Kiddo made supper over the weekend. Whenever I print out recipes for him to follow, I don’t include photos. Most of the time, he doesn’t need pictures. Kiddo knows his way around the kitchen well enough not to require visual aids. This time around, it was a mistake. Not that the finished dish in any way suffered, but he would have been spared the need to be creative.
Continue reading “One-Pot Pasta with Fresh Tomatoes and Basil”
Growing up, while we did have a garden, we grew plenty of tomatoes and melons and corn and cucumbers and even red potatoes, but no green beans. I’m not sure why that was. Dad loved his gardens so, and we loved the things he grew, yet no green beans.
Continue reading “Lemon-Garlic Green Beans”Hubby and I love baby carrots as a bright, pretty side dish. Carrots bring such vivid color to the table and go so well with a variety of main dishes. Kiddo isn’t so keen on carrots, unless they are glazed with butter, brown sugar and a splash of booze.
Recently we tried a new recipe. The first time out, we were a little less than thrilled. The original recipe did not include brown sugar and contained far too much bourbon – it was about the only thing you could taste. A little tweaking was in order. I’ve cut back on the bourbon and added brown sugar to the mix, rendering a thicker glaze that is more suited to our tastes.
The most common Baby Carrot is the one most of us are familiar with – the orange carrot. So bright, so beautiful and so orange. Whenever possible, I look for carrots in a variety of colors – everything from a creamy-white to a deep purple. The white or cream-colored carrots are mild in flavor and lack some of that “earthy” goodness we recognize as a carrot. The deeper the color, the more this earthiness comes through. Purple carrots (those purple through and through) are very sweet with a subtle hint of pepper. These are also the hardest to come by. Sometimes. if you are lucky, you will come across a bundle of carrots containing a range of colors. If you do, by all means experiment with your veggies – this recipe works well with any color carrot.
Bourbon-Brown Sugar-Maple Glazed Carrots
1 lb Baby Carrots, rinsed, green tops removed
1 Pinch or so Table Salt
1 Pinch Fine Sea Salt
1 Tablespoon Butter
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Bourbon Whiskey
1/3 Cup Pure Maple Syrup
1 Pinch White Pepper
Bring a medium-size pot of water to a boil over medium-heat. Add carrots and a pinch of salt. Cook until carrots are tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain well and set aside.
In a sauté pan over medium-heat, melt butter. Add Brown sugar and stir until melted into the butter as a thick paste. Add Bourbon Whiskey one tablespoon at a time, stirring constantly. Pour maple syrup into the glaze. Lower heat to a strong simmer, and allow to simmer until mixture is reduced to a thick glaze, about 10 minutes.
Add carrots and toss to blend. Continue to simmer until carrots begin to color, about 5 minutes longer. Transfer to a serving dish, season with sea salt and a pinch of pepper and serve.
Suggested Main Dishes:
Chicken: Roast Chicken with Cinnamon and Spice and Everything Nice
Pork Roast: Caramelized Onion Pork Tenderloin
Roast Beef: Cracked Peppercorn and Herb Rubbed Garlic Roast Beef
Seafood: Monterey’s Wharf Market Pan-Roasted Bay King Salmon
In my pantry are jars of honey, all locally made from various blossoms. There’s the usual clover honey and orange blossom and sage and wild flower and a whole host of other honeys. Not far from where we live is a Honey Bee Farm, Honeydale Farms. They are a small vendor, supplying raw honey to the central valley and San Francisco Bay Area. The honey is in bottles sealed with a cork much like the way honey was bottled in the 1800s. Whenever we go to country fairs or harvest festivals, I always look for their booth and stock up. These bottles make great gifts, too. Two of my favorites are the Orange Blossom and the Sage variety.
In our house, there are times when using a box mix with a few “scratch” ingredients makes for the perfect short cut to a wonderful meal or side dish. When it comes to chicken, Hubby is a huge fan of mashed potatoes and gravy. Kiddo and I are potato eaters, too. Yet there are times when stuffing is great to satisfy the side-dish craving. This is especially true when serving up breaded-baked chicken with a side of green vegetables such as Zapped Broccoli with Garlic and Lemon. Stuffing simply rounds out the meal beautifully.
While putting together next week’s meal planner, I realized my almost home-made stuffing is one of those taken for granted recipes that I had yet to share.
I know, stove-top stuffing on its own can be a bit dry and boring. This is especially true for those of us who look for flavor in every bite. However; with very little effort, that convenient box of Stove-Top Stuffing can be transformed into an almost home-made side. The addition of fresh chopped vegetables, chicken stock and a kiss of poultry season will elevate a boxed stuffing into something special.
Easy Stove-Top Chicken Stuffing
3/4 Cup Chopped Celery
1 Small Onion chopped
1/2 Cup Butter, divided
1 Teaspoon Poultry Seasoning
1 1/2 Cups Chicken Stock (broth is okay)
1 Box Chicken Flavored Stove-Top Stuffing
Melt 1/4 cup butter in a sauce pan over low heat until just beginning to foam.
While butter melts, chop celery and onion. Set aside until ready to use.
Saute vegetables in butter over medium heat until just beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Season with poultry seasoning.
Add Chicken Stock to the pan, bring to a rolling boil. Add remaining 1/4 cup butter. Once butter has melted, stir to blend.
Empty Stove-Top Stuffing into the pot. Lower heat and allow stuffing to absorb the liquid. Remove from heat, fluff with a fork. To serve, place stuffing into a decorative serving bowl.
Serve alongside your favorite chicken recipe.
How’s the weather? Here in the valley, it’s still soup weather. And that’s okay by me because I have some new recipes to take for a spin. My guys don’t mind soup for dinner, so long as that bowl is packed with flavor. This yummy Tortilla Soup with onions and jalapeno peppers for that extra kick should really keep ’em happy.
A while back, while Hubby was out-of-town on business, leaving me to enjoy a good old-fashion sleep-over with a good friend of mine from work. We talked all night, went for coffee and pastries in the mornings and just had a great time. For dinner, we picked up some Mexican food (tacos and refried beans) from a little strip-mall taco shop. It was one of those really out-of-the-way joints tucked under an elevated section of freeway. One of the best things about their refried beans is that it contained chorizo – adding both texture and flavor to the beans. Since then, I’ve made it a point whenever possible to throw a little chorizo into my refried pinto beans. Yum!
Continue reading “Grilled Spicy Chorizo-Bean Burrito Supreme”
Let’s start with one undeniable fact – you can’t have a Steak Burger without grinding up some steak. A steak that is well marbled. A steak that is easy to grind at home with the use of a food processor. While hunting through pictures of food for inspiration, I can across a recipe for Steak Burgers using ground beef. Ground Beef? Really?
Continue reading “Ground Steak Burgers Smothered in Brown Onion Gravy”There are mashed potatoes, and then there are smashed potatoes . . .
Continue reading “William-Sonoma Garlic-Thyme Smashed Potatoes”
Today is National Cheese Lover’s Day. It is really more of a suggestion to have something with cheese or to eat a platter of cheese than it is a particular day. For particular days, you’ve got Cheese Doodle Day in March, or Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day in April or even Cheesecake Day in July. There’s even an entire month dedicated to Goat Cheese. Today is dedicated to the pleasure of cheese any way you care to slice it. Have some cheese with your lunch or nibble on some cheese as a snack.
With all that room for interpretation, I got to thinking about how great it would be to enjoy a nice, piping hot bowl of cheese soup with soft, tender vegetables. Be it served in a soup bowl or a hollowed out sourdough round, you can’t go wrong.
Cheese and Broccoli Soup
3 cups broccoli florets, chopped into bite-sized pieces (reserving 1/2 cup for garnish)
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup fresh carrots, shredded
1 large onion, diced
2 large cloves of garlic, minced
1 cup heavy cream
4 Tbsp all purpose flour
4 Tbsp butter
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp salt
black pepper to taste
2 cups Sharp Cheddar Cheese, shredded (reserving 1/2 cup for garnish)
1 1/4 cup Asiago Cheese, freshly grated
Chop broccoli florets into bite-size pieces, reserving 1/2 cup of the florets for later.
Fill a large pot with the chicken broth, and 2 1/2 cups of the broccoli.
Peel and chop onions. Add to the pot. Grate carrots. Add to the pot. Press garlic into the pot. Bring mixture to a steady boil over medium-high heat, stirring every few minutes.
Cook for about 6 or 7 minutes until all the vegetables are tender.
In a separate large pot, add the butter and flour. Whisking constantly over medium heat, create a roux.
Pour roux into the broth-vegetable mixture. Mix well.
Slowly add heavy cream in a stead stream. Reduce heat to low and allow soup to simmer.
Add garlic powder, onion powder, nutmeg and cayenne pepper. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Add both 1 1/4 cups of the cheeses and continue to mix until blended and the cheese has melted.
Place reserved broccoli into the microwave and steam until tender, about 2 minutes.
Ladle soup into bowls. Garnish with steamed broccoli and remaining cheddar cheese
Serve with warm bread.
This recipe comes to us from Pampered Chef. It’s been years since I last attended a Pampered Chef party. What about you? Those were always fun. A great excuse to get together with my female friends, have a few laughs and eat some good food. I’ve got a ton of Pampered Chef gadgets. Everything from Apple Peelers to Zester – literally everything from A to Z. When I make my Slow Roasted Kahlua Pig without the Pit, you better believe I use my big clay roaster from Pampered Chef. It has served me well over the years.
This recipe is popular among clay bakers. The clay baker allows the chicken to get a golden color that seems to be lacking in most glass casserole dishes. I suppose you could finish the dish off under a broiler for a few minutes to achieve that same golden roasted goodness.
The only things missing from this delicious dish would be a nice salad and maybe a loaf of warm, buttery bread or sourdough dinner rolls. Of course, a glass of wine is always welcomed.
Greek Inspired Lemon Chicken
3 Lemons, divided
¼ cup Olive Oil
4 garlic cloves, pressed
1 tablespoon dried oregano leaves
¾ teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
4 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts
8 New Red Potatoes
1 medium red bell pepper
1 medium red onion
8 oz white mushrooms
Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Using Zester, zest two of the lemons. You should get about 1-1/2 tablespoons of lemon zest. Set zest aside.
Cut one of the zested lemons in half, squeeze out the juice. You should have about 2 tablespoons of juice.
In a mixing bowl, combine the zest and the juice from the lemons with the olive oil.
Peel and press garlic over the lemon mixture.
Add oregano, salt and black pepper. Mix well.
Arrange chicken in a rectangular baking dish with a rim. (Pampered Chef has some very nice clay baking dishes).
Brush chicken breasts with the lemon mixture.
Cut the potatoes in half and set aside.
Cut the bell pepper into strips and set aside.
Cut the onion into wedges and set aside.
Thinly slice remaining lemon and set aside.
Combine the potatoes, bell pepper strips, onions, lemon slices and mushrooms with the remaining lemon juice mixture in the mixing bowl.Toss together to coat well.
Arrange the vegetables on the pan around the chicken. Bake in heated oven for 1 hour or until breasts reach 180 degrees at their thickest part.
Bush chicken with pan juices after 30 minutes of roasting, and again at the end.
Those of you who have been along for the ride know that Hubby’s all-time favorite foods are Mexican. You know that I swear by good quality Chorizo, either the stuff found in the Latin Markets or that you make yourself. I’ve shared with you my recipe for awesome tacos with home-made Chorizo. It’s great stuff, except for one tiny little thing. My original recipe needed 72 hours to fully ferment. Yeah, three days.
Such bright, beautiful colors! Wonderful flavors. A little kick to spice up the day. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, or so I’ve been told. Rarely do we have time for breakfast during the week. I wish I could tell you that we make up for it on the weekends, but the truth of the matter is MAYBE with a little luck, Sundays might include breakfast at home.
One of the veggies I try to eat on a regular bases for general good health is Broccoli. Broccoli poses a few issues in our house. I seem to be the only one who truly appreciates Broccoli. I like it raw as part of a vegetable dipping platter, especially during the holidays. It’s so easy to make Christmas-themed vegetable platters when working with broccoli. My guys don’t mind broccoli as part of a stir-fry supper. However, when I’m serving a big plate of broccoli as the vegetable side of the evening, it usually receives a lukewarm reception. The one exception is when the broccoli is burred beneath an ocean of cheese sauce. Don’t get me wrong, I like a good cheese sauce same as the next guy. But I also like broccoli all naked and green.
One thing we can all agree upon is the flavor of oranges. When I came across this recipe for braised broccoli in an orange cream sauce, I knew instantly we needed to add this to our collection. Hopefully your family will love it as much as we do.
Braised Broccoli with Orange Cream Sauce
1 1/2 cups water
3/4 teaspoon salt
6 cups broccoli florets cut into 1-1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 tablespoon orange juice concentrate, thawed
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted
In 4-quart Dutch pan bring water and 3/4 teaspoon salt to boiling.
Add broccoli. Return to a boil and cook, covered, for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender. Drain broccoli and transfer to a serving bowl.
To the now empty pan, add the cream, juice, and 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper. Heat through over medium heat.
Spoon orange cream over broccoli; sprinkle almonds. Serve and enjoy.
This spicy Pasta dish has been one of those recipes that has been on and off my menu planner for weeks now. Most of the ingredients are those that are always on hand. You would think it would have been a snap to make. Convenience made it just the opposite. Since I didn’t need to shop for anything, it was easy to push this meal out when life does what it does and things got in the way.
Continue reading “Conchiglie (Shell) Pasta Kissed with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Red Wine”
Welcome to Rosemarie's Kitchen 