Chimichurri Sauce

I think I first fell in love with chimichurri sauce when I made it at Bellingham Technical College's Summer Educator's Institute a few years ago. This isn't that same, exact recipe; everyone has their own personal favorite blend of herbs for chimichurri sauce, so feel free to play around with it. But here's a good starting point...





Ingredients
¼ C olive oil
2 T lime juice
1 oz (2 T) sherry vinegar (or red wine vinegar)

¼ C green onion, rough chopped
2 garlic cloves; smashed

½ C Italian/flat leaf parsley, chopped
2 T each chopped fresh basil, oregano, cilantro
¼ tsp crushed red pepper
s & p to taste (~ ½ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper)

Directions
Combine all ingredients in a blender (mini 'bullet'-style blenders work great, but if you don't have one...don't bother with a full size blender, just do a good job of chopping everything and stir it all together in a small bowl); whirl or pulse until consistency is salsa-like with chopped herbs still in chunks. Salt and pepper to taste.

You can serve chimichurri sauce as soon as you make it, but the flavors blend and it gets even better if it sits for at least a couple hours (or overnight).

Stir chimichurri sauce into rice or pasta; spoon over chicken, pork, fish...

Saffron Cream Sauce

Saffron + lemon + vanilla + paremsan + chives...  I do like trying new and different flavor combinations; but I wasn't sure about this -- particularly with the vanilla. But saffron (as pricey as it can be) always sounds so very "gourmet"! 

This was...okay. Truly, it may simply need a little salt! Might depend on the variety & saltiness of your parm. I have some leftovers in the frig, so I'll give it a second chance, but my initial reaction was pretty ho-hum.

Food Network - Pappardelle* in Saffron Cream

* For those of you who know your noodles, those are not pappardelle in my photo. I had these wide egg noodles on hand already, an easy and very reasonable substitute.

Beef & Cheese Stuffed Manicotti

I can't imagine how this recipe hasn't gotten onto my blog earlier. Probably because it's easy to alter and adjust the stuffing with various ingredients, and I often make it without following any exact recipe. 

Ingredients
1 onion, diced
1 - 2 T olive oil
1 - 1½ lbs hamburger
s & p
½ green pepper, diced
½ red pepper, diced
3 - 5 garlic cloves, minced
32 oz ricotta cheese
8 oz grated parmesan (or cheddar, or other firm cheese)
8 oz sour cream
2 T Italian herbs - store bought mix, or your own favorites
64 oz spaghetti sauce
8-12 oz shredded mozzarella

Directions
Heat oil in skillet; add onions and cook until translucent. Add hamburger, cook until thoroughly browned. Salt and pepper to taste. (I often use garlic salt or onion salt for added flavor, and usually choose crushed red pepper flakes instead of black pepper.) Add garlic and diced peppers; heat through until very fragrant. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, combine ricotta, grated parmesan, sour cream and herbs.  Once beef and vegetables are cooled -- just enough so as not to melt cheeses -- combine them with ricotta mixture.

Pour a layer of spaghetti sauce on the bottom of a casserole dish. Stuff uncooked manicotti noodles, arranging them in the baking dish. Pour more spaghetti sauce over noodles; a second layer of stuffed manicotti may be added, or use a second casserole dish. Top with another layer of spaghetti sauce; sprinkle shredded mozzarella over tops.

Bake 1 hour at 325°F.
Casserole can also be frozen, and baked later.

Cheesy Mushroom Pasta

The original recipe called for pappardelle pasta, which I love -- wide noodles that catch and stand up to a good deal of sauce. But I had some mixed veggie noodles which were wide and rippled enough to do the same. Either, I believe would do very well; it was a hearty meal, very balanced flavor; great with a side salad. Would probably be fine even without the ham steak if you needed a vegetarian meal (not vegan, with the milk & cheese); the mushrooms give it a meatiness. Might need a little extra salt.

Ingredients
2 T butter
4 ounces ham steak, small diced
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
s&p to taste
12 oz buttom mushrooms, sliced
2 T flour
3 C whole milk
8-10 oz pappardelle pasta
2 oz (½ C) grated havarti cheese
3 oz (6 T) grated parmesan
2 T chopped fresh parsley

Directions
Begin bringing large pot of salted water to boil (for pasta).
Melt butter in large ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Add ham, onion, and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent (3-5 minutes). Add mushrooms, cook another 3-5 minutes until tender.

Sprinkle in flour, stirring to coat ingredients. Gradually add milk, stirring; bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer, stirring gently, until thick and creamy. Remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Preheat broiler. Add pasta to boiling water; cook until al dente. Reserve ½ C pasta water; drain pasta. Add pasta to skillet with mushroom sauce. Also add havarti, parsley and half of the parmesan. Fold together pasta, sauce, cheeses and parsley until well coated. Use reserved pasta water to thin sauce if/as needed. Sprinkle with remaining parmesan. Broil until bubbly and lightly browned.

Butternut Squash & Sweet Potato Wonton 'Ravioli'

I had a little of this, a little of that -- a little butternut squash soup, a few leftover sweet potatoes, and some wonton wrappers -- and pulled off a close approximation of a Ree Drummond Pumpkin Wonton Ravioli recipe. It wasn't exactly the same, but mine was delicious! Wonton wrappers as a quick 'cheater' 
version of homemade ravioli! :)

butter
minced garlic
pumpkin puree OR butternut squash OR sweet potatoes...
chili powder (I think I used a squirt of Sriracha)
salt & pepper
wonton wrappers
1 egg

shaved parmesan

pine nuts

Ground Beef (or Elk) Stroganoff

Beef is, obviously, traditional. However, thanks to Dad's hunting success and generosity, I have ground elk on hand. :)

Ingredients
2 T butter
8 oz sliced baby portabella mushrooms
1 C chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 lb lean ground beef, elk or other meat
1½ C beef broth
1½ T Worchesershire
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ C flour
1½ C sour cream (+ more to garnish at serving)
Italian parsley, finely chopped for garnish

noodles or rice

Directions
Melt butter in large skillet over medium heat; cook mushrooms, onion and garlic until tender (6-8 minutes). Transfer to small bowl; set aside.

Brown ground beef (or elk...) in skillet over medium high heat. While meat is cooking, whisk flour into ½ cup beef broth; set aside. Add remaining broth, Worcestershire, salt, pepper and nutmeg to browned meat; bring to boil. Add flour and broth mixture, stirring as it thickens. Stir in mushroom and onion mixture; cool slightly. Stir in sour cream.

Serve over noodles or rice, garnished with a dollop of sour cream and chopped parsley.

Smoky Mushroom Stroganoff

This doesn't satisfy my craving for a traditional stroganoff; the sour cream flavor is less pronounced. But the smoky, mushroom combo is a nice switch. I'd love it with pappardelle, I'm sure, but I had spinach linguine on hand...delicious and nice colorful presentation too!

Ingredients
1 8-10 oz pkg dried pappardelle (or other pasta noodles)
1½ lb mushrooms, sliced (button, cremini, shitake, etc)
2 cloves garlic
1 Tbls olive oil
1 8-oz carton sour cream
2 Tbls flour
1½ tsp smoked paprika
1 C vegetable broth
salt and pepper to taste
chopped parsley to garnish, if desired

Directions
Cook noodles according to pkg directions; drain and keep warm.

In large skillet, cook mushrooms and garlic in olive oil 6-8 minutes over medium heat, until tender. Remove from skillet; keep warm.

In skillet, combine sour cream, flour, and paprika. Slowly add broth, stirring until smooth and creamy. Cook over medium-low heat until thickened and bubbly. 

Serve mushroom mixture and sauce over noodles; garnish with parsley if desired.

Potato Gnocchi

Gnocchi are actually more of a dumpling than a true pasta.


2 lbs potato
   (You want a fairly mealy, baking potato; russets work well.)
2 egg yolks, beaten
1½ C flour
pinch salt

Bake the potatoes (350°, about an hour). Let them partially cool; while they're still warm -- easier to work with at that point -- scoop the potatoes from the skins. Pass them through a ricer, of finely mash them with a fork, then fluff them a bit.

Add flour, egg yolks, and salt to potatoes; mix until a dough ball forms (don't over-mix).

Dust the work surface with flour and roll portions of the dough into logs or 'snakes' about 3/4" in diameter. (Again, work with the dough lightly; don't press or knead it excessively. You want light, fluffy gnocchi, not dense chewy dough balls.) Cut the dough into 1" lengths. Using a fork (or your finger, but the indentations of the fork are great for catching pasta sauce!), gently roll across each gnocchi to create a slight indentation and give the gnocchi a curved, almost shell like shape.

At this point, the gnocchi are ready to be cooked; but you can also lay them out flat on a baking sheet, freeze them, then put them in air tight plastic bags/containers to freeze for cooking later.

To cook the gnocchi, simply boil them in lightly salted water like you would any other pasta. Depending on the thickness, 3-7 minutes should fully cook fresh gnocchi (slightly longer for frozen/thawed gnocchi). Generally...when they rise to the surface, they're done!

Serve with your favorite pasta sauce.

Corny Mac & Cheese

(Maybe not the best picture...but we couldn't wait to dig in!) :)

Ingredients:
1 15 oz can cream style corn
2 C milk
2 Tbls cornstarch
1 tsp onion powder
½ tsp each: nutmeg, salt, pepper
¼ tsp cayenne
4 C elbow macaroni
2 lbs grated cheese(s)*
½ C butter
1 egg, beaten
Toppings (optional): extra cheese, crushed croutons or potato chips, crumbled bacon, chives, crisp fried onions, etc.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°.

Optional: Pulse the corn in a food processor if a smoother consistency is desired.

Cook and drain the macaroni; cover to keep warm, and set aside.

Add cornstarch to cold milk and stir until well mixed. In a saucepan combine corn, milk and cornstarch, and onion powder; bring to a simmer. Stir in nutmeg, salt, pepper and cayenne; continue to simmer and stir until the mixture thickens (2-4 minutes).

Pour this over the macaroni and stir to combine. Add cheese(s) -- reserve some cheese for topping, if desired -- butter, and egg, stirring until well combined; butter and cheeses should melt and get creamy. (Mmmmm!) Pour the mixture into a large casserole or baking dish (or a large skillet). -- I had to use two...one for now, one for later!

Top with extra cheese, croutons, bacon, herbs, etc. as desired. Bake on top rack until golden (typically about 30 minutes).

* A combination of cheddar and mozzarella works well for a basic, creamy mac & cheese. I used smoked gouda recently for my nephew's birthday dinner. Variations are delicious...choose cheese according to your taste! :)

Tagliatelle with Prosciutto and Orange

Ingredients

12 ounces egg tagliatelle or fettuccine (preferably fresh)

2Tbls unsalted butter

2 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, torn into 1" pieces

zest and juice of 1 orange

½ C heavy whipping cream

freshly ground black pepper

¼ C finely grated parmesan 

Directions

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Season with salt; add pasta and cook, stirring occasionally, until 1 minute before al dente, about 2 minutes for fresh pasta, longer for dried. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup pasta water.

Meanwhile, melt butter in a large heavy nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add prosciutto; sauté until browned, about 3 minutes.

Add reserved pasta water, orange juice, half of zest, and cream; bring to a boil. Add pasta; cook, stirring, until sauce coats pasta and pasta is al dente, about 1-2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in cheese and divide among warm bowls. Makes 4 servings.

Egg Noodle Pasta

We made this type of pasta in both the cooking classes I attended when I visited Italy. This simple recipe can be rolled out and cut into spaghetti, vermicelli, fettuccine, linguine...made into ravioli (pictured below), farfalle... Or other shapes if you're really creative and have a lot of time. In one of the classes, the chef scoffed at using a pasta rolling machine, preferring to do everything by hand (which really doesn't take long if you're only making a single recipe -- below, serves 1 or 2). In the other class...the chef used one! :)

2/3 C flour*
1 large egg

(Lots of pasta recipes include a little olive oil and/or a pinch of salt. Neither of the chefs in my two cooking classes in Italy did -- but I have experimented with it since then. I like a little olive oil.)

Mound the flour on a flat surface and make a well in the middle. Crack the egg into the middle of the flour well. With a fork, beat the egg and begin mixing in the flour. As a dough begins to form, use your hands to knead the dough until all the flour is incorporated and the dough is very smooth.

Roll the dough very thin; cut or shape into desired noodle size/shape. Place in boiling water for 2-4 minutes.


Cooking time may be slightly longer if you stuff the pasta (e.g. ravioli) or if it's folded or gathered like with a farfalle shaped noodle ('bow-tie' pasta); but with fresh pasta it's really quick.


*In Italy, the recipe was given in grams...so if you have a kitchen scale: 100 grams of flour. Generic, all purpose flour works well with this pasta. In one of the classes we made another pasta with semolina flour; I'll try that out and post it soon. :)

Bacon-Chicken Mac & Cheese

With chicken, bacon, mushroom soup, onion, garlic and dill...there are lots of flavors in this dish! A cream of chicken or cheddar soup would work as well if you want a more 'purist' version. The dill could also be omitted, though I think it's a nice touch (and only add a pinch if you're using dried instead of fresh). With the bacon, butter and cheeses, I found it plenty salty without adding the salt the recipe calls for.

8 oz uncooked elbow macaroni
2 slices bacon
8 oz skinless, boneless chicken breast
1 Tbls butter
1 Tbls flour
1½ C milk
1/3 C cream of mushroom condensed soup
3 oz shredded Italian cheese blend
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp chopped fresh dill
(½ tsp salt)
½ C shredded colby-Jack cheese

Cook pasta (omit salt); drain.

Cook bacon an a large nonstick skillet until crisp. Remove bacon, reserving drippings in pan. Finely chop bacon and set aside. Cut chicken into ½" chunks; add chicken to skillet and sautée in bacon drippings until well done.

Melt butter in large saucepan over medium heat; sprinkle flour evenly into pan. Cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly with a whisk. Combine soup and milk; gradually add to saucepan, stirring with whisk. Bring to boil; cook until thick (2-3 minutes).

Remove from heat and let stand 3-4 minutes. Add Italian cheese blend, onion powder, garlic powder, dill and salt, stirring until cheese melts. Stir in pasta and chicken.

Preheat broiler. Spoon Mac & Cheese into an 8" baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with bacon and colby-Jack cheese. Broil 3 minutes or until cheese melts and browns slightly.

Mushroom-herb Spaghetti

12 oz spaghetti
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tbls olive oil
16 oz sliced mushrooms
2 Tbls tomato paste
14 oz can diced tomatoes
1 Tbls chopped fresh rosemary
(or about ½ tsp dried)
salt & pepper
parmesan, chopped fresh oregano

In a frying pan over medium heat, cook onion and garlic in olive oil unitl softened. Add mushrooms and cook until browned. Att tomato paste, diced tomatoes, rosemary, salt and pepper. Simmer 10 minutes. Serve over cooked spaghetti.

Sprinkle with fresh grated parmesan and fresh chopped oregano. (Of course fresh is best...but use what you've got.) :)

Not quite as impressive as it looked/sounded, but the mushrooms are delicious.

Quick and Easy Skillet Lasagne

I don't know if this should really qualify as lasagne! But if you're craving the flavor and don't have the time, try this...

1½ lb ground beef (or turkey, etc.)
28 oz jar of marinara sauce
2 C cooked rotini pasta
1 1/3 C French's French Fried Onions
1 C ricotta cheese
1 C shredded mozzarella

Brown meat in a large skilled; drain away grease. Stir in sauce, pasta and ½ of the french fried onions. Heat to boiling, stirring often. Spoon ricotta cheese over meat mixture; top with mozzarella and remaining onions. Cover; cook 3 minutes or until cheese melts.

Vietnamese Steak Noodle Salad

1 lb rib-eye steak
3 Tbls soy sauce
6 Tbls lime juice
1/4 C fish sauce
2 tsp sugar
1 red jalapeno chile
rice noodles
2 medium shallots
2 Tbls flour
vegetable oil
1/4 C each fresh dill, basil, mint & cilantro

Marinate steak in soy sauce; broil until done to your taste (rare - well done). Let rest 5 minutes, then slice thinly.

Meanwhile, halve and thinly slice jalapeno. In a bowl mix lime juice, fish sauce, sugar and jalapeno chile.

Cook rice noodles.

Coarsely chop dill, basil, mint and cilantro. Toss gently to mix.

Slice shallots thinly; toss in flour to coat. Fry in vegetable oil until golden and crispy.

Spoon some lime-chile dressing over a serving of rice noodles; top with sliced steak and chopped greens. Garnish with fried shallots. Serve with remaining dressing.

The fish sauce is the only relatively unusual ingredient here - though if you try many Asian recipes you'll run into it frequently. It's not hard to find in the Asian section of well-stocked supermarkets. Same with the rice noodles.
You could substitute a small onion for the shallots. The basil, mint, dill and cilantro are much better if they're fresh greens, although if you had three of the four fresh, you could throw in some dried dill weed or basil and still get the mix of flavors.

Easy Tomato-Tortellini Soup

28 oz chicken or vegetable broth
10 oz pkg store-bought tortellini
1 14-oz can diced tomatoes
1 11-oz can tomato soup
½ an 8-oz tub cream cheese spread with chive & onion
optional garnish: chopped chives

In a medium saucepan, bring broth to boil. Add tortellini; reduce heat and simmer 5-10 minutes. In a bowl whisk ½ C of broth with cream cheese spread until very smooth. Add cream cheese mixture to saucepan along with condensed soup and diced tomatoes. Heat through. Garnish with chopped chives.

Five-Spice Chicken Noodle Salad

Oops! Took the photo before I sprinkled on the chopped peanuts.

2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 tsp Chinese five-spice seasoning*
1 Tbls sugar
4 boneless, skinned chicken breast halves
1 C coarsely shredded carrots
1/2 C chopped cilantro leaves
1/2 C chopped mint leaves
1/2 C choppped peanuts
Rice noodles, prepared as directed on package.

Chile Lime Dressing
1/4 C sugar (dissolved in 1/4 C hot water)
1/4 C rice vinegar
1/4 C fish sauce*
6 Tbls lime juice
1 to 2 Tbls minced red jalepeno chile

Prep all ingredients: shred carrots, chop herbs and peanuts, etc.

Mix soy sauce, oil, five-spice seasoning and 1 Tbls sugar in a shallow dish. Turn chicken in marinade to coat; let stand 10-15 minutes. Drain chicken and grill or broil until cooked through. Transfer to a cutting board and let stand 5 minutes.

Prepare rice noodles as directed; drain. Divide noodles among dinner bowls. Slice chicken; set on noodles. Top chicken with shredded carrots, chopped mint and cilantro, and peanuts. Serve with Chile Lime Dressing.

* Like a lot of people, I'm sure, I don't like recipes that have a lot of ingredients I've never heard of. Fish sauce (and maybe the five-spice seasoning) might be a new one for you. If you cook many Asian recipes you'll run into it regularly, so at least it won't be some strange ingredient that never gets used again. Find fish sauce (and five-spice which is cinnamon, anise/licorice root, fennel, ginger and clove) in the Asian section of regular grocery stores; not really all that exotic. :)

Baked Ravioli

I love ravioli; in fact it's what I'll often order to kind of 'test' a new Italian restaurant. This recipe uses store-bought ravioli, but a homemade sauce. I reduced the recipe by about 1/2, so the picture shows it baked in a large loaf pan; a full recipe should go into a casserole dish.

Baked Ravioli
2 Tbls olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic
salt & pepper
1 tsp dried thyme or oregano
1 28 oz can crushed/diced tomatoes
1 lb store-bought ravioli
1/2 C shredded mozzarella
1/2 C grated parmesan

Preheat oven to 425°.
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, salt & pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened (5 min). Add thyme and/or oregano and tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, breaking up tomatoes until sauce is thickened and reduced; 20-25 minutes. (I scooped about half of this tomato-onion mixture and blended it in my Magic Bullet so it was really saucey, but still with some good tomato and onion chunks.)

While sauce is thickening, cook ravioli in a large pot of boiling water just until they float to the top. The pasta will continue to cook while baking. Drain pasta.

Toss pasta in sauce, and pour pasta (and sauce) into 9x13" casserole dish. Sprinkle with cheeses. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden.

Chicken and Sautéed Onion & Mushrooms over Pasta

No real recipe for this...just kind of cooking up what I had in the frig/freezer. Mushrooms were on sale at Safeway, and I still have some of the sweeet yellow onions I've been enjoying lately.

1 onion
8 oz sliced mushrooms
1 lb chicken
olive oil
butter
flour
1 C milk/sour cream

I started by sautéeing the mushrooms and onions in a little olive oil until the mushrooms were browned and the onions starting to carmelize. I cut up a few frozen chicken tenders and threw those in to brown too. Then I took that stuff out of the skillet. (Actually, I took the picture first, then I took that all out of the skillet to make the sauce.) I wanted a simple white sauce, but fairly thick. I dropped a Tbls of butter in the pan, scraping up all those little browned bits in the pan that have so much flavor. Added a little flour and a mix of milk and the last of some sour cream I had in the frig. Brought that just to a simmer, threw in a little thyme and rosemary and let that simmer until it was all very fragrant. Then I added the chicken-onion-mushroom mixture back in to get everything good and hot again. Served it over noodles. :)