Week 20 - Sometimes Non-Traditional is a Good Thing

One of my loving and supportive big brothers gave me an exciting new pasta cookbook for my birthday so I couldn't resist taking it for a spin. Several recipes caught my eye so you'll be seeing plenty more from the book, but this one seemed like a good start.

While this definitely isn't a "traditional" minestrone, the flavor was outstanding and it is definitely a recipe that could be changed up with different veggies (and probably even meat) added and it would still be very good. 

The ingredients weren't all fun and games - turns out frozen water chestnuts are hard to come by (we skipped those) and frozen red bell peppers are mostly only found in a frozen pepper mix. At least the red ones are easy to pick out. And all in all the ingredients came to about $30 which seemed like a lot, but it's another one that would have easily fed 6 people and made some outstanding leftovers.

CURLY MINESTRONE

Source: Betty Crocker's Pasta Cookbook

1 T. olive or vegetable oil - 1 medium onion, chopped - 1 medium stalk celery, sliced - 1 clove garlic, finely chopped - 2 C. frozen broccoli, cauliflower, water chestnuts and red bell pepper - 1 C. uncooked fusili pasta (3 oz.) - 1/4 chopped fresh parsley or 4 tsp. dried parsley flakes - 1 tsp. dried basil leaves - 1/2 tsp. dried oregano leaves - 1/2 tsp. salt - 1/4 tsp. pepper - 3 cans vegetable broth - 1 can Italian-style stewed tomatoes, undrained - 1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained - 1/4 C. grated Romano or Parmesan cheese

Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook onion, celery and garlic in oil, stirring occasionally, until crisp-tender. Stir in remaining ingredients except cheese. Heat to boiling; reduce heat to medium.

Cook uncovered 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until pasta is tender. Sprinkle each serving with cheese.

Week 19 - Stir Fried: The Sequel

OK, I know it looks like I haven't been doing this for the last couple of weeks but I promise that I have done them, I just haven't written about them. So here's me catching up on my blog...

My second stir fry was much more successful than my first. In fact, it was SO successful I got a review from Brian that went something like, "this tastes like something you'd get in a restaurant!" So that's exciting.

Partially it probably went well because I was much more confident in my recipe and not as terrified of the high heat. I guess there's something to be said for practice. 

One thing I definitely love about this Cooks Illustrated book is that their stir fry sauces are quick, simple and delicious. We actually had almost all of the ingredients for the sauce in the house (red curry paste was almost tough to find) and, like the orange-sesame sauce, I think it would be really versatile with a lot of different stir fry varieties.

STIR-FRIED SHRIMP AND SNOW PEAS WITH COCONUT-CURRY SAUCE

Source: The Best 30-Minute Recipe

Stir-Fry: 1 recipe coconut-curry sauce (see below) - 1 lb. extra-large shrimp, peeled and de-veined - 2 tsp. soy sauce - 2 T. vegetable oil - 1 bell pepper, cored, seeded and sliced - 8 oz. snow peas, strings removed - 1 C. bean sprouts - 3 garlic cloves, minced - 1 T. grated fresh ginger

Coconut-Curry Sauce: 1 C. coconut milk - 1 T. fish sauce - 1-2 tsp. red curry paste - 1 tsp. light brown sugar - 1 tsp. cornstarch

1. Prepare sauce by combining all ingredients in medium bowl and set aside. Toss shrimp with soy sauce. Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over high heat until just smoking. Add shrimp and cook, stirring occasionally and breaking up clumps, until curled and lightly browned, about 1.5 minutes. Transfer shrimp to clean bowl.

2. Add 1 more tablespoon of oil to pan and return to high heat until shimmering. Add bell pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in snow peas and bean sprouts and cook for 1 minute.

3. Clear center of pan and add remaining 1 teaspoon oil, garlic and ginger. Cook, mashing garlic mixture into pan with back of spatula, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in cooked shrimp. Whisk sauce to recombine, add to pan and bring to simmer. Cook until sauce thickens, 1 to 2 minutes. Serve immediately.

Week 18 - When the Moon Hits Your Eye

It was pizza week and this was tremendous! I hit up TJ for a recipe because I know he and Dale like to make homemade pizzas so he recommended this one and it was an excellent choice.

The only "problem" we had was that Brian made a basic crust out of an Italian cookbook we have and it was a little smaller than the 14" crust TJ usually uses so we had toppings HEAPED on our little crust. And problems are in the eye of the beholder - that much topping made it a little harder to eat with our bare hands but also made it extremely filling and flavorful.

The sauce is definitely a simple and delicious sauce that we'll no doubt use again and an added bonus was that we had 95% of these ingredients in the cupboard so really just had to buy the sausage and peppers.

ITALIAN SAUSAGE AND THREE PEPPER PIZZA

Source: TJ and Dale

Sauce (makes enough for two pizzas - can be stored in fridge for 5 days or freezer for up to 2 months)

1 can diced tomatoes - 1 can tomato paste - 1 1/2 T. olive oil - 2 T. chopped fresh basil (or 2 tsp dried basil) - 1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano - 1 1/2 tsp. sugar - 1/2 tsp. minced garlic - 1/4 tsp. table salt

Mix all ingredients. Use potato masher to break up the tomatoes.

Pizza

2 T. olive oil - 2-3 bell peppers (only 2 if they're large) of different colors - 1 tsp. minced garlic - 1/2 tsp. dried oregano - 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper - 1/2 tsp. kosher salt - freshly ground black pepper - 2 mild or hot Italian pork sausages (1/2 lb), cut into slices or broken into small pieces - 2 C. coarsely shredded mozzarella - 1/2 T. freshly grated parmesan

1. Warm the olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add all the peppers and saute, stirring frequently, until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and all of the spices and saute for another minute. Set aside to cool.

2. Brown the sausage.

3. Spread the sauce evenly over the dough. Spread the peppers and sausage over the sauce. Scatter the mozzarella over the top.

4. Follow the dough instructions for cooking time. Once finished cooking, sprinkle the parmesan over the top.

Week 17 - Cheers to Leftovers

We seemed to be on a meat-eating spree this week so by Thursday I was ready for something that was distinctly anti-meat. This recipe definitely fit that bill. Though, to be honest, if you're in the mood for meat this would be just as good with chicken or tuna added in.

That said, this pot pie was shockingly flavorful considered the main seasonings are just salt and pepper. When I read the recipe I assumed it would be way too bland for Brian's sensitive taste buds, but we both enjoyed it as is.

Along with being pretty easy to prepare, this was reasonably inexpensive and makes a TON of leftovers. With the amount of veggies that it calls for, it almost overflows the 8x8 pan and, partially because we added a bottom crust, one modest-sized piece was quite filling. 

A couple of notes on changes we made: We used celery instead of fennel because Brian doesn't care for the flavor and that seemed fine. We also added a bottom crust and just used Pillsbury pie crusts. Looking back, it would be a great recipe to use the food processor to save on chopping time. Also, Brian did the crust. Isn't it beautiful?

VEGETARIAN POT PIE

Source: foodnetwork.com

1 T. unsalted butter - 2 small heads fennel, finely chopped (about 3 cups) - 1/2 medium yellow onion, finely chopped - 2 medium carrots, peeled and finely chopped - 12 oz. white button mushrooms, sliced - 1 small russet potato, peeled and diced small - 1/4 C. all-purpose flour, 1 C. low-sodium mushroom broth - 1 C. whole milk - 1 C. frozen baby green peas - 1/4 C. thinly sliced fresh chives - 1/4 C. parsley - 1 T. white vinegar - 1 large egg yolk - 7 oz. frozen pie crust or puff pastry dough

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.

2. Melt butter over medium heat in 3- to 4-quart heavy bottomed saucepan. When it foams, add fennel, onions and carrots, and cook until just soft and onions are translucent, about 2 minutes. Add mushrooms and potato, season well with salt and pepper, and stir to coat. Cook, stirring rarely, until mushrooms have let off water and are shrunken, about 6 minutes.

3. Sprinkle flour over vegetables, stir to coat, and cook until raw flavor is gone, about 1-2 minutes. Carefully add broth and milk, stirring constantly until mixture is smooth. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.

4. Remove from heat. Add peas, herbs and vinegar and stir to coat. Season well with salt and pepper. Turn filling into an 8x8-inch baking dish.

5. Whisk egg together with 2 teaspoons water and a pinch of salt until evenly mixed. Set aside.

6. Cut dough to fit over the baking dish. Place dough over filling and tuck into the edges of the dish. Brush dough with egg wash and cut slits in the top to vent. Place on a baking sheet and bake until crust is golden brown and mixture is bubbling, about 25-30 minutes. Let sit at least 5 minutes before serving.