Onion and bacon tart

I realized that it had been a long time since we had indulged in this delicious Onion and Bacon Tart, so we paired it with a terrific salad that contained lots of the herbs from our garden.

Chick pea curry with tofu

Since Mike isn't a huge fan of tofu, we don't have it all that often.  However, as long as it's soaked up some good flavor first, like in this curry dish, he doesn't complain at all!  Serve it over nutty good Basmati rice.

Chick pea Curry with Tofu


Canola oil
1 onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, chopped
2 t cumin seed
1 t coriander
1/2 t turmeric
Pinch of black pepper and cayenne pepper
1 cake of firm tofu, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 c cooked chick peas
1 can (15 oz) crushed tomatoes
Chopped fresh spinach
Salt

Basmati rice

Start the rice.  In a large skillet, saute the onion and garlic till soft.  Stir in the spices and tofu and cook for a few minutes.  Add the chick peas and tomatoes and heat through.  Wilt some spinach into the dish and serve over rice.

Beer can chicken with fig and black olive sauce

Martha Stewart knows a fabulous thing to do with a can of Guinness...you stick it up a chicken's butt!  The great thing about the Guinness can as opposed to some other beer cans is that it's tall, so the chicken has a better chance of not falling over!

I used Martha's recipe, except that I added vegetables to my cast iron skillet to cook in the chicken schmaltz (so good!), and I changed up the sauce recipe a bit, adding 1/2 c chopped dried figs and 1/4 c chopped black kalamata olives.

Cioppino with fennel

I shared a Cioppino recipe before that is based on onions, ginger, and garlic and is just delicious, so I wasn't really in the market for a new way to make Cioppino...until fennel, leeks, and small red potatoes came along.

Now I'm not sure which I like better, so we'll just have to alternate ;-)

Cioppino with Fennel

2 fennel bulbs, thinly sliced
2 - 3 leeks, white and pale green parts thinly sliced
Olive oil
12 oz small red potatoes, quartered
28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
Oregano and basil to taste
16 oz clam juice
1/2 c red wine
Additional water as needed (start with 1 c)
1 t fennel seeds
1/2 t cayenne pepper flakes
Salt and pepper
3 lbs fresh seafood (we like l lb each of white fish, shrimp, and scallops)

In a large stockpot or dutch oven, saute the fennel and leeks for about 10 minutes in olive oil.  Add the red potatoes and the tomato juice and add the spices to taste.  Add the juice, wine, water, fennel seeds, and pepper flakes and bring to a boil.  Drop the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes.  Add salt and pepper as needed.  Do not add the fish until close to time to serve.  You can store the soup base at this point until later if you'd like.

Chop the fish into bite-sized pieces and simmer for about 5 minutes.  Add the scallops and simmer for about 4 minutes.  Add the shrimp (assuming it's pre-cooked) and heat through before serving.  Serve with sourdough bread.

Mushroom strata

I posted a recipe for my favorite Spinach Strata quite awhile ago, but I recently ran across a new blend that I think I might like even more.  This one is lighter on the cheese and heavier on the eggs, so it really depends upon your taste.  Maybe, like me, you'll love them both :-)

Check out the Country Breakfast Strata on the Hannaford website.  I made a half-sized version of it, and it came out just fine...when everyone's at home next time, I'll make this honking big version for them!  make sure you cook the mushrooms long enough for them to give up most of their liquid, otherwise it takes extra time for the strata to firm up properly.  

Spaghetti sauce

Homemade spaghetti sauce is a wonderful thing when you have the time.  This particular recipe helps you to have the time by not being too complicated.  The major thing is to make sure you cook it down enough that it's not runny.  You can add oven-baked meatballs in the final stages of simmering, or add ground meat at the same time as the onions and garlic.

Spaghetti Sauce

Olive oil
Small onion, grated
2 cloves of garlic, pressed
1 lb ground beef (optional)
1/4 t cayenne pepper flakes
1/2 t dried oregano
2 c tomato juice
28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
2 T white wine
1/4 c fresh basil leaves, chopped
Salt, pepper, and sugar
Cooked meatballs (optional)
Parmesan cheese, fresh grated
1 lb spaghetti pasta

Heat oil in a large pan.  Cook onion until soft and add garlic, ground beef if using, pepper flakes, and oregano.  Cook till meat is browned.  Add tomato juice through the wine and simmer until thickened, at least 30 minutes.  Add basil, and salt, pepper, and sugar to taste.  Add meatballs if using, and heat them through.  Serve over pasta and top with grated cheese.

Seafood chowder casserole

Living in New England for the over twenty years, we've had some wicked fine seafood chowder.  So when I saw this recipe from Eating Well for Seafood Chowder Casserole, I felt that it just wouldn't be right not to try it.

The verdict?  Amazing.  The only changes I made from their recipe (at the link above) was to use pre-cooked rather than raw shrimp, so it needed to be added a bit later.

Fruit and walnut-stuffed pork loin

How many people can you feed with one rolled pork loin?  Quite a few as long as you've got lots of good sides to go with it!  This is a great way to stretch your meat, giving everyone a small but extra-tasty portion.  And pork is lean too, so the moist fruit cooked inside it keeps it juicy and healthy.

I used the recipe from Cooking Light, and was delighted with how delicious this was.  The only change I made to their recipe was to serve mustard on the side rather than smearing the meat with it.  Next time?  I'm smearing the meat!

Mediterranean seafood stew

This stew is likely to turn out to be different every time you make it, depending upon what seafood looks good when you go to the market!

Mediterranean Seafood Stew 

Olive oil
Leek, chopped
Onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Stalk of celery, chopped
Green pepper, chopped
Fennel bulb, chopped
1 t turmeric
1/2 t cayenne pepper
28 oz can of diced tomatoes
1/3 c tomato paste
1/2 t thyme
Bay leaf
3 c clam juice or mix of juice and other stock
1 lb firm white fish, cubed
Mixture of any of the following:
Shrimp
Scallops
Crabmeat
Clams
Salt and pepper

In a stockpot or dutch oven, cook the leeks, onions, and garlic in oil until soft. Add the rest of the vegetables through the cayenne pepper and cook until they are soft too. Add the rest of the ingredients through the clam juice and bring to a boil. Lower heat to simmer and cook covered for about 20 minutes. Add the seafood just before serving and cook till done, about 5 minutes.

Onion and bacon tart

Here's a dinner tart for you, courtesy of Cooking Light magazine.  It's a fussy and time consuming recipe, but the flavor is incredible, so only make it when you won't have to rush.  I prefer to make my own flakey pie crust over the new style that seems to be cropping up everywhere.  The kind suggested by Cooking Light and others is moister and has more uniform texture, reminding me too much of pre-made or roll-out pie crusts. 

Chipotle meatloaf

Meatloaf takes an hour to cook, and no matter how you slice it, it leads to a pretty meat-intensive meal, so we don’t have it that often. But when we do, we like to really enjoy it! I discovered recently that adding chipotle sauce to the mix (and slopping some more on top) makes a mighty tasty meatloaf :-)

Chipotle Meatloaf

3/4 c bread crumbs or stuffing mix
1/4 c water
1 lb ground beef
Egg
1/4 c chipotle sauce (more for topping)

Heat the water and soften the bread crumbs in a large bowl. Add all the rest of the ingredients, mixing by hand. Shape into a loaf and place in bread loaf pan, covered with foil. Cook at 400 for about an hour.

Savory Carrot & Tarragon Tart from Eating Well

This isn’t fast food. This is for when you want to impress! It is, however, easy food :-)

For once, I followed the directions pretty much exactly: my only substitution was to use real cheese instead of low fat. I also mixed cheddar and parmesan. But besides that, I did follow the directions. Oh, and I used quite a bit more fresh tarragon than called for.

I really like tarragon!

Savory Carrot and Tarragon Tart
Courtesy of Eating Well magazine

Fried rice and ginger

If you’ve pre-cooked some rice and edamame during your once a week food preparation time, this meal will go together in under thirty minutes! You can often find edamame already shelled and cooked in the freezer section. This is how I buy it when I can find it, since there don’t seem to be any additives in the package. Even if you have to start from absolute scratch to make this meal, it will still take only around 45 minutes to put together.

Fried Rice and Ginger

Canola oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 scallions, sliced
1 T fresh ginger, minced (about 1/2 a thumb!)
Red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 to 1 c edamame, shelled and cooked
1/2 to 1 c corn, canned, frozen, or fresh
6 to 10 oz firm tofu, cubed small

4 c brown rice, cooked
2 eggs
1/4 soy sauce

Heat some oil in your wok or skillet and cook the garlic, scallions, and ginger together for a few minutes. Add the bell pepper through the tofu and heat gently, stirring occasionally. In another skillet, add some more oil and pan-scramble the two eggs with a cup of the rice. When the eggs are cooked, add the rest of the rice and mix it through, along with the soy sauce. Serve the vegetable and tofu mix on top of the rice mix.

Chicken and rice with creamy herb sauce

This is so simple and so delicious that it pretty much shouldn't be legal.  But it is and is and is!  If you prepare the rice ahead of time and use pre-cooked chicken, it will only be as long as it takes to heat through before it's ready for dinner.  Even if you start from total scratch at dinnertime, it will only take about 40 minutes...the time it takes to do the rice.  Just start the chicken and sauce after the rice gets underway.

A fabulous vegetable accompaniment is fresh green beans stir fried in olive oil, topped with dried cranberries and a bit of sesame oil. 


Chicken and Rice with Creamy Herb Sauce

1 c long grain or brown rice
2 1/4 c water

3/4 c chicken stock
1/4 c dry white wine
4 skinned chicken breast halves

1 t cornstarch
1 T chicken stock mixture
3 oz Neufchatel-style cheese with herbs

Start the rice.  In a large skillet, bring the chicken stock and wine to a boil.  Add the chicken breasts, cover and reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes, turning so they are cooked completely.  Remove the breasts from the liquid and set aside.  Mix the cornstarch and a bit of the cooking liquid together and use to thicken the stock.  Stir the cheese into the liquid and heat well, stirring constantly.  Add the chicken back and keep warm until serving time.  Serve chicken and sauce over rice.

Cashew chicken

If you don't have time to toast the cashews in oil before stir frying your chicken and vegetables, make this dish anyway. But next time, try really hard to set aside a few extra minutes to do it... Serve it with rice.

Cashew Chicken

1 T cornstarch
3 T soy sauce
2 T rice vinegar
5 T hoisin sauce
1 T brown sugar

Canola oil
1 cup dry roasted cashews
1 lb chicken breasts, cut into stir fry sized pieces
1 T fresh ginger, minced
1 T garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 small broccoli heads, chopped
1/4 c water


2 - 3 scallions, sliced thin

Mix the cornstarch through the brown sugar and set aside.  Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet and toast the cashews lightly.  Remove the nuts and set aside.  Add the chicken, stir frying until just cooked through.  Remove and set aside.  Add the ginger and garlic to the pan and heat; add the vegetables and water.  Cover and steam cook for about 4 to 5 minutes until broccoli is soft.  Add the soy sauce mixture to the vegetables, along with the chicken, nuts, and scallions. Simmer for a few minutes to thicken the sauce.  Serve over rice.

Cheesy scalloped potatoes

There are many variations on scalloped potatoes, but this recipe yields one of the cheesiest, creamiest, most decadent batch you can ever imagine! Great with ham or fabulous as a main dish
:-)

Cheesy Scalloped Potatoes

4 large Yukon gold potatoes
1 large sweet onion
2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 c milk
1 c sour cream (not fat-free)

Salt & pepper

1-1/2 to 2 c shredded sharp cheddar cheese (12 to 16 oz)

1/2 c grated fresh parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 400 and use a shallow baking pan, 9 x 13 or slightly bigger, sprayed well with oil. Slice the potatoes and onions into 1/4 inch slices with food processor. Whisk together the milk and sour cream. Layer half of each ingredient group in this order: potatoes, onions, garlic, milk mix, salt & pepper, and cheddar cheese. Repeat the layers. Cover with sprayed foil and cook for 45 minutes. Uncover, add parmesan and cook for about 15 more minutes.

Variations: add parsley, chives, and/or bacon if desired.
Speed cooking time by pre-cooking the potatoes and onions a bit.

Vegetable and beef Guinness stew (OAMC)

This is a wonderfully flavorful stew, equally good as a OAMC recipe or as an immediate meal!

Vegetable and Beef Guinness Stew

2 t canola oil
1 lb beef stew meat
2 T flour
14.5 oz can beef broth
12 oz bottle of beer (Guinness Stout preferred)
2 medium Yukon gold potato, cubed
2 medium turnips, peeled and chopped into 1/2″ cubes
Leek, thinly sliced
2 medium carrots, sliced into 1/2″ pieces
3 thyme sprigs, or 1 t dried thyme
Bay leaf
Salt and pepper

Water

1 T lemon juice
1 t sugar

1/4 c fresh parsley, chopped
More thyme sprigs for garnish (optional)

Heat the oil in a large sauce pan or pot. Brown the beef, sprinkled with flour, cooking for about 5 minutes.  Add a bit of broth and scrape up all the brown bits.   Add the rest of the broth through black pepper, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes (to freeze) or until vegetables are tender if serving immediately, stirring occasionally. Discard the bay leaf and thyme sprigs (if fresh thyme is used).

Add additional water if needed, along with the sugar and lemon juice.  Serve immediately, garnished with thyme sprigs, or freeze for later. To serve after freezing, let it thaw overnight in the fridge or place directly into a crock pot or sauce pan and heat slowly and gently. Heat until the potatoes and veggies are tender.

Chicken and wild rice casserole with artichokes

After putting the first few ingredients into a pan, you’ll just stick it in the oven and walk away for about 45 minutes. Time to read a chapter of your novel, do a load of laundry (yuck), talk with a friend on the phone, supervise homework…

When you return to your kitchen, you’ll just saute up the veggies quickly, smother the rice and chicken with them, and eat! You can also substitute turkey if there are still leftovers hanging around :-)

Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole with Artichokes

1 c uncooked wild rice
4-1/2 c stock
Skinned chicken breasts
Paprika

Olive oil
3 carrots, sliced
2 c mushrooms, sliced
1/4 c flour
1 t rosemary
1/2 c sherry (cooking sherry is fine)
2 cans artichoke hearts, quartered

Mix rice, 2-1/2 c stock, chicken pieces, in a large baking pan and sprinkle with paprika. Bake at 450, covered in foil, for 45 minutes.

Saute the carrots and mushrooms in olive oil in a heavy skillet. Add the flour and rosemary and mix them in well. Add the rest of the stock and the sherry and cook for a few minutes until thickened. Add the artichoke quarters and stir till slightly heated. Arrange the vegetable mixture over and around the chicken on rice.

Harira soup

Moroccan beef or lamb soup, known as harira, is full of delicious spices. Don't skip the step of serving it with lemon wedges...the little bit of acid and flavor from the lemon juice brightens the soup's flavor beyond compare!

Moroccan Harira Soup (with beef)

Olive oil
Flour
1 lb stew beef
1/2 t cinnamon
3/4 t ginger
1/2 t coriander
Black and red pepper
5 - 6 c beef broth
2 T tomato paste
Onion, chopped
2 - 3 celery stalks, chopped
1/2 c dried lentils, soaked and rinsed
1/2 c small egg noodles
15 oz can of chickpeas
1/2 c flat leaf parsley, chopped
Fresh lemon wedges

Flour the beef and brown it in the oil in a large pot. Add the spices and cook for about a minute. Add 1 c broth, the tomato paste, and the vegetables, stirring well until they start to soften. Add lentils and remaining broth. Simmer covered for about 30 minutes, stirring often. Add noodles and chickpeas and continue to simmer until noodles are softened. Remove from heat and stir in parsley just before serving. Serve with lemon wedges.

Quick Jambalaya

Not quite as labor intensive as some jambalaya recipes, but this one still packs a very tasty punch.

Quick Jambalaya

Olive oil
1 lb sausage (or ham)
Onion, chopped
Green pepper, chopped (or other colors)

14 oz tomatoes, crushed or chopped
14 oz chicken stock
1/2 c barbecue sauce

Optional: beans, cooked shrimp

Prepare rice and keep it warm.

In a large skillet, brown the sausage through the peppers in olive oil. Add and stir together the tomatoes, stock, and barbecue sauce. Dish the stew over rice in a shallow bowl. Add beans, and/or cooked shrimp if desired.