A new cookbook, a new recipe

I found myself with some time to kill last week and what's a girl to do except walk through Crate & Barrel?  I didn't particularly need anything, but that should not be a deterrent to walking through and browsing.  And, of course, picking some things up like a new wooden spoon and an herb shears.  And this cookbook:

Market Vegetarian by Ross Dobson

Dating a vegetarian has made me want to be more creative in my vegetarian cooking.  For me, it was primarily veggie burgers, tacos made with refried beans and veggie lasagna.  Or, you know, oatmeal.  Since Adam Science is such a great cook I need to step up my game.  I'm confident in my cooking skills, just not my creativity.  So, I found this book, liked many of the recipes as I flipped through it, and bought it.  The first recipe I made was a pappardelle pasta with portobello mushrooms, chestnuts and chives.  

I did make some adjustments.  I eliminated chestnuts.  I added peas.  I used a fresh mushroom fettuccine I bought at the Farmer's Market last weekend.  It was excellent!

Here is the recipe as posted.  I'll tell you what I did to it then.

7 oz fresh chestnuts

1 T olive oil

2 garlic cloves

14 oz portobello mushrooms, sliced

2 fresh thyme sprigs

1/2 c. dry white wine

1 cup light cream

1 bunch chives, cut

2 oz. Pecorino Romano cheese, finely grated

14 oz pappardelle, or other ribbon pasta

salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400.  Score a cross on one end of each chestnut.  Put them on a baking sheet and roast in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, until the skins split.  Remove and let cool.  When cool enough to handle, pull off the shells, and rub away the fleshy skin underneath.  Set aside until needed.

Put the oil and butter in a skillet set over high heat.  When the butter sizzles, add the garlic and let cook for one minute.  Add mushrooms and thyme, reduce the heat to medium, and partially cover with a lid.  cook for 10 minutes, stirring often.  Add the wine to the skillet and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half.  Add the cream, reduce the heat, and cook for 15 minutes, until the mixture thickens.  Add the chives and half the cheese and stir to combine.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain well and return to warm pan.  Add the mushroom sauce, gently toss to mix and serve immediately with extra cheese for sprinkling.

I left out the chestnuts altogether.  I added about 3/4 cup of frozen peas I had when I threw in the mushrooms.  Other than that, I followed the recipe.  It was delicious!  I would eat it every night for a week.  Which, I may need to since I have some significant leftovers. 

Spray Tans and Spaghetti

I heard from a Director at work that there was a players club supervisor that had a side business of spray tanning.  This particular supervisor had just asked me for a favor, and I said sure, if we can arrange a trade...  I told her I heard that she did this and would she be interested in spray tanning me.  We made a deal.  If only I had known how involved and awesome this experience would be - I totally got the better end of this deal. 

She came to my apartment to set up.  She pitches this standing pop up tent in my spare bathroom and unpacks her airbrush equipment.  I had invited a co-worker over who wanted in on this and she and I awaited direction.  We were handed a disposable thong and told that's all we were to wear in the tent.  This supervisor and I were about to reach a whole new level of intimacy.  Meg and I changed into our "underwear" and put on robes.  She chilled out in the living room while I went into the tent to bear it all.

I was sprayed with a fine mist several times over in various poses.  Front, back, sides, head and neck.  I was given strict instructions to not get wet for the next 8 hours - no lotions, no face washing, very sparingly hand washing.  I would be okay to sleep in my bed since we still had a few hours to let it sink in. 

This is a (very poor) picture of the tan line on my hip.  You can see (sort of) how pasty I was and how quickly this works.  And while the contrast is great, I don't feel overtan.  She did a great job of not going too dark since that wouldn't match my tone, and would look very odd as today I looked like Casper the ghost. 

I knew elaborate cooking would be out of the question since I couldn't get my hands wet, I knew we would not be leaving the house, so I used the opportunity to make a new crock pot recipe for Meg and I for dinner.  All I had to do was boil noodles at the last minute - in a pot I had thought ahead to fill with water. 

I know it's been a while since I've used the cookbooks.  Tonight's pick was Art of the Slow Cooker.  It has more upscale slow cooker recipes than I have seen in other cookbooks.  I thought an easy pick for tonight would be Sausage and Tomato Ragu with Pasta.  A hearty meat sauce with some chopped vegetables sounded like an excellent dish to come home to - the best part of using your slow cooker is coming back to smells permeating your home.

There is the picture from the cookbook.  I didn't take any pictures of my actual dish.  I did all of the prep work this morning and didn't even think about getting out the camera. 

The dish was great.  Paired it with a side salad with a simple balsamic dressing and grape tomatoes and some crusty bread.  Meg enjoyed it and I thought it was a very successful dish.  The recipe said after trying it I may never go back to jarred sauce again.  I can see that.  I would look forward to playing around with this sauce to really own it - I think I'd add more garlic, or a pinch of red pepper flake.  Oregano perhaps?  I feel there was a spice missing.  I'll let you decide. 

2 T olive oil
2 lbs mild italian sausage cut into 2 in. sections
2 medium onions, cut into 1/2 inch dice
2 celery ribs cut into half inch dice
2 large carrots, peeled and cut into half inch dice
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 T fresh rosemary
pinch of ground allspice
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 cup flour
1 cup dry red wine
2 cups chicken or beef broth
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
1 pound short pasta, such as penne, ziti or rigatoni

HEAT the oil in a large deep skillet over medium-high heat.  Brown the sausage on all sides, about two minutes per side, then transfer to slow cooker.

ADD the onions, celery, and carrots to the oil remaining in the skillet and saute until lightly browned, about four minutes.  Add the garlic, rosemary, allspice, salt, and pepper and cook for another 30 seconds.  Add the flour and stir until incorporated.  Add the wine and bring to a boil.  Add the broth, crushed tomatoes, and tomato sauce and stir to incorporate, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan to blend them with the sauce.  Heat to simmering and pour over the sausages. Cover the cooker and cook for 8 - 10 hours on low.

COOK the pasta in rapidly boiling, lightly salted water until tender, about 10 minutes, drain and serve with the ragu.

Spray tanning and spaghetti.  It was a good night.  Two girls hanging out in bathrobes eating dinner, drinking wine and enjoying the cross breeze in the apartment.   Good night. 

This week's recipe...

My resolution to try one new recipe a week continues...  While the goal was to embrace the cookbooks I have* I also wanted to make a dent in all the recipes I find online and bookmark.  This week was an online recipe from The Pioneer Woman. I'm a newcomer to this blog.  Saw that others raved about her, but never really clicked through to check out what they were raving about.  Until one day at Cyndi's urging.  I read her entire love story in one day.  I spent hours learning about how she met her husband and the challenge of giving up city life for ranch life.  I was hooked.  I've been a regular ever since.  And so glad I am so that I saw this recipe for 'Fancy Macaroni'. 

I took a few pictures as I cooked.  None of them will be as beautiful as what Ree has posted on her sight with this recipe.  Seriously, this is why food photography is another one of my resolutions.  Please visit that recipe and look at her step by step photos.  

I have been looking forward to making this dish since the New Year.  I thought I would make it one night when Colin was home watching football also and I could share it, as macaroni and cheese is one of his favorite dishes.  Every weekend came and went and Colin and I never managed to have the same free time.  I couldn't wait anymore.  I made the dish.  I opened a pretty good bottle of red wine (Frog's Leap Rutherford) and I cooked.  

I used my new cast iron dutch oven pot that I received for Christmas to make the cheese sauce.  The only changes I made to the dish was using whole wheat elbow macaroni and halving the amount of bacon.  

It looked perfect.  It looked just like her photos.  Visit the site, make the macaroni.

::Photo from The Pioneer Woman::

I liked it very much.  When I make it again (because I will make it again) I may omit the bacon.  I think the dish tasted too much like bacon and not enough like all the delicious fresh cheese I shredded.  And the cheese was glorious.   I had to check it for quality many times during the shredding process.

* I bought three more.  I bought three more cookbooks.  I know.  I know.  It's a sickness.  But there was a sale and there was free shipping.  This is the resolution that will never end.  

Accomplishments

I took down the Christmas tree!

I completely de-Christmased the Living Room.

I cleaned the living room and kitchen (dining room and bedroom will have to wait for another day).

I made some brownies.

I did NOT go to work.  A big accomplishment considering I worked 12 days straight recently.


I hung some pictures in the living room.  'Bout time.  Lots of wallspace in my living room.  Very little on them.  

I made dinner.

Let's talk about dinner.

This week's cook book is Classic Home Cooking.   

 Let me tell you why I like this cookbook.  Pictures.  Lots of pictures.  Pages.  Lots of pages.  My sister gave me this book for my birthday a few years ago and it has sat largely unutilized until lately.  My usual go to general cook book has always been Betty Crocker's classic cookbook.  This one is slowly overtaking that.  At the beginning of each chapter, instead of a traditional table of contents there is a small photo of each dish in that chapter along with the nutritional information of the dish.  I'm afraid that the book may be out of print now.  If you ever find a copy, buy it.  Buy it for a new cook, a new couple, for yourself.

I was tempted by a risotto dish and a fennel crusted pork, but then decided to branch out a bit and embrace lots of ingredients I already had on hand.  Namely lemons.  I have a lot of lemons at my house.  I chose to make Sole Florentine, roasted potatoes, Asparagus with Parmesan and hot lemon bread.  Everything but the roasted potatoes came from this book.

I'll post the recipes how they appear in the book, then I'll tell you what I did to alter some of them slightly.  

 

Sole Florentine

4 large sole fillets

juice of 1/2 lemon

salt and pepper

3 T butter

3 T flour

2 cups milk

1 1/2 lb spinach

1/4 cup grated parmesan

Sprinkle fish fillets with salt, pepper and lemon juice.  Fold the fillets in half width wise and set aside.

Melt butter in saucepan.  Add flour and cook one minute.  Gradually whisk in milk.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens.  Simmer for 2-3 minutes until thickens, stir frequently, season with salt and pepper.  

Wash spinach and put into a pan with only the water remaining on the leaves.  Cook for 2 minutes or until wilted.  Drain well.

Stir half of the sauce into the cooked spinach and spoon into a shallow baking dish.  Arrange the sole on top.  Pour the remaining sauce over the top and sprinkle with the cheese.  Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 30 minutes.  Serve with hot lemon bread.

Lemon Bread

Beat the grated zest of 1/2 lemon into 1/2 cup softened butter.  Work in the juice of 1/2 lemon, salt and pepper to taste.  Cut a baguette into 1/2 inch slices.  Spread butter between slices and a little on top.  Wrap in foil and bake at 400 degrees for 20  minutes.

Asparagus with Parmesan

1 1/4 asparagus

3/4 c. grated parmesan

2 T olive oil

2 T white wine vinegar

3 garlic cloves

salt and pepper

Trim ends of asparagus.  Make marinade in shallow dish, combine the oil, vinegar, garlich, a pinch of salt, and plenty of pepper.  

Roll the asparagus in the marinade, cover and leave to marinate for 15 minutes.  Sprinkle the parmesan on a plate.  roll the asparagus in the Parmesan to cover all sides then arrange in a single layer in a large baking dish.

Roast in a 400 degree oven for 10 - 15 minutes. 

Whew! 

Things I did a little differently:

1. Divided the fish, spinach and sauce into 3 small baking dishes so I can easily reheat one at a time.
2. Used frozen spinach instead of wilting down fresh spinach.  I bought one 10 oz package of frozen spinach, defrosted it in the microwave, squeezed all the water out of it and then mixed in half of the sauce mixture.  
3. Sprinkled a bit of breadcrumbs on top of the fish along with the parmesan cheese.
4. For the lemon bread - didn't add the lemon juice or salt and pepper - just the lemon zest.  It was still delicious!  
   

Review:
First, did you notice how everything baked at the same temperature for similar times?  My favorite part of meal planning is figuring out how everything will be ready at the same time.  Once I got the fish in, I could mix up the marinade for the asparagus and then pop it in along with the bread with 15 minutes left to go.  Everything ready at the same time!  It's a skill.  I have mad timing skills.


The asparagus was good.  The lemon bread was great.  I am not a huge fan of garlic and this was a wonderful alternative.  The lemon zest gave it a very fresh and light taste.  The fish was fine.  I think it needed a little more flavor.  It just kind of tasted like the sauce.  More salt and pepper perhaps?  More lemon juice?  I don't know.  It was fine, but I probably would have to fix it up a bit more before I made it again.  Loved the asparagus and hot lemon bread.  


Happy eating.

Goat Cheese

Let's talk about one of my favorite things: goat cheese.  Yes, up there with crab legs and chocolate cake as one of my most favorite foods is goat cheese.

Here are things I love that include the creamy, deliciousness that is goat cheese.

* A simple sliced baguette with goat cheese spread on it and a drizzle of honey

* This Goat Cheese, Sun Dried Tomatoe and Pesto Torta.  I first saw the recipe in the New Bride and Groom Cookbook.  I first had this recipe when Cyndi served it at a party in Louisiana.  It was love at first bite.

 * And now this simple baked Chicken with Herbed Goat Cheese from Ina Garten. I have Ina's Barefoot Contessa At Home cookbook and also came across this recipe online.  Starting right in with my New Years Resolution to use my cookbooks, this was dinner tonight along with simple roasted potatoes and green beans.  Her online recipe and book recipe vary in only one spot and that was bone in vs. boneless chicken breast.  Both require skin on.  I went ahead and got bone in chicken breasts as I find that leads to jucier roasted chicken. The online reviews for this dish were spectacular across the board, everyone commenting on the fact that it was a simple way to elevate the standard chicken breast to something elegant and delicious.  And it was!  Easy, delicious, juicy chicken, crisped skin.  And I had enough goat cheese leftover to spread out over a couple of pieces of bread for dessert!

Ingredients

nocoupons

• 3 whole (6 split) chicken breasts, bone-in, skin-on
• 12 ounces Montrachet goat cheese, with garlic and herbs
• Fresh basil leaves
• Good olive oil
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Place the chicken breasts on a baking sheet. Loosen the skin from the meat with your fingers, leaving one side attached.. Cut 12 thick slices of the Montrachet and place 2 slices plus a large basil leaf under the skin of each chicken breast. Rub each piece with olive oil and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Bake the breasts for 35 to 40 minutes, until just cooked through. Serve hot or at room temperature.