prosciutto wrapped pork cutlets

eight years ago in italy, i fell in love. with prosciutto. i ate it each and every morning for breakfast, wrapped around a piece of honeydew or fresh mozzarella, as i sat on a veranda or rooftop soaking it all in. i'd eat it again, sometime later in the day, whenever i could get my hands on it's salty goodness. on top of pizza. wrapped around more fresh cheese. a single piece all by itself. and if you've yet to experience the salty sweetness that is prosciutto wrapped melon, get yourself some. now.

and since melon isn't exactly ripe right now - and therefore not even worth wrapping with prosciutto - i've got the next best thing: thin sliced pork cutlets wrapped in prosciutto. 

prosciutto wrapped pork cutlets
adapted from martha stewart's dinner at home
20 minutes, serves 4

8 pork cutlets
8 thin slices prosciutto
8 thin slices of lemon (optional)

1. season the pork cutlets with salt and pepper. wrap a prosciutto slice and slice of lemon, if using, around each piece of pork.
2. coat the bottom of a saute pan with olive oil and heat over medium high heat. cook pork until prosciutto is golden brown, about four to five minutes per side. serve immediately or tent with foil to keep warm.

lemon chicken pappardelle

last spring, my mom and i flew to virginia to visit  my sister for the weekend and go wedding dress shopping with her. while we were there, i had my first of very few visits to trader joe's. to some of you i'm sure that's surprising, but our closest trader joe's is hundreds of miles away. 

but i'm not complaining, since we have wegmans - also known as the reason why alec baldwin's mom won't move away from syracuse - and the pittsford wegmans - unofficially known as the flagship store - is a couple miles from my house.

anyway, i picked up a couple things in trader joe's: salted caramel sauce i've heard so much about, a box of cookies, and lemon pepper pappardelle. which, similar to my pearl couscous, sat in my pantry for months before i finally gave in and made it. which is a shame, since this pasta is delicious - light and acidic from the lemon and perfectly spicy from the black pepper. with a light lemon garlic wine sauce, chicken for added protein, and a healthy dose of cheese, this was a simple weeknight dinner.

lemon chicken pappardelle
20 minutes, serves 2

8 ounces lemon pepper or plain pappardelle
1 chicken breast, sliced into thin strips
1/2 cup white wine
4 garlic cloves, minced
juice and zest of one lemon
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon butter
fresh parmesan for serving

1. cook the pappardelle according to the package directions. drain and keep warm.
2. coat the bottom of a medium skillet with olive oil and place over medium low heat. season the chicken with salt and pepper and add to the pan. cook until the chicken is cooked through. remove the chicken from the pan.
3. place the pan back over medium heat. add the white wine to deglaze the pan. once most of the wine has evaporated, add the garlic, lemon juice and zest, and the chicken stock. bring to a simmer.
4. in a small bowl, whisk the cornstarch with two tablespoons of water. whisk the cornstarch mixture into the sauce. add the chicken and simmer until thickened. mix in the butter and toss with the pasta.

peanut butter granola crispy bars

last month when i was mixing up these granola bars, i couldn't stop thinking about how easy and fast they are to make, and the countless flavor combinations. and the classic chocolate and peanut butter beat out the others.

if you've ever made rice krispy treats, you can handle these bars. instead of marshmallow, it's sweetened honey and peanut butter that holds the oats and rice cereal together. topped off with mini chocolate chips, they make a great peanut buttery chocolate snack.

peanut butter granola crispy bars
adapted from dorm life eats
5 min prep + 15 minute cooling, makes one 8x8 inch pan (about 10 bars)

1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups oats
1 1/2 cups crispy rice cereal
mini chocolate chips

1. line the bottom of a 8x8 inch pan with parchment paper and set aside.
2. in a small saucepan, combine the butter, honey, sugar, and peanut butter and heat over low heat until melted and smooth. stir in the vanilla extract.
3. combine the peanut butter mixture with the oats and crispy rice and mix well.
4. transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and spread out using a spatula. sprinkle chocolate chips over the top of the bars and use your hands to press them into the top. 
5. cool on the counter or in the refrigerator until set. cut and serve. store in an airtight container.

2014.06.01 this was the weekend gourmet's pick for the secret recipe club!

Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies

Ever seen no bake cookies? They are THE oogliest cookies. Really. I didn't even consider taking a picture of the cookies I just made because they look horrifying. In spite of their looks, they're REALLY good: the chocolate and peanut butter flavors both stand out, they're rich, sweet, a tiny bit fudge like, and chewy from the oats. I'd never had them until a classmate brought a batch to our math class recently. Glad she brought them in because it's not necessarily a recipe I would have tried on my own! She was kind enough to write the recipe out for me, which is the same as this one from AllRecipes. If you want to see what they look like, there are a ton of photos over there displaying their hideousness.

Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies

1 stick butter
2 C sugar
1/4 C cocoa powder
1/2 C milk
1/2 C peanut butter
1 t vanilla extract
pinch of salt
3 C quick cooking oats (I used old fashioned and they were a bit chewier than they should have been, but still good)

Line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper. Place butter, sugar, cocoa powder, and milk in a large pot. Heat over medium high heat until the butter has melted, stirring occasionally. Once the mixture has come to a FULL boil, cook for exactly 60 seconds (use a timer, we're making candy here!) while stirring constantly, then remove the pan from the heat and stir in the peanut butter, vanilla, and salt until melted. Stir in the oats. Drop the mixture by small spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets. These are quite sweet so you may want to make the cookies smaller than usual. Let set until completely cooled and firm, about an hour or so. Store in an airtight container.

Yield: About 24, number depends on how big you make them.

chicken and pearl couscous with tomato and lemon

late last fall, while perusing the public market, i impulse bought a pound of pearl - or israeli - couscous. like most things i impulse buy, i didn't have any plans for it, so i quickly grabbed it and went on my merry way through the rest of the market. it made it's way into my pasta cupboard, where it sat for the next six months. until jason asked suggested it for dinner.

which sounded easy enough, but i always have a hard time choosing something to make with a new ingredient. there are always too many good choices! this time i found salads upon salads and moroccan dish after moroccan dish - which i skipped, since if i really want moroccan food, i'd ask my moroccan friend to make it for me, rather than try to attempt a dish he's mastered - and none of them grabbed me. sure, they all looked good, just not great. until i hit the jackpot: martha stewart's couscous with chicken, tomatoes, and lemon. blogger after blogger praised this recipe - and the importance of finishing it with fresh lemon. and they are absolutely right. this dinner is the perfect one pot meal - chicken, vegetables, pasta, and that squirt of lemon. it's simple and delicious.

chicken and pearl couscous with tomato and lemon
adapted from martha stewart living
45 minutes, serves 4 to 6

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
2 small onions, thinly sliced
2 pounds grape tomatoes
6 garlic cloves, minced
8 strips lemon peel
1 cup dry white wine
3 cups chicken stock
2 cups pearl or Israeli couscous
2 cups frozen peas, thawed
1 lemon cut into wedges for serving (use the lemon you peeled)

1. heat a large skillet or dutch oven over medium high heat and coat the bottom with olive oil. cook the chicken until browned, about three minutes per side. transfer to a plate and return the pan to the stove.
2. reduce the heat to medium and add the onion. cook, stirring frequently, about three minutes or just until the onion is starting to soften. stir in the tomatoes, garlic, and lemon peel. cook for a few minutes, until the tomatoes start to soften.
3. return the chicken to the skillet, add the wine and cook for about 4 minutes, or until most of the wine has evaporated. add the stock and couscous and stir. reduce heat to a simmer, cover, and cook until the couscous is tender and the chicken is cooked through, about 12 minutes.
4. stir in the peas and cook another couple minutes until heated through. serve with lemon.

Sauteed Cabbage with Bacon and Onions

Okay. I wasn't sure if I should post this one because it's so, so basic and the name doesn't sound very appealing. Maybe calling it "rustic" adds a bit of charm? But believe me when I say it's good and you'll like it if you like bacon. Paul was very skeptical when I told him what I was making for dinner, but he took one bite and said, "I'm in love!" (and he actually told me to post that). It's kind of southernish-Germanish-stir fryish and goes great with steamed rice (either served on the side or with the cabbage on top) or egg noodles, and applesauce. I'm sure it would be good with soda bread, too! The recipe is also extremely versatile. You can use pretty much any size cabbage, whatever amount of onions you have, and just add sugar, salt, and pepper to taste.

Sorry, no photo, Paul suggested it but it's just too ugly!

Sauteed Cabbage with Bacon and Onions

1/4 lb bacon
1/2 large onion, halved and sliced into half rings
1 small green cabbage, quartered, cored, and cut into 1 inch slices (mine was 1.25 lb)
2 t sugar
1 t salt
1/4 t pepper

Place bacon in a large skillet and cook until crisp (use a splatter screen to avoid airborne grease!). I cook bacon over low heat on my stove, but bacon is one of those things I struggle with not burning and I get the feeling my approximately 500 year old stove cooks on the hot side. Remove bacon to a paper towel lined plate to cool, then crumble. Add onions to grease in skillet and saute until they start to soften a little bit (about 4 minutes). Add cabbage to skillet, breaking it up with your hand as you add it. Saute cabbage and onions until cabbage is as tender as you like, about 10 to 15 minutes. You can speed things along by covering the skillet. We like the cabbage so it's still a tiny bit crisp, but it's up to you. When finished, stir in sugar, salt, pepper, and crumbled bacon.

Yield: 4 servings

Tuesdays with Dorie: Irish Soda Bread

Recently I learned about Tuesdays with Dorie, which is an online cooking/baking group that makes recipes from Dorie Greenspan's cook books. The group spent 4 years working its way through one of her books, and just last month they began a new book, called Baking with Julia. The whole deal is that the group picks two recipes from the book each month, and participants are supposed to make at least one of the recipes and then make a blog post about it on a specific day. Sounds like fun to me both because I would love to improve my baking skills and chatting with other food bloggers about baking is right up my alley.

Before jumping in, it was important though that I like the cook book I would be spending so much time with. Paul and I swung by Barnes and Noble so I could look over Baking with Julia, and I really liked what I saw. The book has recipes from all kinds of top bakers and very detailed instructions. It's quite a hefty book, too; hardcover with over 500 glossy pages and lots of photos. I quickly ordered a copy on Amazon.com and it arrived the other day, just in time to make the second of this month's recipes, Irish Soda Bread. So far I am thoroughly enjoying the group and can't wait to work my way through the book with them. Doubt I'll tackle the wedding cake recipe from Martha Stewart, but I'm game for most of the others, especially croissants.

On to Irish Soda Bread: I posted a nontraditional soda bread recipe the other day, but this is the real deal. Here's an interesting article about soda bread. Only four ingredients: flour (wheat or white depending on the occasion), salt, baking soda, and buttermilk. It certainly doesn't sound very exciting, but it was actually completely delicious! Paul took a bite and said, "This is AMAZING!" A few years ago I made a traditional soda bread, but this is definitely superior. Flavorful, hearty, tender on the inside but with a crunchy crust. What more could you want in a bread recipe? It also happens to be the easiest bread (or biscuit or roll) recipe I've ever made so it will surely be on the menu frequently. Can't wait to have the leftovers toasted and topped with strawberry freezer jam tomorrow morning!

Part of the deal with the baking group is that participants are not supposed to post the recipe on their blog in an effort to encourage people to buy the book, but each recipe has a couple of hosts that are allowed to post the recipe. This week's hosts are Cathy at My Culinary Mission and Carla at Chocolate Moosey. Additionally, someone found this awesome video of Julia Child and Marion Cunningham (the author of another fantastic baking book I own called The Fannie Farmer Baking Book) making the Irish Soda Bread! My only suggestions are to start with 1 1/2 C buttermilk because I added it all and my dough was very sticky, and check to see if the bread is done after 40 minutes.

Slow Cooker Corned Beef

Mmm, corned beef! I bought one in honor of St. Patrick's Day, but we ended up going to a Mexican restaurant. Not Irish at all, but apparently corned beef is more of an American thing, so whatevs. Today I did cook it though and used my slow cooker, which is my cooking vessel of choice for corned beef. I added a pound of chopped carrots which tasted great, but you could add potatoes and cabbage like this particular recipe suggests. NOTE: I have never cooked potatoes or cabbage with the corned beef, so no promises on how they turn out!

optional: 1 lb carrots and/or 1-2 lbs potatoes, peeled and chopped roughly
1/2 large onion, chopped roughly
3 lb corned beef brisket with spice packet
12 oz bottle of beer
water to cover
optional: 1/2 head cabbage, chopped roughly

Place carrots and/or potatoes in the bottom of a 6 quart slow cooker and top with onion and beef. Sprinkle with spice packet. Pour in beer. Pour in enough water to cover the corned beef. Cook on low until tender, about 8 hours. If you want to add cabbage, stir that in when you have 1 hour left.

Yield: about 6 servings

marshmallows [12in2012]

marshmallows tend to divide people as much as mushrooms: you either love them and can't get enough or you can't stand the taste and refuse a smore. i belong to the first camp; jason belongs to the second. how a person can shake their head no and scrunch up their nose to a smore is beyond me, but each and every summer, he does. i don't know if it's nostalgia that gets me - remembering all the marshmallows i caught on fire, melted off my stick and lost into the fire, burned my tongue on, or the few that made it to my smore successfully while camping - or the pillowey sweetness, but i'm a marshmallow lover through and through.

and each and every year around halloween, i make a mental note to make a batch of marshmallows around thanksgiving, knowing a batch should be enough to accompany my hot chocolates between thanksgiving and christmas. and each and every year i forget or for whatever silly reason, convince myself making marshmallows sounds hard.

so let me tell you what i wish i had known before i made these: they are obnoxiously easy. if you own a candy thermometer and know how to read it, you've mastered marshmallows. the technique is simple - boil some sugar, water, and corn syrup until it hits soft ball stage. then whip the daylights out of it with some gelatin. that's it. this year, come christmas, i've got no excuse.

marshmallows
click the link to get alton brown's recipe at food network

if you've ever seen even one episode of good eats, you know alton brown knows his stuff. i followed his method exactly and made one big tweak to the recipe - i made one third of it. the method still worked exactly as written by alton and instead of using a 9x13 inch pan to form the marshmallows, i used a glass bread pan, and the size was perfect.

slow cooker minestrone

i know what you're thinking: hey kate, why is your soup purple? because i used purple cabbage. which dyed everything - except for the carrots - purple. even the green beans had a tinge of purple.

but don't let the look fool you: this soup packs a good punch of flavor. especially for a simple vegetable soup.

slow cooker minestrone
adapted from 10th kitchen
serves 6-8

1/4 cup olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 pound fresh zucchini, diced (3 or 4 small zucchinis)
2 stalks celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 medium potatoes, diced
1/4 pound fresh green beans, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/2 head fresh cabbage, shredded
6 cups chicken broth
15 ounces canned stewed tomatoes
15 ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup dried small shells or other soup size pasta
fresh grated parmesan cheese for serving 

1. turn slow cooker on high and heat the olive oil and onion while you prepare the other ingredients. 
2. add all ingredients but the cannelini beans to the crock pot. cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours or high for 3 to 4 hours. 
3. season with salt and pepper. add the beans and pasta, stir to combine, and cook for an additional 20 to 30 minutes, or until the pasta is tender.
4. serve with fresh grated parmesan cheese.

Cheddar Onion Soda Bread

This is a very good but very nontraditional soda bread that uses green onion and cheddar cheese and baking powder (which contains baking soda) instead of baking soda. I just realized that it's rather similar to the Buttermilk Cheddar Chive Bread recipe I posted a few months ago, but what can I say? My tastes are predictable :D This particular recipe is a version of one from AllRecipes. I made it for St. Patrick's Day last year and don't have a photo (you probably wouldn't want to see a photo as I dyed it green with food coloring), but I wanted to share it before the big green day in case anyone's looking for a fun and delicious soda bread recipe. It's tasty enough that you'll want to make it the rest of the year as well!

Cheddar Onion Soda Bread

4 C flour
1 T sugar
1 T baking powder
1 1/2 t salt
6 T butter at room temperature
1 1/2 C buttermilk
1/3 C sliced green onions
3/4 C cheddar cheese diced into small cubes

Preheat oven to 425 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt, then stir in butter and buttermilk just until a dough forms. Don't overwork the dough. Gently knead in the green onions and cheddar cubes until evenly distributed, then divide the dough into two balls. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheet and flatten each into a 2 inch tall round loaf. Cut an X into the top of each loaf. Bake until golden and cooked through (you can stick a toothpick in the center), about 30 minutes. Cool before serving.

Penne with Vodka Cream Sauce

Usually I only make any given recipe once or twice a year (or less) because I love trying new recipes, but this was my second time making Penne with Vodka Cream Sauce in the past month. The first time I tried it (using a combination of lots of recipes I found online), it tasted good, but was a little too mild so needed some tweaking. Tried it again tonight and the tweaks worked and the result is quite good! This pasta dish is a little spicy, a little creamy, and the vodka adds a little bit of something special. It's also very quick and easy to make and reheats pretty well. A winner in my book! If you were making it for someone you wanted to impress, you could increase the amount of cream and parmesan, but it's good as is, too.

Quick note: Be sure to use a decent quality vodka in the sauce. The first time I made this, I used a cheapo brand and it was rather lackluster, but the second time I used a higher quality brand and it definitely improved the flavor of the sauce. Also, whatever you do, be sure to simmer the sauce long enough to cook off the alcohol in the vodka, or you'll have some very strong tasting and slightly alcoholic pasta. You shouldn't really be able to taste the vodka in the finished dish, but the vodka does something magical to the tomatoes and enhances the flavors of the sauce. Here's an interesting thread I found on Chowhound with info about the purpose of vodka in vodka cream sauce.


Penne with Vodka Cream Sauce

1 lb penne pasta
1 T olive oil
1 c diced onion (or 1 1/2 t onion powder)
4 cloves minced garlic
1/4 to 1/2 t dried red pepper flakes
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
3/4 C decent quality vodka
2 t dried basil
1 t salt
1/2 C cream
1.5 oz (by weight) grated parmesan

Heat the oil over medium-high in a skillet and saute onion (if using) until almost tender, then add garlic and saute until golden. Add pepper flakes and saute another 30 seconds or so, then add in tomatoes, vodka, basil, salt, and onion powder (if you are not using diced onion). Reduce heat, cover with a splatter screen, and simmer 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. When there are about 10 minutes left, cook the penne in a large pot with 1 t salt added to the water. Drain and return to pot. Back to the sauce: Stir in cream, then pour over penne, stir to coat, and stir in the parmesan.

Yield: 6 main dish servings

ultimate baked ziti

i have a horrible confession: this is the first time i've ever made baked ziti. crazy, right? i've eaten it plenty of times, with meat, without meat, chuck full of mushrooms and other vegetables. but never made it myself. which is silly, since it's everything we love about spaghetti, in a portable, shareable size. and share is exactly what i did.

another confession: i made this ziti about two months ago, for my boss' after the holidays potluck. i was skeptical at first - with the ham, cheesy potato casserole, brownies, salads, and other treats, i wasn't sure how a simple baked ziti would go over. but when it was time to leave and there were two sad looking pieces left, i knew this was a keeper. now i just need another reason to make it again.

not cooking for a crowd? make the full recipe and divide it among two 8x8 inch or 9x9 inch pans. eat one now, freeze one for later.

ultimate baked ziti
adapted from Cook's Country Best Potluck Recipes
20 min prep + 1 hour to bake, makes one 9x13" pan

1 pound ziti
1 pound whole milk cottage cheese
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups parmesan cheese, grated
5 garlic cloves, minced
28 ounce can tomato sauce
14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped, plus a bit more to top the pasta
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 teaspoon cornstarch
8 ounces whole milk mozzarella cheese, cut into small cubes
preheat your oven to 350F.

1. cook the ziti in boiling water. prepare the tomato sauce (step 4) while the ziti cooks. drain and do not rinse.
2. mix the cottage cheese, eggs, and 1 cup of the parmesan cheese together and set aside.
3. heat a large skillet over medium heat and coat the bottom with olive oil. saute the garlic a couple minutes until fragrant, but not brown. add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and oregano. simmer until thick, about 10 minutes. remove the sauce from heat and stir in the basil and sugar and season with salt and pepper.
4. whisk the cream and cornstarch together in a small bowl. transfer to the pasta cooking pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat. cook until thick, about four minutes. remove from heat and mix in the cottage cheese mixture, about 1 cup of the tomato sauce, and half of the mozzarella. add the pasta and mix well. transfer to a 9x13 inch baking dish. 
5. spread the rest of the tomato sauce evenly over the top of the pasta. sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and remaining 1/2 cup parmesan cheese over the top. 
6. spray one side of a piece of aluminum foil with nonstick spray. cover the pan with the foil, sprayed side down, and bake for 30 minutes. remove the foil and bake until the cheese is bubbling, an additional 30 minutes. cool for 10 minutes before sprinkling with basil and serving.

Southwestern Corn Chowder

It was 0 degrees Fahrenheit today and we spent the evening at the Ice Park, which was lots of fun. We stopped for hot chocolate while we were there, but walking around outside does make ya cold and it took a while to warm up after we got home. Good thing I was planning to make this spicy, filling soup! I've been meaning to make it for a couple of weeks, and tonight turned out to be the perfect occasion. The recipe is my twist on this one from AllRecipes and tonight was the first time I made it. I must say it turned out deliciously and we agreed it's definitely worth sharing. This isn't your standard corn chowder. The spices give it a great flavor, but the corn and black beans still shine through and it's deliciously creamy. Paul liked it enough to have extras. I'm really glad it turned out so well and will definitely make it again!

Southwestern Corn Chowder

2 T olive oil
1 C diced onion
3 cloves minced garlic
3 C chicken broth (or vegetable broth to make it vegetarian)
16 oz can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 t cumin
1 t chili powder
1 t salt
20 oz frozen corn, divided
16 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
8 oz cream cheese, softened

In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium and saute onion until tender. Stir in garlic and saute another minute or so, then add broth, canned tomatoes, spices, and half of the corn. Heat until the corn is no longer frozen, then blend the mixture with an immersion blender. Add remaining corn and the black beans and heat through, then reduce heat to low. Whisk in the cream cheese until smooth and serve.

Yield: 6 to 8 bowls as a main dish

chicken, leek, & mushroom soup

this winter hasn't been very wintery but it hasn't stopped me from making one of my favorite winter foods: soup. and this year has been somewhat of a challenge to find soup that's both really good for you and chock full of protein to keep me and the baby full - and that's not chili. don't get me wrong, i love a good chili just as much as the next person, but all that meat and beans gets kind of repetitive after a while.

which brings me to this soup. full of leeks and mushrooms - two of my favorite vegetables - perfectly spiked with apples and vinegar, and finished off with heavy cream and chicken. with a hunk of warm bread, it makes a comforting dinner.

chicken, leek, and mushroom soup
adapted from she cooks he cleans
1 hour, serves 4

whenever i make a soup that calls for precooked chicken, i bake chicken breasts the night before, after dinner, while i'm watching tv or doing something else relaxing. baking chicken takes almost no effort and then it's ready to go the next day for dinner.

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, thinly sliced, and rinsed
2 celery ribs, thinly sliced
12 ounces mushrooms, sliced or diced
1 granny smith apple, peeled and cubed
4 cups chicken broth or stock
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 cup heavy cream
about 2 cups leftover chicken, cubed or shredded

1. melt the butter in a large heavy pot over medium heat. saute the leeks and celery until soft, about 10 minutes. add the mushrooms and saute for about five minutes or until they start to soften. add the apple and cook until the apples and mushrooms are soft.
2. add the chicken broth, apple cider vinegar, thyme, and cream and simmer for about 20 minutes.
3. use an immersion blended (or regular blender) and puree to the consistency you like. add the chicken, season with salt and pepper, and heat on low for about 10 minutes or until the chicken is heated through.

chocolate peanut butter layer cake

as i've said before, i love layer cakes, but rarely make them since there's only two of us in the house. and since jason isn't a huge fan of sweets anyway, i am the one who eats the majority of the cakes around here. and it's really not good to eat a piece of a two or three layer cake a day. for a week. so last year i smartened up and bought a set of three six inch pans. they're the perfect size to serve four to six people. and it's simple to convert your favorite cake recipe into a mini version of itself, since half of a standard cake recipe perfectly fits into two six inch pans.

this year for my dad's birthday i made a petite version of one of our favorite combinations: my favorite chocolate cake layered with thick peanut butter filling and covered in ganache. 

it was the perfect size for the four of us to have a piece after dinner and me and my mom to have another the next day. 

chocolate peanut butter layer cake
cake adapted from ina garten, via my baking addiction; peanut butter filling adapted from amandeleine
makes one, three layer six inch cake

if you want to make a three layer eight or nine inch cake, double the cake ingredients and bake for about 30 minutes. also double the peanut butter filling.

for the cake:
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup brewed hot coffee

for the peanut butter filling:
1 cup + 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, soft
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup + 2 tablespoons powdered sugar

for the ganache:
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate

1. preheat your oven to 350F and line the bottom of three six inch cake pans with parchment paper. spray the parchment and sides of the pan with nonstick spray or grease with butter and set aside.
2. in a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. set aside.
3. in a separate medium bowl, mix the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients until incorporated. slowly mix in the hot coffee. the batter will be very very thin.
4. distribute the batter between the pans. bake for about 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before removing. cool completely before filling.
5. while the cakes are cooling, make the peanut butter filling. combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and use an electric mixer to mix well. the mixture will be very thick.
6. when the cakes are cool, spread about one third of a cup of the peanut butter filling between each layer. spread a very thin layer of filling on the top cake layer and the sides of the cake. refrigerate for about 15 minutes, or until the peanut butter filling is set. spread the remainder of the peanut butter filling on the sides of the cake. don't worry so much what the top looks like since you're going to cover it in ganache.
7. to make the ganache, bring the heavy cream to a simmer in a small saucepan. place the chocolate in a medium heat proof bowl and pour the hot cream over it. let sit for a minute or two before mixing. mix until smooth.
8. slowly pour the hot ganache over the middle of the top of the cake, letting it naturally spread out to the sides or use an offset spatula to guide the ganache where you want it. let the ganache set before cutting and serving. 

2012.08.06 this is sweet as sugar cookies' pick for the secret recipe club!

Petticoat Tail Shortbread

My husband's birthday is today and he loves lemon meringue pie, so I decided to make him one. The plan was to make a shortbread crust, but when I removed it from the oven, it was apparent that it would make a terrible crust because it was so thick. There wouldn't be any space for the filling! So I made a different pie crust recipe for the lemon meringue pie and just sprinkled the shortbread with cinnamon sugar, then cut it into wedges to make petticoat tail shortbread. How adorable is the term "petticoat tails" for shortbread? Anyway, it's cooled now and is so, SO good. Buttery and crumbly and just cookie perfection. Amazing how something so simple can taste so great! The recipe may have flopped as a pie crust (though I suspect it would have worked if halved), but it makes delectable shortbread cookies.

Quick note: Here and here are some links with interesting information about the history of shortbread if you're like me and enjoy reading about your food! This isn't a completely authentic Scottish shortbread recipe because it uses wheat flour instead of oat flour and I add salt to enhance the flavor, but it's really good anyway. Cinnamon is also not part of the original, but everything is better with cinnamon. Next time I'll try topping it with lemon sugar. I'd imagine lemon zest combined with white sugar and allowed to steep for a while would make a pretty rockin' shortbread topping!

Petticoat Tail Shortbread

1 C salted butter
1/2 C sugar
2 C flour
1/4 t salt
cinnamon sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Beat together butter and sugar until fluffy. Mix in flour and salt. Press dough into the bottom of an ungreased 9 inch pie plate or cake pan, prick all over with a fork, and bake until lightly golden, about 20 minutes. Remove pan from oven and immediately sprinkle with cinnamon sugar to taste, then cut into wedges. Leave in pan to cool. Store cooled shortbread in an airtight container (or just cover the pan with foil).

Yield: 8 servings

Red Wine Vinaigrette

This is the best vinaigrette I've ever made and is yummy on all kinds of salads. Can't wait to try it on an orzo salad or a Greek salad! I'll bet you could use it to marinate chicken or shrimp, too. It's based on this recipe, but scaled down big time because who needs a gallon of salad dressing? The first time I tried making it, the red wine vinegar was VERY strong (and we love vinegar!), but I've tinkered with the recipe and now it's great and only gets better as it sits in the fridge. I also substituted vegetable oil for some of the olive oil because as much as I love olive oil, I've found that it can get overpowering in vinaigrettes.


Red Wine Vinaigrette

1 C red wine vinegar
1 T sugar
1 t pepper
1 1/2 t garlic powder
1 1/2 t dried oregano
1 1/2 t dried basil
2 t salt
2 t onion powder
2 t dijon mustard
1 C vegetable oil
3/4 C extra virgin olive oil

Place everything but the oils in a blender and blend to combine. With blender running, pour in the oils in a very thin stream. This will take a couple of minutes. Blend another minute or so after all the oil has been added. Store in a 1 quart glass jar in the refrigerator and shake before using. Keeps for about two weeks.  It's still safe to eat after that, but something weird happens and the texture gets really funky.

Yield: about 3 cups

secret recipe club: whole wheat grapefruit cake

this is the first time, in the nine months i've been participating in the secret recipe club that the initial recipe i chose didn't work out for me. i'm sorry sarah, as good as your chocolate snacking cake looked, as simple as it appeared, i somehow managed to tinker with it a wee bit too much. let me be honest: it's my fault. the cake came together wonderfully, the batter tasted great, and i decided, for whatever reason, to mix in chocolate and peanut butter chips and bake it in two loaf pans instead of a square pan. that's where it went wrong. the cakes sunk, the chips fell to the bottom, and both cakes stuck like crazy to the pan. but even with all that, it's on my short list to remake, because the chunks i've been gobbling up the last couple days taste amazing. even if it isn't too pretty.

and that chocolate cake is a long winded way to bring me to this whole wheat grapefruit cake from sarah at simply cooked. i don't cook much with grapefruit (have i ever eaten one? i don't think so. that has to be some kind of food crime in and of itself.), which is somewhat surprising since i love the sweet tart flavor almost as much as the hubs loves lemon. so this cake - marked as my back up, in case the chocolate let me down - stole the show. the whole wheat flour results in more of a coarse and ever so slightly dense cake than light and fluffy. which is fine by me, since it goes great with the zesty grapefruit in the cake. and this time, i learned my lesson: i didn't stray a bit from sarah's recipe. at least for the cake. where sarah topped hers with a grapefruit glaze, i opted for grapefruit spiked buttercream. it's the perfect, light pink, sweet tart icing on the cake. this one's a keeper, for sure.

for more information on the secret recipe club, including the list of participating bloggers, featured recipes from members, and instructions on how to join, visit the secret recipe club website!

check out my previous secret recipe club posts below
chewy no bake granola bars & carrot cinnamon waffles
cannoli
gingerbread muffins
double chocolate peanut butter chip oatmeal cookies
butterscotch peach cake
whole wheat honey pancakesminted pineapple lime agua frescabreakfast tacos
simple almond sandwich cookies
roasted banana rum cake

whole wheat grapefruit cake
adapted from simply cooked
1 hour plus cooling, makes one 8x8" or 9x9" cake

for the cake and buttercream, you will need 1 cup grapefruit juice and 2 tablespoons of zest. for me, two large grapefruits yielded about 1 1/2 cups juice and a ton of zest. drink the remaining juice and find a good use for the extra zest!

for the cake:
2 large grapefruits, juiced and zested
5 eggs, separated
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

for the grapefruit buttercream:
1/2 cup fresh grapefruit juice
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1. make the cake. preheat your oven to 350F. line a 8x8" or 9x9" with a parchment paper sling. set aside.
2. in a medium bowl, beat the egg whites until they are soft peaks. mix in the cream of tartar.
3. in a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks with the vegetable oil until combined. mix in the sugar until smooth and pale. the mixture will be thick, but it will still get lighter in color as you mix it. mix in 1/2 cup grapefruit juice and 2 tablespoons grapefruit zest.
4. add the flour, baking powder, and salt to the egg yolk mixture and mix until combined.
5. fold the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture in three additions. be careful not to deflate the whites.
6. pour into your prepared pan and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. let cool in the pan for about 15 minutes before lifting out by the parchment sling onto a wire rack. cool completely before icing.
7. while the cake is baking & cooling, make the buttercream. in a small pan, simmer the grapefruit juice until it is reduced to about half the volume. this should take about 5 minutes. don't worry if you see foam on the surface, you can skim it off or leave it in as it will dissolve with the juice when it cools. once reduced, let cool to room temperature.
8. mix the cooled juice, butter, and powdered sugar until smooth.
9. when the cake is cool, spread with grapefruit buttercream. store in an airtight container.

Asiago Garlic Herb Popcorn

For a variety of boring reasons, my husband and I didn't get around to having dinner until very late last night. Late enough that making the corn chowder I'd planned seemed ridiculous. Bare cupboards meant our options were pretty much oatmeal or popcorn. I remembered this amazing looking popcorn recipe from Our Best Bites (and am not the biggest fan of oatmeal anyway), so popcorn it was! It turned out very yummy and even rather gourmet, or at least as gourmet as popcorn can be. We sat on the couch and devoured it while hunched over the big plastic mixing bowl with a movie in the background. We may or may not have this popcorn for dinner again (no promises!), but I definitely plan to make it for the occasional treat!

Quick note: Grate the asiago with a micro plane grater (like this) so it's very fine and will melt onto the popcorn quickly. Also, make sure you have the butter mixture and grated asiago ready to go before you pop the popcorn because you want to add the cheese right away so it has a chance to melt. The cheese probably won't all melt on, but that's okay! If the popcorn cooled too fast and the cheese fell to the bottom of the mixing bowl instead of melting, you could try spreading the whole shebang on a large rimmed cookie sheet and baking it for a couple of minutes so the cheese will melt.

Asiago Garlic Herb Popcorn

1 T butter
1 T extra virgin olive oil
1 clove minced garlic
1/2 t dried thyme
1/4 t dried basil
3/4 C very finely grated fresh asiago cheese (not packed into measuring cup)
1/2 C popcorn kernels
salt to taste

Melt the butter and olive oil together in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Add garlic and saute until beginning to turn golden, a minute or two. Remove from heat and stir in thyme and basil. Pop popcorn and catch it in a large mixing bowl. As soon as popcorn has popped, drizzle over butter garlic mixture and sprinkle with asiago. Toss immediately to coat using a large mixing spoon, then add salt to taste and toss again.

lasagna bolognese

i make lasagna once, and only once, each winter. and when i do, i make two large pans of it. one for now, one for the freezer. i figure if i am going to go to all the trouble of making it - two homemade sauces, all the layering and dirty dishes - then i may as well get a full four meals out of it. 

but don't let the time and sheet volume of ingredients discourage you. this is the best lasagna. noticeably absent is ricotta. on purpose. we aren't big fans of ricotta around here, and once you have lasagna with bechamel instead of ricotta once, it's the only way you'll ever want it again. trust me.

lasagna bolognese
bolognese adapted from giada de laurentiis, bechamel adapted from mario batali
makes one 9x13 inch pan

to make ahead, build the lasagna in the pan, cover tightly with aluminum foil and a layer of plastic wrap. freeze for a month, at the longest. remove from the freezer and place in the refrigerator to defrost at least 24 hours before baking it. do not bake directly from frozen - especially if you use a glass pan, as the glass will shatter.

for the bolognese:

1/4 cup olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 celery stalks, diced

4 carrots, diced

1/2 pound ground beef, meatloaf mix (my grocery store's mix is 80% beef, 15% veal, 5% pork), or 1 pound quartered mushrooms

28 ounces crushed tomatoes

1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped

1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

1/4 cup freshly grated romano or parmesan cheese

 

for the bechamel:
2 1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg

1 pound lasagna noodles, cooked, drained, and sitting in cool water
1 pound fresh mozzarella, shredded  or thinly sliced 
2 cups shredded parmesan cheese

1. make the bolognese. in a large dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. add the onion and garlic and saute until the onion starts to soften, about 5 minutes.
2. add the celery and carrots. cook until the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes.
3. add the meat or mushrooms, and cook until meat is no longer pink or the mushrooms are soft, 6 to 8 minutes.
4. stir in the tomatoes, parsley, and basil. cover and bring to a boil. reduce to simmer and cook about 30 minutes.
5. season with salt and pepper and stir in the cheese.
6. make the bechamel. in a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium low heat. whisk in the flour and cook, whisking continuously, until pale golden brown. while whisking, slowly pour in the milk. add the salt and nutmeg and whisk almost continuously, until it thickens. 
7. preheat your oven to 350F. 
8. to assemble the lasagna, pour a small amount of bolognese on the bottom of a 9 by 13 pan and spread around evenly. cover with a layer of noodles. top the noodles with about one quarter of the bolognese, then one fifth of the bechamel,  and sprinkle with about one fifth of the mozzarella and parmesan cheese. repeat the layers, starting and ending with noodles. spread the top layer of noodles with bechamel and the remaining cheese.
9. spray one side of aluminum foil with nonstick spray (so the cheese doesn't stick) and cover the pan, sprayed side down. bake for about 1 hour, or until bubbly. let cool 10 to 15 minutes before cutting.

Amazing Stove Top Mac and Cheese

I love cooking, but don't really like watching cooking shows or the Food Network. It's just not very interesting to me. I do like the recipes of some TV chefs, like Giada de Laurentiis (I have 3 of her books and have made a lot of her recipes with great success), but I've never seen her on TV. The only TV chef I enjoy watching is Alton Brown. Paul and I watch old episodes of his show sometimes. This particular mac and cheese recipe is his. It's one of those recipes that I saw online, realized I had all the ingredients, and scurried off to the kitchen to make. The method is rather different from most other mac and cheese recipes, and the result is delicious. Flavorful, cheesy, and as smooth and creamy as any Velveeta based sauce. The down side is that it doesn't reheat particularly well, but it's so easy to make that it's okay! You could try using another kind of cheese instead of the cheddar (maybe pepper jack, swiss, or a bit of parmesan?) and I'm sure those would be great, too.

Amazing Stove Top Mac and Cheese

8 oz macaroni
2 eggs
1 t salt
a sprinkle of pepper
1/2 t hot sauce (I use Frank's Red Hot Sauce)
1/2 t prepared yellow mustard
3/4 C milk
1/4 C butter, cut into pieces
10 oz freshly grated medium or sharp cheddar cheese

Cook macaroni in a large pot of lightly salted water. While it cooks, whisk eggs until smooth, then whisk in salt, pepper, hot sauce, and mustard. Whisk in milk. When macaroni is cooked, drain and return to pot. Put pot on stove over low heat and add butter. Stir until melted. Stir in egg and milk mixture and cook, stirring constantly, until thickened: about 3 minutes. Remove pot from heat and stir in cheese.

Yield: 4 servings as a main dish, 6 as a side

risotto with peas & chicken

risotto is perfect for cold winter weeknights when all i want is a deliciously simple comforting bowl of pasta that's not spaghetti and meatballs. it's a perfectly creamy one pot meal with endless combinations. once you master the art of making risotto - which isn't difficult at all, the key is keeping an eye on the pot and making sure the rice doesn't burn - it's the perfect vehicle to transform leftovers from earlier in the week into something new and exciting. while i sometimes have ingredients specifically set aside for risotto, most of the time, it's made from leftovers and pantry staples.

not a fan of the peas & chicken combo? try one of these other risottos: tomato basil,  portobello, vanilla strawberry & vanilla peach, three cheese, bacon, peas, & leeks, tomato & corn, gruyere, or baby tomato and spinach.

have leftover risotto? make risotto cakes or stuff a portobello cap for something different.

 

risotto with peas & chicken

45 minutes, two main course servings

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
few tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
1 cup arborio rice
4 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 cup frozen or fresh peas

about 1 cup cooked chicken, diced into bite sized pieces

1 cup parmesan cheese

1. bring the stock to a simmer in a saucepan and keep hot.
2. in a large saute pan or dutch oven, heat the butter and oil over low heat. saute the onions for a few minutes, until almost translucent.
3. add the arborio rice and cook, stirring frequently, until the rice is toasted, about three minutes.
4. add about one cup of the hot stock to the rice and mix to coat. cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has been absorbed. continue adding about a cup of stock and cooking the rice until all of the stock has been added.
5. mix in the peas, cooked chicken, and parmesan cheese. season with salt and pepper and serve.