Mini Breakfast Frittatas

What a great, easy breakfast recipe.  It’s just as easy as scrambled eggs, but with less hands-on time and a cuter presentation.  So glad Beth bought me those mini tart pans years ago!

3 egg whites

1 whole egg

1 T water (a splash)

½ C chopped ham

½ C reduced fat mozzarella (or really any cheese)

1 T herbs de provence

Salt and pepper

Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350.  Whisk everything together in a spouted bowl.  Place two mini tart pans on a cookie sheet lined with foil and coat with cooking spray.  Pour egg mixture into the tart pans and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.  Makes 2 servings.

Gnocchi with Butternut Squash and Sausage

I tried to make pumpkin gnocchi, and it was a disaster.  I learned, yet again, that you should just buy the damn gnocchi at the store.   That goes for buttenut squash, too.  Buy it already peeled and sliced.  I practically sliced off my thumb last year cutting apart a squash making Colleen's delicious butternut squash and goat cheese dip.  

This butternut squash and sausage gnocchi was seriously good.  It met Mark’s “you could actually serve this to guests” approval.  Plus, it was fast and only involved two pans.  Nice.

Swirl of EVOO

Pat of butter

1 shallot, chopped

1 Cup butternut squash, cubed

1 package precooked chicken sausage, sliced (smoked with apples)

Splash of apple cider (wine or chicken broth would work, too)

Whole wheat potato gnocchi

Salt and pepper

Parsley, dried, to taste

Parmigiano Reggiano, fresh grated.

Boil water for gnocchi.

Heat a large sauté pan to medium heat.  Add oil and butter.  When butter has melted, add shallots and sauté for a few minutes.  Add butternut squash.  Continue to sauté just until the squash starts to brown or stick.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add a splash of apple cider, and then the sliced sausage.  Stir and shake the pan.  Reduce heat to simmer, add the parsley and cover and keep warm until the gnocchi is done.

Boil gnocchi in salted water according to package instructions (just a few minutes until the dumplings float).  Drain, and add cooked gnocchi to the squash and sausage pan.  Stir to coat.  Feel free to cover and leave on low heat while you eat your salad. 

Mexican Casserole, Few Substitutions

This mexican casserole from Cooking Light (again) made 8 great lunches, which got better as the week got long.  I made only a few substitutions, mostly to avoid the garlic as requested by Mark.  Admittedly, this took awhile to put together, plus two pans and a food processor. 

         Salsa:

·         8 plum tomatoes, halved and seeded

·         3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

·         1 small onion, peeled and chopped

·         1 seeded jalapeño pepper, quartered    Used sweet banana pepper

·         Cooking spray

·         1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

·         3 tablespoons fresh lime juice

·         1/8 teaspoon black pepper

·         Casserole:

·         1 cup chopped onion

·         1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels

·         1 cup diced zucchini

·         1 cup chopped red bell pepper

·         3 cups shredded cooked chicken breast  (Used a rotisserie chicken)

·         1 tablespoon minced garlic

·         2 teaspoons chili powder

·         1 teaspoon ground cumin 

·         1 (10-ounce) can green chile enchilada sauce

·         1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles

·         12 (6-inch) corn tortillas

·         1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

·         1 cup (4 ounces) crumbled feta cheese

Added Salt

Preparation

·         1. Preheat broiler.

·         2. To prepare salsa, combine first 4 ingredients on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Broil 20 minutes or until charred, stirring once. Remove from oven; cool slightly. Place tomato mixture in a food processor; add cilantro, lime juice, and pepper. Process until smooth. Set aside.

·         3. Preheat oven to 350°.

·         4. To prepare casserole, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Lightly coat pan with cooking spray. Add 1 cup onion, corn, zucchini, and bell pepper; sauté 6 minutes or until tender. Add chicken and next 5 ingredients (through green chiles); sauté 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Remove from heat.

·         5. Spread 1/2 cup salsa over the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Arrange half of tortillas over salsa. Spoon 2 cups chicken mixture evenly over tortillas. Top with 3/4 cup salsa. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of each cheese. Repeat layers, starting with remaining tortillas and ending with remaining cheeses. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes until bubbly.

The Best Soup I’ve Ever Made

Ham, Chicken and Corn Chowder

I started with a recipe for Cheddar Chicken Chowder from trusty Cooking Light and made some substitutions.  Here it is:

2 T Spanish smoked chorizo, casing removed and chopped

Olive Oil

1 boneless chicken breasted, cooked, sliced and chopped

1 C diced ham

1 C chopped onion

1 C chopped red bell pepper

1 carrot, peeled and chopped

1 celery rib, chopped

1 container, chicken stock in the box

1-2 cups red potatoes, peeled and sliced into half moons

1 C frozen whole kernel corn

½ C flour

2 C 2% milk

1 C shredded cheddar, reduced fat

Salt and pepper

Heat oil (a swirl or two) in a big dutch oven or stock pot to medium heat.  Add chorizo, then add and saute onions, peppers, celery and carrots.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add chicken and ham and continue to saute for a few minutes.  Add potatoes and broth; bring to boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Add corn.  Place flour in a bowl. Gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until blended; add to soup. Cook over medium heat 15 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently. Taste, then season with salt and pepper if needed.  Add shredded cheese to each serving. 

Infused Bourbon? We'll See

I've been meaning to try this ever since I had the house-made bourbon at Luxe.  Bourbon infused with lavendar and basil.  Here it is.

1 bottle Bourbon Supreme

2 sprigs fresh lavendar (flowers and all, no pesticides or fertilizers)

A handful of fresh basil leaves

Combine and let stand.  After infusing, pour through a sieve.

Beth's Sausage

Another good one from Beth, received by email, and I quote:

First, made me laugh to type the subject line.

Second, I made italian sausage today.

So, we have all this pork in the freezer. A couple of fresh ham roasts. I've tried different ways to cook it and while Greg will eat it, it makes me gag. So, I borrowed sister in laws grinder attachment for the Kitchen Aid mixer. Thawed the fresh ham roast in the refrig. Cut it up in small pieces and put it thru the grinder and wha la, ground pork.

So I'm guessing there was 3 to 4 lbs. Left it in the bowl and added the following:

2 tbl kosher salt

1 1/2 tbl pepper

1tbl garlic powder

1 1/2 tbl papkrika

1 tbl fennel

1tbl red pepper (was probably a little shy of that).

Set a side a portion. Wrapped what I guessed to be 1 lb portions in plastic then put it in a freezer bag. Didn't put it in casings or anything.

So I just browned some of it to put in pasta sauce. It is terrific!!

Prior to the sausage making I stopped at Penzey spices. Needed Fennel. What a fun place. I want to own a spice store!!

Beth

Mashed Sweet Potatoes for Baby Luke

From Guest Blogger Beth J., a sweet success story:

Made my first homemade babyfood today. Luke seemed to like it. There is seriously no reason to purchase the shit. Literally wrapped some sweet potatoes in foil. Baked them for 45 minutes. Cooled a bit. Skin comes off easy, pretty much cut a hole in the top and the potato squeezes out. Chunked and put in food processor, added some left over formula and wala!!!

So 2 big sweet potatoes filled two ice cube trays. That is 28 cubes. Each cube is a serving.

Sweet Potatoes $1.90/ 28 servings = $.07 per serving

Baby Food runs you $.45 - $.67 per jar so lets round to $.50 and gives you 3 servings = $.167 per serving.  So for 28 servings I would pay $4.68  So let's go even further and say that this would be the cost of all veggies and all baby food. Baby food 2x per day times 365 days = 730 servings. That means I saved us a whole $73. Which is a satellite bill for a month.

Now if I can grow the stuff the food cost will be even less!

Yes, I'm bored!

Well done, Pippa!

Braised Beef Short Ribs: Where Have You Been All My Life?

Why haven't I made these before?  It's as easy, if not easier, than making beef stew.  Excellent with the spinach gnocchi.  I should have taken pictures.  Served it to Mom and Dad for an old-fashioned Sunday dinner.  Pairs nicely with Jim Beam.

Braised Beef Short Ribs

2 lbs beef short ribs (bone in)

¼ C flour

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

1 onion, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

2 celery ribs, chopped

1 lb cremini mushrooms, cleaned and thickly sliced

¼ C dry red wine

Veal demi-glace, dissolved in ½ cup warm water

Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 300.  Bring short ribs to room temperature.  Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.  Dredge in flour.  Brown in olive oil on medium high heat in heavy-bottomed steel roasting pan in batches, about 10 minutes total per batch.  Remove to plate.  Add onion, carrots and celery and cook a few minutes on medium.  Deglaze pan with red wine; scrape browned bits.  Add mushrooms and diluted demi-glace and bring to low boil.  Season with salt and pepper to taste. 

Remove from heat and cover tightly with foil.  Roast in 300 oven for 2 ½ to 3 hours.  Check once each hour to make sure liquid covers the bottom of the pan.  Serve with the pan sauce and veggies, or strain the veggies out of the sauce. 

Spinach Gnocchi with Sage Browned Butter

1 lb potatoe gnocchi (the on-the-shelf kind, not the frozen)

1 bag prewashed baby spinach

3 or 4 sage leaves

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 T unsalted butter

Salt and pepper

Fresh grated nutmeg

Grated Parmiagiano Reggianno

Bacon bits

Bring large pot of water to boil for gnocchi.  Meanwhile, heat oil and butter in saute pan on medium low heat for about 4 minutes until it just starts to brown.  Add salt and pepper.  Add sage leaves, letting them crisp.  reduce heat to low to medium low. 

Boil the gnocchi in salted water for two minutes.

Add the baby spinach to the browned butter and saute.  When gnocchi is done, ladle gnocchi into the spinach sage butter mixture with a slotted spoon.  It's fine if a little pasta water splashes in.  Stir together.   Add nutmeg, cheese and bacon bits.  Cover and keep warm to serve with the short ribs. 

Super Bowl of Turkey Chilli

Cousin Matt served us the perfect bowl of turkey chilli during the perfect season of college football that ever was.  It was the Fall of 2002.  The Buckeyes would go on to win the National Championship in Tempe at the Fiesta Bowl, and we (Mark, Beth, Dan and I) would be there for it.  But before we got to the National Championship, we had this chilli.  Thereafter, there was never a reason to try another chilli recipe.

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey breast
1 can Trader Joe's marinated bean salad (undrained)
1 Jar Trader Joe's salsa (just the regular salsa).
Brown turkey, add the rest.  That's it.  Doesn't even have to simmer forever.

French Onion Dip Nirvana

In a moment of clarity, that comes only during about the third hour of a long road trip, I realized my true passion in life.  Chips and dip.  More specifically, just dip.  My Dad has always said that chips are nothing more than vehicles for dip.  Dip is in my blood; it is part of my soul.  The Lipton-onion soup mix dip we would make on Sundays for the Browns games.  Back when Clevelanders actually made it a priority to stop and gather together for the game.  The Hidden Valley Ranch dip that Cara and I would devour almost every Wednesday after school (shopping day).  Even as teenagers, when we went to separate high schools, Cara would get off the bus a stop early to come over for dip on Wednesdays.  I could probably tell ten more dip stories, one more enthralling than the next.  Crab dip, spinach dip with the cut out bread bowl, artichoke dip.  The list, and the possibilities, are endless.

Mark was the one who suggested it.  “Dip should be your life,” he said.  “It’s your true passion.”  He’s right.  We spent most of the rest of the eight hour drive to Wisconsin discussing our business plan.

So, my first step in becoming dip queen of the world, was to make the perfect homemade French Onion Dip. 

Here it is:

Homemade French Onion Dip

 Stew meat (See later recipe)

One large Vidalia onion, chopped

3 shallots, chopped

Olive oil

3 cloves of garlic, halved

Sherry

Kosher salt

Fresh ground pepper
Light sour cream

                                                                                                            I was making stew for our lunches – the world’s greatest stew ever, but more on that in a later post.  In the dutch oven in which I had just browned the stew meat (pre-tossed in cornstarch) in olive oil on medium high heat, I threw in the chopped onions and shallots, right in with the browned stew meat bits.  A vegetarian’s nightmare.  I sautéed the onions on medium with a bit more olive oil for a minute

or two, then splashed in some cooking sherry to deglaze the pan, scraping up all the browned bits.  I added the halved garlic cloves, probably a good teaspoon of kosher salt, and a pinch of pepper.  I carmelized the onion mixture for almost a half hour, tossing in a bit of parsley flakes near the end. I turned off the pot and let the whole thing cool.  In a separate bowl, I mixed together a full container of light sour cream with the onion mixture, and then added pinches of salt until it tasted just right.  Served with pretzels and carrot chips.  Unbelievably, it tasted like French Onion Dip.  But better (at least I thought so). 

New Year, New Pork Roast Recipe

We spent new year’s day on the farm with Beth, Greg and our newest family addition, Luke.  The occasion called for a new preparation of the classic New Year’s Day traditional meal for good luck:  Pork roast, sauerkraut and dumplings.  We decided to go crock pot aka slow cooker.  We liked it.  Well, all of us except Luke.  He just had milk.

New Year’s Day Dinner

1 pork roast (ours was probably about 3-5 pounds)

2 apples, cored and sliced

4 garlic cloves, halved

¼ cup brown sugar

1 T dijon mustard

1 T balsamic vinegar

1 jar Frank’s sauerkraut  (bought in Wisconsin, only to find it’s made in Fremont, Ohio.  Turns out, their website is http://www.sauerkraut.com/.  Obviously, the quintessential sauerkraut maker.)

1 large Onion, chopped and divided (or 2 small)

Olive Oil

1 C chicken stock

Salt and pepper

1 T butter

Sophie’s Choice Potato Dumplings (these are hard to find – I bought them at Heinen's in Rocky River the week before new years and hauled them up to Wisconsin.  They are made by Sophie's Choice Pierogi Company in Cleveland, Ohio.)

For the Pork Roast:

Toss the apples in the bottom the crock pot.  Trim excess fat from roast.  Rub all over with halved garlic (I am betting this will increase our luck in 2011; otherwise, I don't know that it makes a real difference).  Throw the halves in the pot.  Season roast liberally with salt and pepper all over.  Prick roast with a fork all over the place.  Place the roast in the pot atop the apples and garlic.  Mix together the brown sugar, mustard and vinegar and pour over the roast.  Slow cook, covered on low, for 6 to 8 hours.

The sauerkraut and dumplings are easy.  Drain the kraut.  Saute onions in oil on medium heat in a dutch oven or sauce pot.  Add the kraut, stock, and salt and pepper to taste.  Once heated through, reduce to a simmer.  We simmered for about 20 minutes, and the edges got nice and brown.  No need to add caraway seeds, as Frank’s did that for us.  May need to add more stock if it gets too dry.  You want it moist, not soupy.

In another pan, sauté onions in butter on medium heat.  When soft, add the dumplings.  Cook on medium low, turning a few times, until dumplings just start to brown.  Could always just boil them or throw them into the crock pot near the end for a lower fat preparation.

At the last minute, Beth said, “We need a vegetable!”  Excellent observation, which is sure to result in triple luck for us all (really, could we get any luckier, we thought?).  She sautéed spring peas that she had frozen fresh in a little bit of milk.  A trick she learned from Greg, she said. 

Happy new year!