boiling, so add the penne to the pan and cook according to the package instructions. If you're using fresh pasta - hold off on this until the sausage and zukes are cooked since it will cook up so quickly.

Add a couple of tsp of olive oil to a pan and heat over med-hi. Add meat and cook until no longer pink, breaking it up into small crumbles as you go. Depending on how big your pan is, maybe you can get the zucchini in too, but I took the meat out, leaving all of it's meaty goodness behind in the pan, and cooked the zukes up with some salt, pepper, and the thyme so they dry fried a little, getting nice and brown in some spots, but soft and cooked through overall.

To make the carbonara sauce, put the egg yolks into a bowl, add the cream and half the Parmesan, and mix together with a fork. Season lightly with salt and pepper and set aside.

It's very important to get this next bit right or your carbonara could end up ruined. You need to work quickly. When the pasta is cooked, drain it, reserving a little of the cooking water. Immediately, toss the pasta in the pan with the zucchini & sausage, then remove from the heat and add a ladleful of the reserved cooking water and your creamy sauce. Stir together quickly. (No more cooking now, otherwise you'll scramble the eggs.)

Add more of the cooking water if needed to get a nice shiny sauce and top with the rest of the parm. I tore up some squash blossoms on top as garnish as well. Serve immediately!

Pesto

How on Earth I haven't posted this yet I can't even imagine. This is such a summer staple. I make a few batches and freeze them in ice cube trays or other small containers (and if I'm feeling super housewifey, I seal them in those little seal-a-meal bags) for later use. Great on pizza, pasta, sandwiches, as a snack with cheese and crackers, mixed in with other cheese or red sauce. . . . everything basically. Feel free to edit the amount of garlic to your taste if you don't like it too garlicky. You can sub other nuts for the pistachios as well - I just made it with walnuts to avoid the whole salmonella scare or whatever it was.

6 small garlic cloves
1/2 cup shelled pistachio nuts
1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
1/2 cup olive oil
2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
(secret ingredients:)
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon Tabasco

In a food processor with the motor running chop the garlic fine, add the pistachios, the olive oil, the soy sauce, the Tabasco and the basil, then the cheese. Puree the mixture until it is smooth.

I also do a sundried tomato pesto from time to time, but I've yet to nail down a particular recipe. I'll put that on my to do list. Until then:

1 small jar of sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil
few cloves of garlic
1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Romano
salt and pepper to taste
extra olive oil in case it gets too thick

Might be nice to combine the two as well - yum.

With both the sun-dried tomato and the regular pesto recipes, plus a thing of cream cheese you can make that awesome three layer torta - sundried, cream cheese, basil + crackers or baguette = perfect party snack.
Like this one.

Spray a container with nonstick spray. Line with plastic wrap, extending plastic over sides. I typically just do three thin layers - tomato on the bottom, cream cheese in the middle, pesto on top. Cover and chill overnight. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.)

Truffled Mac n Cheese

Uh. Muh. Gawd.

nocoupons

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• Good olive oil
• 1/2 pound shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and caps sliced 1/2-inch
• 1/2 pound cremini mushrooms, stems removed and caps sliced 1/2-inch
• 3 tablespoons cream sherry
• Kosher salt
• 1 pound pasta, such as cavatappi
• 3 ounces white truffle butter (recommended: D'Artagnan)
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 quart whole milk, scalded
• 12 ounces Gruyere cheese, grated (4 cups)
• 8 ounces extra-sharp Cheddar, grated (2 1/2 to 3 cups)
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 3 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley leaves
• 1 1/2 cups fresh white bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Heat the butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large (12-inch) saute pan, add the mushrooms, and cook over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes, until they are tender. Add the sherry and continue to saute for a few more minutes, until the sherry is absorbed. Set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add a splash of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Add the pasta and cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until al dente. Drain well.

Meanwhile, melt the truffle butter in a large (4-quart) saucepan and whisk in the flour. Cook for 2 minutes over low heat, stirring constantly with a whisk. Slowly whisk in the hot milk and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the white sauce is thickened and creamy. Off the heat, add the Gruyere, Cheddar, 1 1/2 tablespoons salt, the pepper, and nutmeg.

Combine the pasta, sauce, and mushrooms in a large bowl and pour them into a 10 by 13 by 2-inch baking dish.

Place the garlic and parsley in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and pulse until they're minced. Add the bread crumbs and pulse to combine. Sprinkle the crumbs over the pasta and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the sauce is bubbly and the crumbs are golden brown. Serve hot.

Lasagna

I love lasagna. Not like Garfield loves lasagna, but I do love it. It says family to me - it's sort of an ongoing joke that at any Romo family gathering there will be a big old tray of Stouffer's lasagna. This (and grandma's spaghetti sauce) are why I plan our Mexican-Irish family dinner at an Italian restaurant every year. Whenever I'm missing my grandma it means one of three dinners will be on the table soon: lasagna, stew, or spaghetti with meat sauce. We'll get into her orange Jell-O salad later.
In any case, I've been home sick the majority of the week, and we all know that means nonstop HGTV and Food Network (since it doesn't really matter when I fall asleep and miss half of or perhaps three shows). Drawback being that I don't really have any food in the house and this is somewhat torturous. Yesterday and today featured lasagna and now I'm confident I'll have to make it next week. Give me a shout if you want to come over.
I think whenever I've made lasagna in the past I've used the recipe from the BH&G cookbook my dad got me.
Following are three recipes: the BH&G version, Ina Garten's Portobello mushroom lasagna, and finally Robin Miller's version, only because I love that she made a ton of ground beef and used it for lasagna one night, tacos another, and sloppy joes another. How easy is it to cook up a bunch of meat on a Sunday, have a delicious lasagna that night and leftovers for lunch during the week, then spend 15 minutes or so making tacos or joes?!

BH&G LASAGNA
3/4 lb of your favorite ground meat (chicken, turkey, sausage, pork, beef)
1 c chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can of diced tomatoes (7 1/2 oz)
1 8 0z can tomato sauce
1 6 0z can tomato paste
2 tsp dried basil, crushed
1 tsp dried oregano, crushed
(optional 1 tsp crushed fennel seed)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
6 lasagna noodles (5 oz)
1 beaten egg
2 c ricotta cheese
1/2 c grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
1 tbsp dried parsley flakes
8 oz of mozzarella (slice it if it's not already sliced)

Of course I typically use lowfat cheeses and chicken or turkey meat when I make this, but go with what you like.

Put the pasta water on to boil.
SAUCE - heat a small amount of olive oil over medium heat and add onions and garlic, cooking til fragrant. Add the meat and cook until it's well browned and drain off any fat. Stir in the tomatoes (undrained!), tomato sauce, tomato paste, basil, oregano, (fennel if you're using it) and s&p. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes stirring occassionally.
NOODLES - while the sauce is simmering, cook the noodles according to package directions (I pull them when they're still pretty al dente so they don't get too mushy) and drain.
**note: you don't want the noodles to sit around after they've been cooked and drained or they go all stiff and weird**
FILLING - Again, while sauce is simmering, and noodles are cooking, combine egg, ricotta, 1/4 c of the grated cheese and the parsley flakes.
ASSEMBLY - In a 12 x 7 1/2 x 2" baking dish, add a small amount of sauce in the bottom. Lay half of the cooked noodles in, trimming if necessary. Spread with half of the cheese filling and top that with half of the meat sauce and half of the mozzarella cheese. Repeat layers sprinkling the remaining grated cheese on top.
BAKE - 375 for 30-35 minutes til heated through. Let stand at least 10 minutes before serving. Serves 8.

This can be made ahead of time; just stop before baking. Cover with plastic wrap for up to 24 hours. When ready to bake, remove the plastic, cover with foil and bake in a 375 oven for 35 minutes. Uncover and cook an additional 20 minutes or til heated through.


BAREFOOT CONTESSA'S PORTOBELLO MUSHROOM LASAGNA
Kosher salt
good olive oil
3/4 lb dried lasagna noodles
4 cups whole milk (I bet I'd use low or nonfat)
12 tbsp unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks)
1/2 cup AP flour
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 lbs portobello mushrooms
1 c freshly ground Parmesan

Preheat the oven to 375.
SAUCE - bring the milk to a simmer in a saucepan. Set aside. Melt one stick of butter (8 tbsp) in a large saucepan. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Pour the hot milk into the butter-flour mixture all at once. Add 1 tbsp salt, the pepper & nutmeg, and cook over medium-low, stirring first with the wooden spoon and then a whisk, for 3-5 minutes til thick. Set aside off heat.
Separate mushroom stems from caps and discard the stems. Slice the caps 1/4" thick. Heat 2 tbsp oil and 2 tbsp butter in a 12" saute pan. When the butter melts, add half the mushrooms, sprinkle with salt, and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes til they are tender and release some of their juices. Toss occassionally to make sure they are cooking evenly. Repeat with remaining mushrooms and set aside.
NOODLES - while preparing the sauce, cook the noodles, drain and set aside.
ASSEMBLY - spread some sauce in the bottom of an 8 x 12 x 2" dish. Arrange a layer of noodles on top, then more sauce, 1/3 of the mushrooms, and 1/4 c of the Parmesan. Repeat layers two more times. Final layer should be noodles, sauce and remaining Parmesan.
BAKE - at 375 for 45 minutes or til top is browned and sauce is bubbly and hot. Allow to sit 15 minutes before serving.

And because a) this post is damn long enough, and b) you can use the same basic idea to do this your own without following these exact recipes, (and maybe c), I've only made one of her recipes and I'm not quite comfortable vouching for the fact that all of her stuff turns out well with only one try under my belt) I'm only posting links to Robin's.
Lasagna
Tacos
Sloppy Joes

Stroganoff

Last night for the First Official Roommate Dinner I tried to combine a healthy "South Beach" version of chicken stroganoff, with beef stroganoff, which I thought McRoomie would like better.
It was kind of meh so I'm going to have to work on this.

Beef Stroganoff
1 lb or so of beef loin, thinly sliced (I freeze it for an hour or so to get it firm enough to slice easily)
1-2 cloves minced garlic
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
3 cups of sliced mushrooms
1/3 cup beef broth
1/4 French red wine
1 1/2 cups lowfat sour cream
salt and pepper
olive oil
whole wheat pappardelle pasta

Put the pasta water on to boil and chop your veggies and meat. Once the water is boiling, cook your pasta but don't forget about it or it will get gummy.
Put 1-2 tbsp of olive oil in a large pan and heat over medium high. Add garlic and onions and cook for a minute or two until fragrant and soft. Add bell pepper, mushrooms, broth and wine. It should be noted that while I liked the flavors I got from the broth and the wine, my sauce was a bit thin for my liking, so I might cut back. In fact, I might just use a tsp or so of the concentrated beef broth that comes in the little one cup packets from Trader Joe's, instead of mixing it with water as the directions on the package state. That way I'll get the meaty flavor, with a bit less liquid. The mushrooms added a ton of their own, so I think this would work well.
Lay strips of beef on top of mushrooms and cook for a minute or so, flipping and stirring as necessary to cook the meat.
Stir in the sour cream and salt and pepper to taste.
Drain the pasta and add it to the pan, stir to coat, serve, and ruminate over what you'll do differently next time. Consider sticking to the super yummy South Beach Swedish Meatball recipe from here on out.

More pasta sauce!

I think it's clear that there is some strong Italian blood in these Mexican Irish veins if my propensity for tomato sauces is any indication. My grandmother (the Irish part) made the yummiest bolognese around though, so maybe we're just creative geniuses with tomatoes.
Rather than purchase a jar of sauce last night, I figured I'd use up some of my many cans of tomatoes and make my own to go with the whole wheat three cheese tortellini I had.
2 cloves of garlic - smashed
1 medium onion - cut in half and very thinly sliced
2 cans tomatoes - I used one can of plum tomatoes with oregano and basil, and one can of diced tomatoes
3/4 can tomato paste
1-2 tbsp dried basil (to taste)
pinch of oregano
pinch of red pepper flakes
glug of olive oil

I went twice around my pot with the oil, let it heat over medium high, then added the garlic and onion and cooked until fragrant and just soft. Then I added the two cans of tomatoes and let cook for a few minutes.
Next, I added the tomato paste and the herbs, mixed everything well, turned it down to low and put a lid on it to simmer.
Stirring occasionally, once it looked thick enough I was done. I didn't even need to add salt and pepper it was so perfectly yummy and ready to go. I put half of it in the freezer, and mixed in 1/4 cup or so of fat free half and half into what was still in the pot to make a pink sauce. At that point I felt like I could've gone with another clove of garlic, but darn it was tasty.

Carbonara

So I was hanging out with Jamie Oliver this weekend - in my bed if you can believe it! (Yes, fine, he was on tv, I was in my bed, whatever spoilsport.)
The point is, Jamie was making carbonara, which is a pasta dish I've never made. As a kid, I didn't like peas believe it or not, so it never really called out to me. As an adult, I don't really like to be fat, so I avoided it still. But Jamie, as he does, made it look so damn easy and delicious, and fresh, and somehow healthy, that I had to give it a shot. My recipe, thrown together as most of my recipes are: one part actual recipe, one part, "I think this is what I remembered him doing. . . approximately," turned out really really well if someone's three helpings are any indication (don't look at me, I only had one).
Penne ala Carbonara - serves "2"

• whole wheat penne pasta - enough for 2 people; feel free to ignore petulant comments about it being "so little" - it'll be plenty, even for three helpings it seems
• 1 small yellow squash - Jamie said to, "Cut out and discard any fluffy middle bits, and slice the courgettes at an angle into pieces roughly the same size and shape as the penne," so I did
• 7-8 cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 5 stalks of broccolini
• 1 clove of garlic, diced
• 2 oz chopped pancetta
• 2 egg yolks
• parmesan cheese - a handful
• olive oil
• TJ's ff 1/2 & 1/2
• red pepper flakes
• s&p

Again, this is a TJ's meal. The prechopped pancetta is a godsend, and they almost always have my beloved broccolini, and well, everything else.

Get the pasta water going, salt it, cook it, etc. You know the drill - but it'd be perfect if the pasta was done right around the same time as the sauce. Be sure to reserve a bit of the cooking water in case your sauce needs thinning.
I tossed a small glug of olive oil into a pan and let it heat up, then added the pancetta. Once it was maybe half way "done" I threw in the garlic and kept chopping all the rest of my veggies, then threw them in as well. This I let cook until it was all just tender and took it off the heat.
If I was smart, I would've started the sauce as soon as I put the veggies in, but I forgot.
So if you try, you'll need to multitask - keeping an eye on the pasta, the veggies, and creating the sauce.
Get your yolks into a medium sized bowl and add a handful or so of the parmesan cheese and whisk. Get it all stuck in the whisk and realize you also need to add the 1/2 and 1/2. Do so, and whisk some more - you can also add olive oil if you like. I only seasoned with pepper since (Jamie and) I think there is plenty of salt in the pancetta and cheese, but that's up to you. I'd wait until the very end on that however. Get the sauce into the still hot (but off the heat) pan of veggies and stir constantly so the egg can cook. Because I waited, I put the heat back on low and stirred for a while to be sure the sauce was cooked through, and tossed in a little pinch of red pepper flakes, you know, all BAM! like.
If you have not taste tested at this point, and there is no royal taster to do so for you, grab a nibble and decide on seasoning and doneness. Drain the pasta, adding a bit of the cooking water to the sauce to thin if needed. Add the cooked pasta into the pan with the sauce and veggies and stir to coat.
If you're planning on leftovers, you may want to put them away first, before serving any hungry people. If you just did it for two, you're good to pig out.

Sauceless spaghetti sauce

One summer evening, I was in the mood for a nice light pasta, similar to Amatriciana, but using what I could find in the kitchen. This was the result of that serendipity of culinary flotsam and jetsam, and I've made it several times since. Sometimes it gets tweaked yet again, depending on what I have on hand. You could even add a dash of cream or half and half to make a pink sauce. Yum!

a smashed garlic clove or two
olive oil
sliced onion - maybe half a cup's worth
red pepper flakes
cherry tomatoes - maybe two cup's worth
basil if you have it
Parmesan (or another dry cheese for pasta toppin') (or goat cheese, but I put goat cheese in any recipe that holds still long enough for me to do so. . . . )

Glug some oil into a sautee pan, maybe a tablespoon or so and turn the heat up to medium. Add the garlic clove and the onion once the oil is hot and sautee until soft, or until the onions start to caramelize, depending on your preference (remove the garlic once it starts to brown so it doesn't get bitter!) Once the onions are ready, drop in a pinch of red pepper flakes (again, to taste), and your tomatoes. If they're bigger guys, you can cut them first, but you don't have to.
Continue cooking, adjusting heat as necessary, adding more oil if necessary. The tomatoes will give up their juice and get squishy and start to meld with the other flavors; once they begin to do so, throw in some basil if you've got it - I recommend fresh here though rather than dried as this is not a slow cooked sauce.
Once it looks like something I think will work as a sauce, I dump in some cooked and drained pasta and stir it around (*tip - a little of the pasta cooking water can help add to the sauciness of it if need be). Plate it and finish it off with plenty of fresh parmesan or parmiggiano-reggiano and eat it up!


I really need to come up with a more clever name for this yummy dish. I'm open to suggestions if anyone ever reads this.