Pasta Puttanesca

I am all about trying new foods these days.  And fortunately hubby is pretty accommodating.  (Except for mushrooms.  And cherries.  Which is weird.  Who doesn't like cherries? Anyway.  More for me.  When do we start getting good, fresh cherries?)

This recipe features an ingredient I never thought I'd be willing to try.  Never.

Anchovies.

Oh yes.  You read that correctly.

Now, I love fish.  Most fish.  Most seafood in fact.  But had never, ever, ever been tempted to try anchovies.  They are weird.  And slimy.  And greasy.  And salty.  And they come in a can.  Real seafood does not come in a can.

 But then I read this recipe, and I was actually tempted.  And apparently, like salmon, anchovies are packed with oh so good for you Omega-3s.  Who knew?  So try it we did.

 Recipe: (from Sweet Peas and Pumpkins)

1 tablespoon olive oil
5-6 canned anchovy fillets, chopped fine
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 jarred roasted red pepper or 1/2 red pepper, diced
1/2 cup chopped kalamata olives (I used black olives.  Kalamata olives = Gross)
1 - 28 ounce can petite diced tomatoes with basil (I forgot the 'with basil' part when shopping, so I just added in some basil of my own.)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
8 ounces cooked penne, ziti or other pasta (I used spaghetti as it was all I had.)
fresh parmesan cheese

In a large sauce pan, over medium high heat, heat the oil. Once hot, add the anchovies and garlic. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the other remaining ingredients, except the pasta and cheese.

 

Bring the sauce to a boil and reduce to simmer. Let simmer for 5-10 minutes. Pour over the cooked pasta and serve immediately.

Top with parmesan cheese.

 Verdict:
Very good.  Nice and tomato-ey.  Nice and garlicky.  The anchovies add just a little bit of salty flavor and not overwhelmingly fishy.  And if you are serving a non-adventurous eater, just don't mention the anchovies.  Chop them up super fine and no one will know but you....

On a somewhat unrelated note: kitchen catastrope along the lines of diced tomato juice splattering all over my new shirt.  Just a t-shirt.  But still, new.  And I really liked it.  Sad Face.  Good news?  This stuff:

Is. Magic.  I've never gotten red sauce stain out of something so quickly.

Tender-Crisp Spring Braise

No luck on the house hunting front yet...  :(

Drowning my sorrows in new recipes, especially those of the spring variety even though slightly cold temps have returned.

This little beauty came to me via Yahoo! news, which states that the original source is Better Homes and Gardens.

Sigh.  I want a better home and garden...

Anyway, without further ado,

Recipe: (with adaptations)
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 small carrots, with tops, trimmed and diagonally cut into 1-inch pieces (yeah.  right.  substituted baby carrots sliced lengthwise.  moving on.)
1 large onion, cut into thin wedges
1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
3/4 cup reduced sodium chicken broth
8 oz. new potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch slices (Organic potatoes at Kroger come in two varieties: regular and sweet.  I opted for regular and sliced them.)
4 cups mushrooms, halved (Due to hubby mushroom phobia: substituted artichokes.  Yummy!)
3 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
2 skinless, boneless chicken thighs, sliced (I knew there was no chance 2 thighs would be enough.  Chicken thighs are tiny.  I used 4.)
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon fresh, snipped tarragon (No.  Used a teaspoon of parsley and a sprinkle of cayenne pepper instead.  No rhyme or reason, just sounded appealing at the time.)

In extra large non-stick skillet heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat.  Evenly layer potatoes and carrots in skillet.  Cook, uncovered, until potatoes are golden, (way more than) 5 minutes, turning once.

Add mushrooms (artichokes) and onions.  Cook 5-6 minutes, until vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring often.

Add garlic and asparagus; cook 3 minutes.  Transfer vegetables to bowl; set aside.

In same skillet, heat remaining oil.  Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper.  Cook chicken in hot oil, about 3 minutes, until lightly browned, stirring occasionally.

Add broth; bring to boiling.  Reduce heat.  Simmer, covered, about 3 minutes or until no pink remains.

Increase heat to medium-high.  Add cooked vegetables; heat through.  Stir in seasonings of choice.

Verdict:
First of all, if I make this again, I will be listening to my inner instinct and making it in my le Creuset magically non-stick French oven.  Nothing sticks to that baby.  Nothing.  My stainless steel supposedly non-stick skillet on the other hand?  I don't want to talk about it.

Also, transferring hot vegetables from a hot pan to a bowl was, um, not the easiest thing in the world.  Maybe I need to refine my technique.  Or I can blame the counter space since I blame it for pretty much everything else that frustrates me in my kitchen.

That said, delicious!  Delicious enough that, even though I stomped to the table swearing that this meal would be awful, I would never make it again, and we should probably just order pizza because I just knew it was a fail.... After my first bite I literally had to eat. my. words.   And folks, that doesn't happen often.

Yes, I was in a mood.  Anyway.  Moving on.

The chicken was tender.  The vegetables were perfectly cooked; although, I did cook the potatoes for about triple the initial time stated.  (Maybe it was because I had a different kind of potato.  Or too many potatoes.  Or my stove is wretched. Yep.  That's the one.)  The flavors blended perfectly.  Everything was hot, tender, and tasty.

Minor technical and procedural changes will be in order the next time this is on the menu, but anything that is good enough to stop this Diva mid snit-fit?  Well, it's worth keeping around.

Baked Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese

Alex loves macaroni and cheese.

Personally, I always think I love it..... But whenever I eat it decide it's just too average to be worth all the fat and calories.  Unless of course we're talking gourmet mac and cheese from some stellar chef in an overpriced restaurant.  That's a whole different category.

But anyway, I may have finally found a macaroni and cheese recipe that will keep us both happy...

Recipe: (found on Pinterest - of course!- via skinnytaste)
12 ounces small noodles (elbows, small shells etc. - whole grain or high fiber preferred)
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon light butter (I don't have light butter though, so it was just 2 regular tablespoons for me)
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup minced onion
2 cups skim milk (Hallelujah - a mac n' cheese recipe that doesn't call for heavy cream!)
1 cup low sodium chicken broth (or vegetable both to make vegetarian)
8 ounces shredded reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese
salt and fresh pepper to taste
12 ounces fresh broccoli florets
1/8 cup grated parmesan (Thanks to Amy I know how many tablespoons that is since I still don't have a 1/8 measuring cup!)
1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
cooking spray

Cook pasta and broccoli together (genius!) in  large pot of salted water according to package directions for al dente (slightly undercook 2 minutes).  Spray a baking dish with cooking spray.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a large, heavy skillet, melt butters.  Add onion and cook over low heat about two minutes, add flour and cook another minute or until the flour is golden and well combined.

Add milk and chicken broth and whisk, raising heat to medium-high until it comes to a boil; cook about 5 minutes or until the sauce becomes smooth and thick.  Season with salt and pepper.

Once the sauce is thick, remove from heat, add cheese and mix well until cheese is melted.

Adjust salt and pepper to taste.  Add pasta and broccoli and mix well.

Pour into prepared baking dish.  Top with grated cheese and breadcrumbs.  Spray a little more cooking spray on top.

Bake for 15-20 minutes then broil for a few minutes to get the bread crumbs golden.

Verdict:
Definitely something I'll make on occasion. This wasn't the ooey-gooey-ness some expect from a mac n' cheese, but it satisfied hubby's desire for mac n' cheese without being overwhelmingly cheesy and thus artery clogging to suit my tastes.  Still a bit heavy to make often but good to have up my sleeve when someone's mood strikes!

A couple of notes.  I would add way more broccoli than the recipe suggested.  More broccoliness would make me feel better about eating this.  Plus I love broccoli.  I did not have seasoned bread crumbs, so I sort of made up my own: plain panko bread crumbs with a 1/4 teaspoon of parsley, a dash of garlic powder, and a touch or two or cayenne pepper.  It worked and actually the hint of spice from the cayenne pepper jazzed up the dish a bit.  I only had whole wheat flour, so that's what I used.  I don't think it made a difference but then I haven't tasted it with white flour.  I also don't use cooking spray in my le Creuset baking dish as it is wholly unnecessary: baked on goodness just floats away....  So I also forgot to spray the crumbs on top.  I meant to because I thought it would help them golden up, but they seemed to do just fine.

All in all, a successful attempt at lightening and veggifying a favorite comfort food!  (I'm also excited to try at some point recipes for mac n' cheese that incorporate cauliflower or butternut squash into the sauce.... but maybe next year... I can only eat mac n' cheese so often...)

I probably won't be posting for a few days...  Wish us luck as we continue the house hunt in Michigan!

Roasted Broccoli

Broccoli.  Another longtime vegetable favorite that I have sadly neglected this year.

This recipe, found on Pinterest, was touted as one to make even broccoli-haters happy.  Well, I love broccoli even when the preparation is nothing more than a simple steam, and I've loved all the roasted versions of vegetables I've been trying lately, so I couldn't wait to give this new twist on broccoli a try!

Recipe: (found on Pinterest via amateurgourmet)
Broccoli - the recipe as written called for 4 - 5 pounds of broccoli... I like broccoli... a lot... but not that much - see my adjustments for roasting one head of broccoli ;-)
olive oil
salt
fresh ground black pepper (I eyeballed amounts of all three.)
4 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced (I reduced to 2.)
1 lemon for zest and juice (I used about a quarter of a lemon.)
1/3 cup parmesan cheese (I just eyeballed a sprinkle.)

Recipe also called for toasted pine nuts and julienned basil, both of which I omitted.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Chop your broccoli into edible but fairly large pieces.  Make sure that it is very, very dry.  Broccoli goes on baking sheet.  Drizzle with olive oil.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Add garlic cloves.  Toss around on baking sheet to mix well.

Roast in oven until crisp tender and the tips of some of the florets are lightly browned.  The recipe as written called for 20-25 minutes.  For my smaller amount of broccoli, it was closer to 12-15 minutes.

When done, remove from oven.  Zest lemon over broccoli and squeeze lemon juice over broccoli. Add a bit more olive oil then add parmesan cheese, pine nuts, and basil if using.  Mix well.

Verdict:
Once a broccoli lover, always a broccoli lover.  I still love me some good fresh, steamed broccoli, but I also loved this recipe for a little variety in kitchen.  Roasting really brings out the flavor of the vegetable.  Just a bit of citrus flavor for some zip.  And what doesn't taste amazing with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese?

Not to mention, the weather on this particular technically still winter March day was a stellar 85 degrees, so anything eaten in the sunshine accompanied by our first grilled dogs of the season was bound to impress us.

And don't forget this:

Because that's what grilling weather is all about my friends.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

St. Patrick's Day is one of those holidays that I feel pretty ritualistic about: Irish stew, Irish soda bread, green paraphernalia, green beer.  There can be no deviations from this formula.  Otherwise, enter Stage Five Diva Meltdown.

Last year I had to suck it up and choke down fake, frozen stew from a bag.  And you know what?  I still had a great St. Patrick's Day.

This year, my strongly held traditions were really thrown for a loop with an offer to head over to Chicago.  By some miracle Alex's schedule worked out so that he wasn't on call Friday night, and he didn't have a scheduled shift Saturday or Sunday!  This was so meant to be.

So we celebrated our first married St. Patrick's Day (and Alex's first as an honorary Irish) with family in the Windy City, and it couldn't have been more perfect.  Record high temperatures.  Record high crowds.  No Irish stew.  But lots of a green paraphernalia and of course, green beer!

First on our agenda for the day was to see the river dyed green.  I've heard about this for years but never quite comprehended just how.....fluorescent it would be.  If you have not seen it for yourself, add it to your Bucket List!

However, I wouldn't say you have to make sure you are there for the actual moment of the dying.  It was actually much cooler a couple of hours later when the dye had spread and the whole river was emerald.

We also tried to take in the parade but the crowds made that literally impossible.... Instead we got in a lot of people watching and taking in of various downtown sights before we made our way to a restaurant or two for some refreshments...

Shockingly, getting a green beer was not as it easy as you would have thought!  With the record crowds, most bars had 2 hour+ waits.  Outside.  In the hot sun.  Standing.  Yeah.... Not so much....  We did a lot of walking (my legs are still sore) and went to some very nice restaurants for great food and great drinks, including my first ever Pisky Whickle (whiskey and pickle juice) but not  green beer in sight.

(I'm only including this because I found the play on words quite hilarious... My sense of humor is refined like that...)

Until the train ride back to the suburbs where, about 2 feet from the train tracks was the most awesome hole-in-the-wall Irish bar.  Irish music.  Tacky decorations.  Goofy old men.  Free corned beef sandwiches and chips.  And green beer.  It was the perfect end to the perfect day.

Irish Stew

I made the Irish Soda Bread a day ahead of our early feast and the stew the day of the feast.  I only have enough counter space and outlet access in my kitchen to plug in one appliance at a time.

Sad, I know.  But only 3.5 months left with this tiny space!  Don't yet know what kind of kitchen we will have next, but it can't possibly be smaller that this!

Well, ok, it could be smaller....  Last house hunting trip we did actually see a house whose only oven was smaller than our microwave.  I didn't even know such a thing existed....  But the point is, I have a little more control this time around and am carefully monitoring the counter space situation in every home we consider.  But I digress.

Back to stew!

Recipe: (also Mom's recipe, no need for adaptations this time)
2 pounds stew meat, fat trimmed and cut into 1 inch chunks
1/2 cup flour
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
olive oil
6 carrots, cut into 1 inch chunks
1 cup celery, cut into 1/2 inch chunks
1 onion, cut into chunks
2-3 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
2 cloves garlic
1 bay leaf
1/3 cup water

Mix the flour, salt, and pepper in a shallow bowl.  Lightly coat stew meat.

Heat olive oil in pan and brown stew meat in batches.  Don't overcrowd the pan or meat will not brown well.  I think I had 4 batches in all.

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker except water.

Pour water into pan used to brown stew meat and scrape up all the flavorful brown bits off the pan.  Pour into crock pot.

Cover and cook on low heat for 10-12 hours.

Serve in bowls.  Tastes best when accompanied by Irish Soda Bread!

Verdict:
While eating stew on an 80 degree day (oh yes, the high on Wednesday was 82!) is not something I would normally do, there is no better meal for celebrating St. Patrick's Day.  The veggies were perfectly cooked without being mushy.  The meat was tender to the point of falling apart and melting in our mouths.  The gravy was thick and just perfect when sopped up with a slice of bread.

All that was missing was the green beer... But I figured we'd be getting plenty of that in Chicago!