Spanish Omelette

We discovered this omelette dish about a year ago and make it once every few weeks. It's quick to pull together and I always work to have the ingredients on hand for an easy meal. We often eat it for dinner on an especially chaotic night because by the time we're ready to sit down to eat, it's cooled to the perfect temperature. Nigella suggests this as a great item for a picnic lunch though as the warmest you want to eat it is room temperature and it's easy to transport.

What I love about it though is the combination of colours and flavours. Simple ingredients highlighted together in an equally simple dish. The sweetness of the peppers, the sharpness of the cheese, the texture of the soft potatoes with vibrant colour of the bright green onions.

Spanish Omelette
Serves 4

Ingredients

• 12-15 baby new potatoes, halved and boiled until cooked through
• 5 eggs
• 3/4 of a jar of flame roasted peppers, roughly chopped
• 3 green onions, finely sliced
• 3/4 cup old cheddar cheese, grated
• 1 tsp butter
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Heat an oven-safe, heavy-based frying pan on medium heat
• In a bowl, whisk the eggs, add the peppers, green onions and cheese and season with salt and pepper. Add the cooked, drained potatoes
• Heat the butter in frying pan and, when hot, pour in the omelette mix and cook gently for five minutes
• By this time, the bottom of the omelette should be set and, rather than turn it, simply sit the pan under the grill for a few minutes to set the top. It should be a little wobbly in the middle still but it will continue to cook as it cools
• Once cool, slice into wedges and serve at room temperature

Recipe from Nigella Express

Rigatoni with Sausage, Peppers and Onions

I wrote down this recipe from Giada de Laurentis' Everyday Italian at least two years ago and I'm so glad I've reconnected with it and finally made it. This is a wonderful pasta dish, unlike anything I have ever made, I think. It's rich and flavourful and the addition of the red wine makes it a truly special dish.

It was a little time consuming to make, but worth every minute. To help make this into a weeknight meal, it would be easy to make the sauce ahead and the toss it with pasta when ready to serve. We enjoyed it on a Sunday, which is the day I truly enjoy spending time in the kitchen and I was so happy to sit down and finally enjoy this one. This is definitely one for the regular rotation.

Rigatoni with Sausage, Peppers and Onions
Serves 4-6

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 pound sweet Italian turkey sausage
• 2 red bell peppers, cored, seeded and sliced
• 2 yellow onions, sliced
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 cup Marsala wine
• 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, with juice
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1 pound rigatoni pasta
• freshly grated parmesan cheese, for garnish

Directions

• Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook until brown on all sides, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove the sausages from the pan.
• Keeping the pan over medium heat, add the red peppers, onions, salt and pepper and cook until golden, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, oregano and basil and cook for 2 minutes. 
• Add the tomato paste and stir until incorporated, then add the Marsala, tomatoes with juice and red pepper flakes, if using. Stir to combine, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to release all the brown bits. Bring to a simmer.
• Cut the sausages into 4-6 pieces each. Return the sausages to the pan. Simmer uncovered until the sauce has thickened, about 20 minutes.
• While the sauce simmers, bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the pasta. 
• Drain the pasta and add to the thickened sauce and toss to combine. Spoon into individual serving bowls and garnish with parmesan cheese.

Recipe from Giada de Laurentis' Everyday Italian

Chicken Pot Pie

I laughed just now as I looked at the name of the recipe I'm about to type out. The author, Laura Calder, calls it "Chicken Pot Pie for the Perfectionists." Well, that's an understatement. This recipe is the longest recipe I have ever made for something that T tells me I could buy for $9.99 at Costco. I will argue up and down now though, having made it, that you cannot even begin to compare the two.

I didn't think of this recipe as a challenge. It's chicken pot pie, after all, not a dish I'm unfamiliar with. But it definitely was a challenge in cooking endurance. And if you think you can cut corners, don't. It is the detail in this recipe that makes it a truly incomparable pie. When all was said and done, this recipe took me two days to make, so if you do decide to do this, you need to be organized and have the time to dedicate to this. In fact, you'll even need some decent time to sit down to read through the ingredient list, let alone the instructions. So, grab a coffee and maybe a snack and settle in. Here goes:

Chicken Pot Pie for the Perfectionists
Makes 2 pies, 8-10 servings in all

Ingredients

For the Chicken

• 1 chicken, about 3 pounds, whole
• salt and pepper
• 2 tbsp butter, softened

For the Enriched Stock

• 1 large carrot, halved
• 1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
• 1 celery rib, roughly chopped
• 1 large bay leaf
• 1 generous sprig of thyme
• a few sprigs of parsley
• 6 peppercorns
• 1 tsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 5 cups chicken stock

For the Crust

• Lard pastry

For the Garnish

• 3 carrots, sliced, about 2 cups
• 2 celery ribs, chopped
• 3 leeks, halved and sliced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 6 slices of bacon, cut in lardons
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 cups frozen peas
• 2 large handfuls of chopped fresh parsley

For the Sauce

• 3/4 cup white wine
• 3/4 cup butter
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1/2 to 1 cup heavy cream
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 tsp sweet paprika, more to taste

To Finish

• egg wash

Directions

• For the chicken, heat the oven to 375 degrees F, set the chicken in a roasting pan, season with salt and pepper, rub with butter and cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes. When cool enough to handle, discard the skin, remove the meat from the bird and set aside and put the carcass in a stock pot with the rest of the stock ingredients.
• Bring stock ingredients to a boil and simmer, uncovered, for 1 1/2 hours. Strain and reserve 2 1/2 cups of stock for the recipe. Chop the chicken meat into bite sized pieces. You should have about 5 cups.
• While the chicken roasts, make and chill the lard pastry, then prepare the garnish. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt it and blanche the carrots and celery until al dente, about 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and rinse in ice cold water to stop the cooking. Drain thoroughly.
• Heat the oil in a pan and saute the bacon, until cooked but not crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate, leaving the fat in the pan. Add the leeks to the pan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add the carrots and celery and cook 5 minutes, adding the garlic in during the last minute. Add the bacon, peas, parsley and reserved chicken meat. Season with salt and pepper.
• For the sauce, pour the reserved chicken stock into a saucepan, add the wine and bring to a simmer. In a separate saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Whisk in the flour and cook, whisking for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the warm stock and cook until thick, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in 1/2 cup of cream. Add more cream if needed but without making the sauce too thick. Season well with salt and pepper and add in the paprika. Pour the sauce over the chicken and vegetables and mix gently to combine thoroughly.
• To assemble the pies, spoon the filling into two 9" pie plates. Divide the pastry into two disks, roll out rounds and lay over the filling, pressing to seal the edges. Cover and refrigerate until ready to bake.
• Heat the oven to 450 degrees F. Brush the tops of the pies with egg wash and cut three slits in the top to allow steam to escape. Bake 25 minutes. reduce the heat to 350 degrees F and continue baking until the crust is deeply golden and crisp, about 30 minutes longer.

Recipe from Dinner Chez Moi, by Laura Calder

Chicken Piccata

As I learn more about cooking, I'm also realizing that I gravitate towards certain kinds of flavours. I'm not one for spice, but I realize that spice-less does not have to mean taste-less. Lemon is one of my favourite flavours to cook with (as shown here and here). It's a bright flavour that can take a regular dish to the next level. Too much lemon though can easily overpower a dish so less is more, especially with this recipe. It won't look like you have a lot of sauce once it's reduced down, but it's intense and a little goes a long way.

I also try to cook with fresh ingredients as much as possible, but on the occasion that I have turned to bottled lemon juice (unless called for) the flavour simply doesn't compare with fresh.

From a preparation perspective, I finally got a reamer and it made juicing the lemons a million times easier, plus I got more juice than the good ol' hand squeeze method I was using.

Chicken Piccata
Serves 2

Ingredients

• 4 split (2 whole) boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup flour
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups Panko bread crumbs
• olive oil
• 3 tablespoons room-temperature butter
• 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons), with lemon halves reserved
• 1/2 cup white wine
• sliced lemon, for serving
• chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for serving

Directions

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking tray with parchment paper
• Pound out each chicken breast to 1/4" thickness (it will be so tender!) and sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper
• Take three shallow bowls and put flour in one, eggs beaten in another and Panko bread crumbs in the third. Take each chicken breast and coating first in the flour, shaking off the excess, next dip in the egg and finally coat with the bread crumbs. Lay flat on the baking.
• Heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a large saute pan over medium to medium-low heat. Add two chicken breasts and cook for two minutes on each side, until browned. Place them on the sheet pan while you cook the rest of the chicken. Heat more olive oil in the saute pan and cook the second two chicken breasts. Place them on the same sheet pan and cook for 10 minutes in the oven while you make the sauce.
• For the sauce, wipe out the saute pan with a dry paper towel. On medium heat, melt one tablespoon of butter and then add the lemon juice, wine, reserved lemon halves and salt and pepper. Boil over high heat until reduced by half, about two minutes. Off the heat, discard the lemon halves and add two more tablespoons of butter and swirl to combine. 
• Serve one chicken breast on each plate, spoon on the sauce and serve with sliced lemon and a sprinkling of fresh parsley.

Recipe from The Barefoot Contessa at Home

Lasagna Rolls

I have made these a few times now and I always love them. They're a little fiddley (try not to be put off by the number of ingredients and steps!) but perfect for one of those days that you just like being in the kitchen. They are also chock full of spinach, which I like to think balances out the quantity of cheese. Once I'm back at work, I think these will be a staple that I can make on a lazy Sunday afternoon and then have prepared for the week ahead to pop into the oven for dinner.

When making these, I also tried my hand at making marinara sauce, which I think went quite well. Now that I've used it as a base, I'm more confident to experiment and squeeze some more veggies into this meal.

Lasagna Rolls
Serves 6

Ingredients

White Sauce:

• 2 tbsp butter
• 4 tsp flour
• 1 1/4 cups whole milk (I used a combination of skim and 10% cream)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
• pinch nutmeg

Lasagna:

• 1 15 oz container ricotta cheese
• 1 10 oz package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 6 cooked lasagna noodles*
• 2 cups marinara sauce
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella

Directions

• Make the white sauce: melt the butter in a medium sauce pan over low-medium heat. Add the flour and whisk for three minutes. Whisk in the milk and increase the heat to medium high. Whisk until the sauce comes to a simmer and is thick and smooth, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the salt, pepper and nutmeg.
• In a bowl, blend the ricotta, spinach, parmesan, egg, salt and pepper.
• Lay the noodles out on a cutting board and spread the ricotta mixture out evenly over each noodle. Roll like a jelly roll.
• Pour the white sauce over a 9x13 baking dish and place each noodle roll seam-side down. 
• Spoon one cup of marinara sauce over the noodles and top generously with mozzarella cheese. 
• Cover tightly with foil and bake in pre-heated oven at 450 degrees F for 20 minutes. Remove tin foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling. Let stand for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat the remaining marinara sauce and serve alongside.

* the original recipe says 12 noodles, but I have only ever been able to get six, though they are full and big!

Recipe adapted from Giada de Laurentis

Marinara Sauce

I always try to have tomato sauce in the house because it's one of those staple pantry items I find myself turning to constantly. But I've never found a great sauce, they're always just "ok," leaving my dish something to be desired.

But then a stroke of fate happened. As I was making my lasagna rolls, I realized I didn't  have any sauce and wasn't eager to pack up The Bean and go out to get some, so I turned to www.allrecipes.com and made "The Best Marinara Sauce, Ever." I had every ingredient in the house (thanks to a weekly purchase of canned tomatoes and tomato paste) and set out to make the sauce.

I loved that it made my kitchen smell amazing and it seemed the longer it simmered, the better it tasted. Many people on All Recipes even noted that the next day, the sauce was twice as good as the first day. The sauce is simple, but what I particularly liked about it was the wine. Wine just makes everything better, doesn't it?

Best Marinara Sauce, Ever
Makes about 4 cups

Ingredients

• 1 28 oz can Italian tomatoes
• 1 can tomato paste
• 4 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 finely diced medium onion
• 1/2 cup white wine

Directions

• In a food processor, blend the tomatoes, tomato paste, chopped parsley, minced garlic, oregano, salt and pepper. Blend until smooth
• In a large pot over medium heat, sautee the onion in the olive oil until transparent
• Add the tomato mixture and the white wine to the pot and simmer for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally 

Recipe from www.allrecipes.com 

Parmesan Salmon

We try to eat salmon at least once a week. I've made it with shallot vinaigrette, poached in white wine, and a regular staple, salmon cakes.

As part of my 2013 goals to introduce some new foods to our table, I turned to my newest cookbook: Dinner Chez Moi, the Fine Art of Feeding Friends, by Laura Calder. Now that I've been cooking for awhile, I feel like I'm getting the hang of "reading" a recipe -- at least simple ones -- and knowing what it will turn out like. This one, was one of those for me, and I almost couldn't wait to make it. It is so simple that you're bound to have most of the ingredients in the house, save for the parsley, and is simple enough for a weeknight meal but elegant enough to serve to company.

Parmesan Salmon
Serves 6

Ingredients

• 6 salmon fillets 
• salt and pepper
• 1/3 cup Panko bread crumbs 
• 1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup fresh, chopped parsley
• 1/3 cup butter, melted

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F
2. Lightly oil a baking sheet and place salmon on it
3. Season with salt and pepper
4. In a bowl, combine the bread crumbs, cheese and parsley
5. Pack crumb mixture on top of salmon to form a crust
6. Drizzle melted butter evenly over top
7. Bake until salmon is just cooked, about 10 minutes

Salmon with Shallot Vinaigrette

I am always looking for easy weeknight meals to make. So, this past weekend, I culled the "weeknight meals" section of all my old Real Simple magazines and ripped out this goody. We had lots of salmon in the freezer from a large piece we got at Costco and the cut into fillets, and I had basically every other ingredient in the house with the exception of the rice vinegar. I love when things come together easily! 


This was a very simple salmon dish -- simply pan frying the salmon and topping it with a flavourful vinaigrette. Fast, easy and healthy. You could even make it faster if you had a few extra minutes earlier in the day, you could make the vinaigrette in advance.


Salmon with Shallot Vinaigrette
Serves 4
Printable Recipe


Ingredients

• 2 small shallots, finely chopped
• 4 tbsp rice vinegar
• 4 tbsp chopped fresh dill
• 4 tbsp plus one tsp olive oil
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1 1/4 pounds skinless salmon fillet, cut into four pieces

Directions

• In a small bowl, combine the shallots, vinegar, dill, 4 tbsp of olive oil and salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Heat one teaspoon olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Season the salmon with salt and pepper. Cook in pan until opaque throughout, 3-5 minute per side.
• Serve salmon with the vinaigrette on top.

Recipe from Real Simple magazine, September 2009

Chicken Stuffed with Roasted Red Pepper and Basil

Oh my. This chicken was a winner. I made this for our guests on New Year's Eve and it was a hit. 


The chicken was tender (I may have pounded out my frustrations of 2010 on it), the red peppers, basil and asiago were a perfect combination and the sauce, oh, the sauce, was amazing and really, the icing on the cake.


When we're having company over, I really love a make-ahead dish so I can spend time with them when they come over and I am not relegated to kitchen. This one I could do 85% in advance (i.e. stuffing the chicken), but I did have to be a little more attentive while cooking it as it's cooked on the stovetop. Next time, I probably wouldn't have had a salad course (which I couldn't enjoy as I was monitoring the chicken), and just do a traditional appetizer people can enjoy until dinner is served. 

Chicken Stuffed with Roasted Red Pepper and Basil
Serves 6
Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 2 medium red peppers, roasted and skins removed, cut into thirds
• 20-24 fresh medium-large basil leaves
• 1 cup asiago cheese, shredded
• 1/2 tsp salt and pepper
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 1/2 cup white wine OR 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 1 1/2 cups whipping cream

Directions

• Cut chicken breasts in half lengthwise, being sure to leave a hinge. Pound to flatten slightly. 
• Open and sprinkle each breast with salt and pepper. Inside, evenly divide the red peppers, basil and shredded cheese. Fold breasts over using toothpicks to close them.
• In a large skillet, heat half the oil and cook chicken for seven minutes on each side until no longer pink. Remove to plate and set aside.
• In the same skillet, add remaining oil to pan, add onions and cook. Stir in wine for three minutes. Add the cream, salt and pepper. Simmer for five minutes until thickened.
• Return chicken to pan and cook for five more minutes until heated through.
• Serve breasts and top with wine sauce. Garnish with parsley if desired. 

Juicy Roast Chicken

Sometimes you see a recipe that's hardly a recipe; just a few basic ingredients and you think, ""who would even go to the effort to even share that?" This was just one of those instances, but here I am -- sharing this delicious and easy recipe for a whole roasted chicken and telling you that you need to make this immediately. 

I don't know what it is about this combination of ingredients, but it made a juicy and moist chicken underneath a layer of perfectly crispy skin. I think we might need to break up with Swiss Chalet. 

And what's great about roast chicken is that it is extremely economical. I bought this one on sale for a mere $6 and not only did I get an amazing full dinner out of it, I also made four cups of stock, saving myself an additional $5 for my weekly soup. Something that tastes great and is inexpensive? This one is a no-brainer.

Juicy Roast Chicken

Printable Recipe

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 3 pound whole chicken, giblets removed
• 1 tbsp onion powder
• 1/2 cup butter, divided
• 1 stalk celery, leaves removed
• salt and pepper

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Place chicken in a roasting pan and season generously inside and out with salt and pepper and onion powder.
• Place 3 tbsp butter inside chicken cavity and arrange dollops of remaining butter on the chicken skin.
• Cut the celery into three or four pieces and place in chicken cavity.
• Bake uncovered 1 hour and 15 minutes in preheated oven to a minimum temperature of 180 degrees. 
• Remove from heat and baste with melted butter and drippings. 
• Cover with aluminum foil and allow to rest for 30 minutes before cutting and serving.

Recipe from http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Juicy-Roasted-Chicken/Detail.aspx 

Salmon Poached in White Wine

We recently got a massive piece of salmon from Costco that I cut into fillets. I was looking for an easy way to cook some of this so we could enjoy it as an easy weeknight meal. Poaching immediately stood out as a simple technique that made the salmon moist and delicious. And the best part is that it took about 20 minutes to make from start to finish so we could enjoy a healthy and delicious meal in the same time it would have taken to make a frozen pizza. 

Ingredients

• 4 fillets salmon
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 1/2 tsp parsley
• 1 1/2 tsp chopped garlic
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Heat wine and water over medium-high heat until simmering.
• Place salmon in poaching liquid and dot with butter. Sprinkle with parsley, garlic, salt and pepper.
• Cover, reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 10-15 minutes, until salmon is easily flaked with a fork.

Recipe adapted from allrecipes.com

Mushroom Ravioli in Butter-Sage Sauce

Recently a friend of ours received boxes of locally-grown, organic mushrooms. One man can only eat so many mushrooms, so T and I were very fortunate recipients of a huge bag of them. They looked unlike anything I had ever seen before. They were huge, with massive caps and lots of little sprouts at the bottom. They smelled like the forrest floor. Following some online exploration, I deemed these mushrooms to be simply "wild mushrooms," that one website suggested only eating them at the discretion of a mycologist, a mushroom expert.

I figured they came from a local farmer, so I threw caution to the wind and threw the mushrooms in some butter and cheese and made musrhoom ravioli!

Now, I'll be honest here. The mushrooms not only smelled like the forest floor, they tasted like it too. But do not be deterred! If you love wild mushrooms, go ahead and use what you can find. Or, play it safe and use mushrooms from the grocery store that are not so strong and full of flavour. (The types recommended below are the store-bought kind, not the wild kind).

Overall, ravioli was simple enough to make (go ahead and check out some YouTube videos for good technique) and tasted good. Next time though, I'll use mushrooms from Loblaws!

Ingredients

• 2 pounds assorted fresh mushrooms (such as button, cremini and shiitake), brushed clean, trimmed and coarsely chopped
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 2 medium shallots
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped parsley
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 tsp coarse salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
• 8 sheets fresh pasta
• all purpose flour for dusting

For butter-sage sauce:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 tsp dried sage
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup parmesan cheese

Directions

• In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add shallots and cook until translucent. Stir in parsley and cook one minute more. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently until mushrooms first release their liquid and then liquid evaporates, about 10 minutes. Add 1/4 cup water, cook stirring until liquid evaporates. Transfer to a bowl and cool briefly before stirring in parmesan and ricotta. Season with salt and pepper.

• Dust baking sheet with flour; set aside. Place pasta sheet on a lightly floured surface. Place eight heaping measuring teaspoons of mushroom filling along the top third of the sheets, about two inches apart. Moisten pasta around each mount of filling using a pastry brush dipped in water. Fold the dough up and over the filling to enclose, press around filling to seal. Cut between the mounds with a pastry wheel to cut into square ravioli. Transfer to prepared baking sheet a chill until ready to cook. Repeat with the remaining pasta and filling.

• In a small pot, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in garlic and cook until the garlic has softened. Stir in the sage and salt for a few seconds.

• At the same time, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook until ravioli float to the top, or about five minutes. Drain. Toss with butter-sage sauce and toss gently with 1/4 cup parmesan cheese.  

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart Living

Butternut Squash Risotto

Risotto has quickly become one of my go-to dishes. I usually have all the basics on hand -- arborio rice, chicken stock, wine, cream and onions -- and by simply adding one or two other ingredients, you can completely change the flavour.

This week, I made it with a butternut squash I had on hand. I questioned the recipe that told me to puree the squash, but once I mixed it with the risotto, it was creamy and delicious and satisfying like a cheesy macaroni. This was perfect for a cold winter night and was so easy that I made it for myself one night when T. was out at a hockey game. All you need in 30 minutes and you're on your way to a hearty meal.

Ingredients

• 2 cups cubed butternut squash
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1/2 onion, minced
• 1 cup Arborio rice
• 1/3 cup white wine
• 4 cups hot chicken stock
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/3 cup cream
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• In a large pot, bring water to a boil and add squash for 12-15 minutes, or until tender and can be easily pierced with a fork. Drain and mash with a fork.
• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook until onion begins to soften. Stir in rice and let toast -- about three minutes.
• Pour in the white wine, stirring constantly until evaporated. Stir in the squash and 1/2 a cup of the hot stock. Stir until stock has been absorbed by the rice. Slowly add the stock 1/2 a cup at a time, only adding more once the previous amount has evaporated. 
• Continue stirring until the risotto is creamy. Add cream and parmesan cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Recipe from allrecipes.com

Pork Tenderloin with Apple Crust

We have a freezer stocked full of meat. I buy it at the grocery store when it's on sale, it immediately goes in the freezer and then it is forgotten about until the next week when I add to the stash and inevitably say "OH! I forgot I had that chicken!" It's a vicious cycle.

So last week, T. took out some pork out of the freezer and let it thaw in the fridge. Two days later when I was looking for something to make, I had this lovely, thawed pork tenderloin to dress up.

We don't eat a lot of pork, but I know that it pairs well with apples. I had a recipe in my file that I had made a note to adapt and the apple crust was born.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds of pork tenderloin (where I bought it, two pieces came together)
• 2 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs (or you could add your own seasoning to plain ones)
• 2 apples peeled and minced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup of olive oil

Directions

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees
• Mix bread crumbs, garlic and apple in a bowl. Slowly add olive oil to reach consistency that would be moist enough to stick to the meet when pressed.
• Place pork in shallow baking pan and press the crumb mixture onto all sides until pink is no longer showing, usally 1/4 inch thick.
• Bake for at least 35 minutes until a meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F, or until there is no pink when the pork is cut.
• If crust still isn't as crispy as you'd like, leave it under the broiler for five more minutes.
• Let pork rest for 10 minutes covered in tin foil before cutting into 1/2 inch slices.

Recipe adapted from http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Easy-and-Elegant-Pork-Tenderloin/Detail.aspx

Hearty Winter Soup with Sausage and Tortellini

I have been on a soup kick the past few weeks. Every Sunday, I like to make a big pot of soup that we enjoy throughout the week for dinner. It's a quick and easy meal (mostly due to the french stick we scarf down with it), it's healthy and always satisfying.

As you can no doubt see, I usually gravitate towards cream soups -- cream of leak and potato, cream of cauliflower, cream of squash -- so this week I wanted to make something with pasta in it. Specifically tortellini -- cheese-stuffed are my favourite.

It wasn't long before I found a hearty recipe on http://www.allrecipes.com/ and I simply adapted it to what I had on hand. You could easily make substitutions or additions, depending what your family likes. There's no going wrong with this one, but here's what I did:

Ingredients

• 3 mild italian sausages
• 1/2 package fresh tortellini
• 10 stalks of asparagus, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 medium onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 5 cups chicken stock
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Pan-fry the sausage until cooked. Let cool and cut into bite sized pieces. Set aside.
• In a large pot, melt the butter and sauted the onion and garlic. Cook until onions are transluscent.
• Add the diced tomatoes, white wine, chicken stock and tomato paste. Stir and let simmer for 20 minutes.
• Add the tortellini, sausage and asparagus and let simmer until tortellini is cooked.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• If desired, top with shredded cheese and serve with crusty bread.

Roast Beef with Shallot Gravy

On Sunday nights, I like to spend time in the kitchen. I could be happy in there all afternoon making a nice dinner and dessert for my family. When choosing my recipe, I consider a few things: is this something I need a good chunk of time to cook? Is this something I could make during the week? Will there be leftovers? Will it be worth it?

For this one, the answers were yes, no, yes and yes. In a nutshell, it took a while, it was worth it and there were definitely leftovers.

The gravy was warm and delicious, the roasted shallots a perfect texture and flavour for this dish. It really takes the traditional meat and potatoes dinner up a few notches.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds beef tenderloin
• 7-8 shallots, halved lengthwise and peeled
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3 cups beef broth
• 3/4 red wine
• 1 1/2 tsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 tbsp flour
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a 9" pie plate, toss shallots with half the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast shallots until they are a deep brown colour and very tender, stirring occassionally. About 30 minutes.
• Pat beef dry and sprinkle with thyme, salt and pepper. In a large roasting pan, coat with the remaining olive oil and brown beef on all sides on medium to high heat.
• Transfer pan to oven and roast beef for about 30 minutes per pound. Transfer to platter and tent loosely with foil.
• While beef is cooking, in a large pot, comine beef broth and wine. Bring to a boil. Cook over high heat until the volume is reduced by half; about 30 minutes. Whisk in tomato paste and set aside.
• Once beef is finished, place roasting pan over high heat on stove top. Add broth mixture and bring to a boil; stir to scrape up any browned bits. Transfer to a medium sauce pan and bring to a simmer.
• Mix 1 1/2 tbsp butter and flour in a small bowl to form smooth paste; whisk into broth and simmer until sauce thickens. Whisk in remaining butter. Stir in roasted shallots.
• Cut beef into 1/2 inch slices. Spoon sauce over beef.

Recipe adapted from http://www.allrecipes.com/

Shrimp Alfredo

I was looking for a special dinner for a Sunday night, and I stumbled upon the most decadent pasta I have ever had -- shrimp alfredo. I usually don't gravitate towards cream sauces, favouring a lighter tomato sauce or even a white wine sauce, but this one seemed to be calling my name. 


Balanced out by the lightness of fresh pasta, this was delicious, but can only be served in small quantities due to the richness and definitely served with a salad with a simple vinaigrette dressing. If you're looking for a treat though, this is it and to top it off, it's pretty fast and easy. 


Ingredients

• fresh linguine pasta
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 4 tbsp onion,diced
• 4 tsp garlic, minced
• 30-40 shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 2 tsp ground black pepper
• 6 tbsp parmesan cheese, grated
• fresh parsley and lemon for garnish

Directions

• Cook pasta in large pot of boiling water until al dente, drain
• Melt butter in a large saucepan. Sautee onion and garlic over medium heat until tender
• Add shrimp and saute over medium-high heat until shrimp turn pink
• Stir in half-and-half and parmesan stirring constantly until sauce thickens
• Toss in linguine and sprinkle with black pepper
• Garnish with parsley and lemon

Recipe from www.allrecipes.com 

Chicken with Balsamic Vinegar, Garlic and Mushrooms

It's easy to gravitate towards the same, simple chicken dish week after week. For me, it's my chicken parmesan which I now have down to a fine science. But I am always looking for something new and different to challenge myself in the kitchen and to serve guests. 

A while ago, I found this recipe online and the first thing I loved about it was that I had all the ingredients on hand (the number one reason I make a recipe!). I was serving this for company, so I liked that it was something that I could mostly make ahead and with the exception of thickening the sauce near the end, it was a dish I could put in the over and still spend time with my guests. The balsamic vinegar thickened nicely and created a really nice "gravy" type sauce, presentation-wise it looked great and it tasted good, too! 

What chicken recipes do you gravitate towards?

Ingredients

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 3/4 pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 2 tbsp all purpose flour
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 3/4 cup chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme

Directions

• Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat and saute chicken until it is nicely browned on both sides
• Remove the chicken and put in a single layer in an oven-safe dish
• In the skillet, add the mushrooms and cook for a few minutes. Add the vinegar, broth, bay leaf, garlic and thyme. 
• Pour over chicken and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes
• Transfer chicken to a warm serving platter and cover with foil.
• On an element, simmer the sauce over medium high heat, slowly adding flour and whisking slowly until sauce begins to thicken.
• Discard the bay leaf and pour mushroom sauce over chicken and serve

Download printable recipe

Recipe adapted from www.allrecipes.com 

Turkey Cannelloni

In the movie Julie&Julia, they say that it's rude to say "yum" while you're eating, but I couldn't stop saying it when I made this. 

This was easily one of the most delicious things that I have ever made, and something I genuinely would be happy to get in a restaurant. But let's be honest, it's also one of the most complicated. Usually when I look for recipes, I look for simple, simple, simple. But I was craving cannelloni and I was willing to put in the effort for something a little more complex. And boy am I glad I did.

Sure, there are a tonne of ingredients and a crazy amount of directions. Sure, this recipe is a little fiddley -- especially if you make the pasta. (even if you don't make the pasta, fresh pasta is a must). But, this is one dish that is well worth the time and effort to put in. And it's a great dish for company because you can make it advance and then just bake it. A major culinary breakthrough for me!

Printable Recipe of Turkey Cannelloni

Ingredients

• 1 cup minced onion
• 1/3 cup minced carrot
• 1/3 cup diced celery
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-1.5 lb ground turkey
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 2 tsp chopped rosemary
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning (I substituted a mix of basil, oregano and thyme)
• 1 bay leaf
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 cup millk
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley
• 1 jar tomato sauce
• 1/3 cup whipping cream
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese, grated
• 1 pound fresh pasta sheets

Directions

• Heat the olive oil in a deep skillet. Add onion, carrot and celery and cook over moderate heat until softened.
• Add the garlic and cook one minute. 
• Add turkey, stirring occasionally until meat is no longer pink. 
• Add wine and reduce for one minute. Stir in broth, herbs, bay leaf and salt and pepper.
• Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Uncover and reduce until almost dry. Discard bay leaf and set mixture aside to cool.
• Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan set over moderately low heat. Whisk in flour for about two minutes. Whisk in milk, nutmeg and salt and pepper. Simmer, stirring occasionally for five minutes or until thickened. Stir in parsley and parmesan.
• Transfer cooled meat mixture to a large bowl, mix in egg yolks and cooled cheese and parsley sauce. Set aside.
• Combine the tomato sauce and cream. Set aside.
• Cut the pasta sheets crosswise into 5 inch lengths. Cook in boiling water until al dente -- should only take a couple of minutes with fresh pasta.
• Spoon some filling down the centre of one noodle and roll the noodle to enclose the filling. Transfer cannelloni seam-side down to a buttered lasagna pan until filling is complete.
• Cover cannelloni with tomato-cream sauce and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
• Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, or until bubbling. Run under broiler for two minutes until cheese is golden.

Recipe adapted from www.allrecipes.com 

Baked Steak Burritos

When we were in San Diego last year on our honeymoon, I had the most amazing steak burrito in this little Mexican restaurant. I think that burrito was the sole reason I so fondly look back at our time in San Diego. That and kayaking with leopard sharks; that was pretty cool. 


But I digress. Back to the burrito. To start, it was massive -- in fact the waiter kindly called it a "gut buster." It was baked to perfection and when I cut into it, mounds of steak and delicious sauce poured out. I rarely remember meals but I have been pining for another steak burrito for months. 


Apparently I loved it so much, I took a picture:

San Diego burrito

I couldn't find a recipe that met what I was looking for so I took a leap of faith and created my own. It wasn't exactly the same, but a pretty good burrito all around. This may join our regular meal rotation!


Ingredients

• 1/2 pound of stir fry steak strips
• 1 small red pepper, julienned
• 1 small yellow pepper, julienned 
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 tbsp taco seasoning (more if you like spicier)
• 2 tbsp cream
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup shredded cheese
• 4 large tortilla shells, warmed
• salsa, sour cream and/or guacamole to serve

Directions

• In a frying pan, saute the onion and add the beef
• Once beef is mostly cooked, add the red and yellow peppers, cook for a couple of minutes
• Add the taco seasoning and water, stir in and let simmer for a few minutes
• Add cream to make a sauce
• Spoon mixture evenly over tortillas in a line down the middle of the tortilla and top with shredded cheese
• Roll tortilla long side first, then tuck in ends and roll
• Place seam side down on cookie sheet and bake in oven preheated to 350 degrees, for about 20-25 minutes, until tortilla is brown and golden
• Serve with salsa, sour cream and guacamole