Caprese Salad

Caprese Salad is my all time favorite type of salad.  You can't beat fresh tomtatoes, basil, and mozzarella.  I've seen quite a few recipes for this salad and ordered it at a variety of restaurants.  The recipe below is my favorite way to eat this salad.

Caprese Salad

3 Vine-Ripened Tomatoes sliced in 1/4 inch thick slices

1 lb of fresh mozzarella sliced in 1/4 inch thick slices

15-20 fresh basil leaves

1/2 bag of Spring Mix salad

Balsamic Vinaigrette Salad Dressing

Oregano

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Cracked Pepper

Dash Salt

Scatter Spring Mix salad onto the serving plate.  Top with sliced tomatoes followed by basil leaves.  Pour small amounts of Balsamic Vinaigrette over the salad depending on your tastes.  Add slices of mozzarella and top with a dash of salt, some cracked pepper, and a sprinkling of oregano.  Finish with a drizzling of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. 

Fondue Dinner

This Valentine's Day I prepared a delicious fondue dinner for my boyfriend who had never eaten fondue before. We cooked chicken breasts, steak, and dough in oil. I made a Caprese Salad to accompany the meal.  Hope you enjoy the pictures from our dinner!

The Pot

A good hot oil fondue pot will usually be made from steel, copper, or enameled cast iron. It will have short handles to avoid being knocked over and can go up to very high temperatures (375 degrees Fahrenheit). It should be curved at the top or have splashguards to avoid hot oil splatters.  My pot is electric and it has a plug that is magnetized, so the slightest pull on the cord separates the cord from the pot.  This is a great safety feature and I'd recommend that you research the safety features of pots before you purchase one.

The Oil

Popular oils for meat fondue are vegetable, canola, grapeseed, and peanut oil. Peanut oil and grapeseed oil are the highest quality, but they are also the most expensive. Vegetable and canola oil work fairly well, although vegetable shortening is preferred to either of these because it has less odor. Oil should be heated to just below the boiling point (about 375 degrees Fahrenheit). A deep-frying thermometer is a handy tool for helping to determine the temperature of the oil.

The Meat

Choose a tender cut of beef such as tenderloin (recommended) or sirloin. The more it is aged the better. Use chicken breasts as well! Meat should be cut into ¾ inch cubes and have all fat and sinew removed. Plan for six ounces of meat per person.

The Bread

Purchase some unrisen dough that you should be able to find in the freezer section of your local grocery store.  Thaw the dough and cut into bite size pieces.  Lay these pieces out on a baking sheet or large plate.  Place a light towel over the dough and let rise in a warm location for a few hours.  Directions can usually be found on the dough's package.  Make sure to serve the bread with garlic butter - just melt butter with smashed garlic.

The Dipping Sauces

Raid your pantry and refrigerator for various sauces that can be used in which to dip the meat.  Examples: A1, BBQ, teriyaki, hot sauce, rooster sauce, and melted garlic butter (for the dough puffs).

Fondue Dinner

Chicken Breasts

Beef tenderloin or sirloin
Dough

Oil (enough to fill half of your pan)

Trim fat and sinew from beef and cut into ¾ inch chunks. Blot with paper towel and put in refrigerator while oil is heating. In a medium saucepan, heat oil to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Transfer to fondue pot. Do not overfill the pot. About half full works best.

Spear a chunk of beef with fondue fork and place in hot oil. Cook until beef is done to your satisfaction (approximately 30 seconds for rare, 45 for medium-rare, and 1 minute to well done). Remove from fork and transfer to plate (fondue fork will be very hot). Eat with sauces of your choice.

Don’t worry if you don’t have a deep-frying thermometer. You can still test the temperature of the oil for cooking. Simply drop a bread cube into the oil and see if it turns golden brown within 30 seconds.

Too many fondue forks in the pot at one time will lower the temperature of the oil and cause the meat to not cook properly. 

 

  

 

*Most of this information comes directly from a really helpful fondue website. 

Swedish Meatballs

I found this recipe about 3 or 4 years ago in Cooking Light.  My only experience with Swedish Meatballs is the Ikea store cafeteria.  Don't quite think it's that authentic, but it tastes great - hehe.  In this recipe I used ground turkey instead of chicken and whole wheat bread instead of rye.  Upon making this I realized I was going to need to double the amount of chicken stock and add a tad bit more sour cream.  When I make this again I'm going to add onions to the meatballs too.

I served the meatballs with Cooking Light's Buttered Poppy Seed Noodles.  It's simple to make - cook 8 oz of wide egg noodles.  Add a tablespoon or two of butter, chopped parsley, 1 teaspoon of poppy seeds, some salt and pepper to the noddles - combine!

Swedish Meatballs

2  (1-ounce) slices rye bread 

1  pound  skinless, boneless chicken breast 

3/4  teaspoon  salt, divided 

1/4  teaspoon  ground nutmeg 

1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper 

1  large egg white 

1  tablespoon  canola oil 

1  cup  fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth 

1  tablespoon  all-purpose flour 

1  (8-ounce) carton fat-free sour cream 

2  tablespoons  chopped fresh parsley

Place bread in a food processor; pulse 10 times or until coarse crumbs measure 1 cup. Place breadcrumbs in a medium bowl; set aside.

Place chicken in food processor, and pulse until ground. Add chicken, 1/2 teaspoon salt, nutmeg, pepper, and egg white to breadcrumbs in bowl; stir until combined. Shape mixture into 16 (1 1/2-inch) meatballs.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add meatballs; cook 6 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove meatballs from pan. Add the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, chicken broth, and flour to pan, stirring with a whisk until combined. Bring to a boil, and cook 1 minute or until slightly thickened, stirring constantly. Stir in sour cream, and return the meatballs to pan. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook for 10 minutes or until meatballs are done and sauce is thick. Sprinkle with parsley.  Serve with wide egg noodles and a vegetable.

Nutritional Information

Calories: 269 (21% from fat)

Fat: 6.3g (sat 1.2g,mono 2.6g,poly 1.5g)

Protein: 32.3g

Carbohydrate:18.6g

Fiber: 1g

Cholesterol: 72mg

Iron: 1.5mg

Sodium: 783mg

Calcium: 117mg

Chicken Korma

This recipe was delicious and I'm now even considering using Greek Plain Yogurt instead of sour cream in all of my recipes.  It was so spectacular as a topping to these pita sandwiches.  

I don't often cook with ground chicken or ground turkey and I was pleasantly surprised by the consistency and taste.  I will admit I was a little worried as I cooked the ground turkey (Yes, I used ground turkey instead of chicken because I couldn't find any!).  The turkey looked mushy and paste-like.  In the end, though - I was impressed!  I also doubled the amount of peas and cilantro in this recipe because, well frankly - I just love peas and I put cilantro on everything.  

While shopping in Trader Joe's, I came across some Middle Eastern Flatbread that I've used before to make tacos.  This bread is soft, chewy, and flavorful, so I used this instead of the "better for you" pita.  I didn't use cashews because I'm not a big fan of nuts, yet I bet that would have added a nice crunch to each bite.  I also didn't add any hot sauce because I'm a mid-western Caucasian and sensitive to spice.  I know most of my friends would have added a dash of hot sauce to their pita though.

Chicken Korma

1 large red onion; 1/2 chopped, 1/2 sliced

1 1-inch piece ginger, peeled and thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, smashed

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

Kosher salt

1/4 cup vegetable oil, plus more for brushing

3/4 pound ground chicken (or turkey)

1/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt, plus more for garnish

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish
4 pocketless pitas (or flatbread)

Chopped cashews and/or hot sauce, for garnish (optional)

Puree the chopped onion in a food processor with the ginger, garlic, coriander, cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 cup water.

Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the sliced onion and cook until golden, 4 to 5 minutes.  Add the spice paste and cook, stirring, until slightly dry, 8 to 10 minutes.  Add the chicken and cook until opaque, breaking up the meat.  Mix the yogurt with 1/4 cup water, add to the pan and simmer over medium-low heat until the meat is cooked through, 2 to 3 more minutes.  Add the peas and cilantro and season with salt.

Meanwhile, heat another skillet over hight heat.  Brush the pitas with oil, season with salt and toast in the skillet, about 1 minute per side.  Divide the chicken mixture among the pitas.  Top with more yogurt and cilantro.  Garnish and cashews and/or hot sauce, if desired.

Serves 4

Per serving:
Calories 463
Fat 25g (Saturated 4g)
Cholesteral 57mg
Sodium 748mg
Carbohydrate 41g
Fiber 3g
Protein 21g

Recipe taken from The Food Network Magazine "Chicken Korma" March 2010

Philly Cheeseteak Casserole

Philly Cheeseteak Casserole

1 (16 oz) pkg. bowtie pasta
2 T. vegetable oil
2 onions chopped
1 1/2 lb. ground beef
1 (10 oz) can cream of mushroom soup
1 soup can milk
4 (4 oz) can mushroom
1/2 t. thyme
4 C. shredded Cheddar cheese divided
salt and pepper to taste
1 C. bread crumbs
3 T. butter melted

Preheat oven to 375. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook according to package directions. Drain and set aside. Heat vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté' onions until they begin to soften. Add ground beef and cook stirring until evenly browned. Drain off grease and pour into the bowl with the pasta. Stir in the soup, soup can of milk, mushrooms and thyme until well blended. Mix in 3 C. of the cheese, and season with salt and pepper. 

Pour the mixture into a greased 9x13 baking dish. In a small bowl, mix together the bread crumbs and melted butter. Mix in remaining cheese. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the top of the baking dish. Bake 30-35 minutes or until top if golden and crispy.

French Onion Soup

This is my mom's recipe. Maybe you've noticed a trend ;-) I do get quite a few of my recipes from her. She's an amazing cook!

French Onion Soup

1 quart thinly sliced yellow onions

1 clove garlic, peeled, sliced

1/4 cup butter

2 cans (10 1/2oz) condensed beef broth

1 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup medium dry sherry

1 teaspoon Worcestershire

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups Monterey Jack cheese, grated and divided

Thinly sliced French bread

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Saute onions and garlic in butter until golden brown (this may take awhile). Mix in undiluted beef broth, wines, Worcestershire and salt. Heat through. Add 1 1/2 Cups Monterey cheese. Ladle into four or six oven proof bowls distributing cheese as evenly as possible.

Top each serving with one slice of French bread. Sprinkle with remaining Monterey Jack cheese (so the top is completely covered) and Romano cheese. Bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and soup is hot and bubbly.

This recipe is easy to add or subtract to suit your tastes. You can use more or less butter, sherry, and cheese.

Pot Roast

This is one of the best Pot Roast recipes I've ever had!  I love mashed potatoes with roast, so I usually cook the potatoes separately rather than in the pot with the roast.  The best part of this recipe is the gravy - sweet, flavorful, delicious!

Pot Roast

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 cups brown beef stock

3 1/2 - 4 pound boneless chuck roast

1 bay leaf or beef shoulder, rolled & tied

1 pound carrots, cut into diagonals

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

1 1/2 pounds all purpose potatoes,

1 cup chopped celery peeled and quartered

2 cloves garlic, minced

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup canned crushed tomatoes

2 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved

1 cup red wine in 3 tablespoons water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large heavy ovenproof pan (le crueset) or dutch oven, heat the oil over medium high heat. Pat the roast dry rub to coat with salt and pepper. Brown the meat on all sides in the heated casserole. Add in the onions and celery, stir and cook for 2 minutes or until softened. Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, red wine, beef stock and bay leaf and bring to a simmer. Cover and place pot in oven to braise.

After 1 hour, remove pot and stir in carrots. Return to oven for another 30 minutes. Remove pot from oven and stir in potatoes. Return to oven for another 30 minutes or until the meat and vegetables are tender. When the meat is tender, remove it to a platter. Remove vegetables to a bowl and cover to keep warm. 

Using a large spoon, skim off the excess fat from the remaining cooking juices. Bring liquid to a simmer on the stovetop. Slowly stir in half of the cornstarch mixture and simmer to thicken. Add more cornstarch mixture until desired gravy consistency is reached. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Stir in 1/2 cup chopped parsley. Slice the beef and place on platter surrounded with the vegetables.

Hearty Beef 'N Potato Casserole

This recipe is easy and yummy.  I make a few casseroles at the same time and freeze them for later.  If you plan to freeze it, you won't need to bake the tator tots ahead of time.  

Hearty Beef 'N Potato Casserole

4 cups or 1/2 of a 30 oz bag of hash round potatoes

1 lb ground beef

1-16 oz pkg frozen chopped broccoli, thawed

1 can french fried onions

1-10 3/4 oz can cream of celery soup

1/3 cup milk

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 tsp garlic powder

Place potatoes on bottom and up sides of 8"x12" casserole dish. Bake uncovered at 400° for 10 minutes. Brown beef in large chunks; drain. Layer beef, broccoli, and 1/2 can of the onions in the potato shell. Combine soup, milk, 1/2 cup of cheese and seasonings; pour over beef mixture.  Bake covered at 400° for 20 minutes. Top with remaining cheese and onions; bake, uncovered 2 to 3 minutes longer.
Serves 6

Spaghetti Sauce

Nothing tastes more like home than my mom's spaghetti sauce.  This delicious, meaty, and hearty sauce is perfect on a cold evening.  The best thing about this sauce is that you can make tons of it and freeze it for an evening when you don't feel like cooking.  Just boil some pasta and heat the sauce - tastes like it has been simmering all day.  When I make this, I usually double the recipe - you'll just need a really large pot!  I can then have dinner and freeze 4 tuperwares of sauce too!

Spaghetti Sauce

1lb ground beef

5 cans tomato sauce

2 small cans tomato paste

1 tsp. basil

1 tsp. oregano

2 tsp. Italian Seasoning

1 bay leaf

½ tsp. marjoram

½ tsp. rosemary

3 tbsp. vinegar

½ cup brown sugar

Fry ground beef and drain.  Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil and simmer for at least one hour, stirring frequently.

Chicken Tamale Casserole

I’ve been craving Mexican food like you wouldn’t believe.  Who am I kidding – I always crave Mexican!  I cut out this recipe a few years ago, tucked it away, and completely forgot about it until this weekend.  I’m sorry I didn’t try this recipe earlier.  It satisfied my cravings for some filling, cheesy, Mexican food without all of the calories or fat.  I didn’t have any egg substitute in my fridge, so I just used a regular egg instead.  I also mixed the chicken with the enchilada sauce prior to pouring the mixture over the cornbread.  Oh – sour cream is a must on this one!

Chicken Tamale Casserole

Cooking Light November, 2008

1 cup 2% 4 cheese mexican blend
1/3 cup fat free milk
1/4 egg substitute
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 (14 ¾ oz) can creamed style corn
1 8.5 ounce box Jiffy corn muffin mix
1 (4 oz) can chopped green chiles, drained
Cooking spray
1 (10 oz) can Red Enchilada sauce
2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast (about 3 breasts)

Preheat oven to 400. Combine ¼ cup cheese and next 7 ingredients (through chiles) in a large bowl, stirring just until moist. Pour mixture into a 13x9 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Bake at 400 for 15 minutes or until set. Pierce entire surface liberally with a fork, pour enchilada sauce over top. Top with chicken; sprinkle remaining ¾ cup cheese. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes or until cheese melts. Remove from oven, let stand 5 minutes and serve.

Nutritional Information

Calories: 354 (36% from fat)

Fat: 14.1g (sat 7.1g,mono 3.3g,poly 1.2g)

Protein: 18.9g

Carbohydrate: 36.3g

Fiber: 2.5g

Cholesterol: 58mg

Iron: 1.7mg

Sodium: 620mg

Calcium: 179mg

El Torito's Tortilla Soup

I always order this soup when I visit El Torito Restaurant. It’s delicious, flavorful, healthy, and freezes well. I always double or quadruple the recipe and freeze the leftovers. Today, I’m using leftover chicken from last night’s Roast Chicken with Pan Gravy. You can always use a store purchased rotisserie chicken too! I’m also a huge fan of cilantro – so I always add more fresh cilantro to the soup after it’s done simmering.

El Torito’s Tortilla Soup

7 cups chicken broth

1 medium yellow onion -- diced

2 carrots -- peeled and diced

2 stalks celery -- diced

1 bell pepper -- seeded and diced

1 potato -- peeled and diced

1/4 cup tomato paste

1 bay leaf

2 cloves garlic -- peeled and chopped

1 teaspoon dried mexican oregano

Salt and Pepper to taste

2 medium boneless skinless chicken breast halves -- poached and shredded

1 zucchini -- diced

2 medium tomatoes -- diced

1 1/2 cups jack cheese -- shredded

10 slices avocado -- garnish

cilantro sprigs -- garnish

Combine broth, onion, carrots, celery, bell pepper, potato, tomato paste, bay leaf, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Add zucchini, tomatoes and chicken and bring to a boil and then simmer and additional 10 minutes.

Remove from heat; remove and discard bay leaf. Serve with cheese and avocado.

Roast Chicken with Pan Gravy

As I sat down going through my recipe folder, I realized that the recipes I had selected to cook this week all called for shredded chicken breasts.  I flipped through my files and found a recipe I had saved from Gourmet Magazine (March 2009).  This recipe was perfect because it provided me with a beautiful roast chicken dinner as well as enough left-over chicken to make my tortilla soup as well as a chicken tamale casserole I want to try later this week.  Here’s the recipe, a video on how to carve a chicken, and some pictures from tonight’s dinner.  I served it with mashed red potatoes and glazed carrots.  Also, I didn’t have any unsalted butter on hand so I used regular salted butter and just cut down on the seasoning salt.

Roast Chicken with Pan Gravy

March 2009 Gourmet Magazine

In an uncertain world, everybody needs a truly excellent recipe for roast chicken, one that will never, ever fail you. This is it. And although basting the chickens seems like a chore, it will give them a beautiful burnished glow. Killing two birds with one stone—that is, cooking two birds together—provides dinner tonight and enough leftovers for three more meals. Saving both chicken carcasses for the stockpot (they can be frozen if desired) is key.

2 whole chickens (about 3 1/2 lb each)

1 stick unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons, divided

6 large garlic cloves, smashed and peeled

2 lemons, halved

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 cups water

Kitchen string

Rosemary, Thyme, or Sage (optional)

Preheat oven to 450°F with rack in middle. Pull off excess fat around cavities of chickens and discard, then rinse chickens and pat dry. Melt 4 Tbsp butter with garlic and brush butter all over chickens. Season both chickens inside and out with 2 1/2 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper (total). Put half of garlic and 1 lemon half in each cavity and loosely tie legs together with string. Roast chickens in a large (17- by 11-inch) flameproof roasting pan, basting with pan juices using a spoon (remove pan from oven and tilt if necessary) every 20 minutes, rotating pan, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into fleshy part of a thigh of each chicken (do not touch bone) registers 170°F, 50 to 60 minutes total. Baste chickens once more, then carefully tilt them so juices from cavities run into roasting pan. Transfer chickens to a cutting board (reserve pan) and let rest 15 minutes before carving.

Watch a video that demonstrates how to carve a chicken.

Pour off all but 2 Tbsp fat from pan, then cook remaining drippings over medium-high heat until deep golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Stir in water and simmer, stirring and scraping up brown bits, until thickened, about 3 to 4 minutes. Whisk in remaining 4 Tbsp butter and lemon juice to taste (from remaining lemon halves). Season with salt and pepper. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a gravy boat.

Cooks' Note: If desired, you can also add herbs such as thyme or rosemary to cavities before roasting.

http://www.gourmet.com/recipes/2000s/2009/03/roast-chicken-with-pan-gravy