Roasted Garlic and Kale Pesto

1 small head of garlic

1 T olive oil

Salt and pepper

I large bunch Lacinto kale, washed and dried, stems removed and chopped in large pieces

1/3 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup olive oil

2 T lemon juice

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Place a 12x12 piece foil on a baking sheet.  Pour 1 T olive oil into center of sheet and season with salt and pepper. Cut the stem end off the head of garlic and place cut side down in the olive oil.  Tent the foil around the head of garlic and seal all edges.  Bake for 35 minutes.  Remove from oven and open foil to cool.

Add all ingredients together in a food processor or blender.  Blend until desired consistency, adding more olive oil as needed.

Serve over your favorite pasta.

Pepper Steak in the Slow Cooker

Juggling your kid's after school activities with serving a home cooked meal is not always easy. I see why fast food, carry out and frozen meals are popular, but I do my best not to go there often, so I need a better strategy.  One is my slow cooker. Once in a while I will make time in the morning to get something going for the whole day, but there are also other ways to make this kitchen tool work for you.

If the activity allows about 30 minutes at home before we head out, I like to put together something that will basically keep warm in the slower cooker such as taco meat, or something that needs simmer time.  That's where this recipe comes into play. I've posted a version of this recipe before, but this has been modified for the slow cooker.

It takes about 15 minutes of minutes of prep to get it into the crock pot and it's worth it. I'm not a big fan of putting raw meat in the slow cooker, taking a few minutes to brown your meat such as in this recipe yields much better results. Even with that extra step, this recipe for Pepper Steak can be put together quickly so it can simmer in the slow cooker for a few hours while you are gone.  Then when you return, you put on the water for the noodles, add a few last minute items and dinner is served! 

Pepper Steak With Egg Noodles

Serving Size  : 6    

 

1lb Flat iron or Sirloin steak steak -- cut into 1/8 inch strips

3 tablespoons  olive oil

1 onion -- sliced

1 Clove  garlic -- pressed

salt and pepper to taste

1/8 cup red wine

1 can  beef broth

2 tablespoons  Worcestershire sauce

1 green pepper -- thinly sliced

2 tablespoons  cornstarch

1/4  cup  water

3  tomatoes -- sliced into thin wedges

12 ounces  egg noodles

Brown meat in oil in large skillet. Add onions cook a minute or two longer, add garlic and then wine. Allow a a few minutes for the alcohol to cook off.  Add beef broth and Worcestershire sauce to meat. Move all to the slow cooker. Add the green pepper strips on top. Cover and set slow cooker on low for about 2 1/2 hrs.

Turn slow cooker up to high. Put the water on for the noodles.  Combine cornstarch and 1/4 cup water; stir into meat mixture. Add tomatoes. Cover and cook on high 5-15 minutes longer. Cook noodles according to package directions. Serve pepper steak over the noodles. 

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Per Serving: 422 Calories; 13g Fat (26.9% calories from fat); 26g Protein; 51g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 98mg Cholesterol; 501mg Sodium.  Exchanges: 3 Grain(Starch); 2 1/2 Lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 1 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.

Homemade Pasta

Don't you love it when you go to a wonderful Italian restaurant that serves fresh made pasta? I know I do and while I have spent years working on perfecting the various sauces that go on top of the pasta, it took some time for me to consider taking on the daunting task of making the actual pasta.

At first I started looking at fancy pasta making machines on line.  You know the kind where you put in all the ingredients and the machine works some sort of magic and spits out perfectly mixed and cut pasta.  Sounds fabulous right?  Well the reviews on these machines tell a different story.

About two years ago my husband gave me the Marcato Atlas Wellness 150 Pasta Maker. Working with this machine is a dream, although you wouldn't think so when you first see it.  One look at this machine and it seems like there is going to be a lot of work involved in making the pasta. It doesn't even make the dough!  That's okay, your food processor will make the dough.

Give it a try. It may not convert you from boxed pasta on busy weeknights; but set a side an hour on a lazy day to put it together, and you'll know the time was well spent.

Homemade Pasta

3/4 cups flour

3/4 cups semolina flour

3 eggs

1/2 tablespoon Kosher salt

olive oil

water

To make the pasta, put the two types of flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor with the chopping blade. Mix, adding one egg at a time until all eggs are incorporated.  Add about 1/2 teaspoon of each of olive oil and water, continuing to mix until a dough ball forms, adding a bit more olive oil and water as necessary, the ball should be pliable but not wet. If the dough is too wet add a little flour.

Divide the ball into 2 smaller balls and cover with a damp paper towel to keep dough from drying out.  Working with one ball at a time and using a pasta roller such as the Atlas Marcato set on "0", send the dough through the machine a dozen or so times until the dough has a silky texture  Store the sheet on a piece of parchment paper while you work on the other balls.  Once you have turned the two balls into two thick sheets of pasta, let the sheets rest about 10 minutes, covered with parchment paper.

After the pasta has rested, cut each sheet in half and working one piece at a time send them through the pasta roller set at "2" and then each level up to "6". Once the sheet is rolled through a "6," dust with a touch of flour then send the sheet through the cutting blade.  The basic Marcato comes with a blade that cuts pasta into spaghetti or fettuccini.   One cut, hang the pasta strips on a drying rack.  You can cook immediately, or dry it on the rack for an hour or so then place the dried pasta in zip lock bag and into the refrigerator to be used within three days.

Cook the pasta just as you would boxed pasta, just remember it doesn't need as much cooking time 2-4 minutes should do it.

Old School Eggplant Parmesan

Many times when I make Eggplant Parmesan, I try to make a "healthier" version, one with less oil, no frying, more baking.  I will tell you that while those versions can be good and satisfy a craving for Eggplant Parmesan, they are nothing like the real deal old school version.  I made this version the other day, it was an occasion where shortcuts and substitutions were not to be taken, only the most authentic version would do.

I will now tell you that all those other versions are a fraud, there is nothing like this Eggplant Parmesan. Let your hair down once in awhile and go all the way.  This dish is worth it.

Old School Eggplant Parmesan

2 large Eggplants, cut into 1/4 inch thick slices
salt
4 large eggs, beaten
1 cup flour
olive oil
8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, grated
1 lb linguine

Basic Red Sauce

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup onion, finely diced

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

84 ounces crushed tomatoes

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 cup red wine

Prepare the basic red sauce. Heat the olive oil in large pan, add the onion and saute until soft.  Add the garlic and cook a minute longer.  Add the crushed tomatoes and the remaining ingredients. Simmer until ready to use.

Lay the eggplant slices on two layers of per towels.  Salt the slices and then cover with another two layers of paper towels.  Let sit for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil over medium high heat in a large skillet.  Makes sure there is enough to cover the bottom of the whole pan.  Dip the slices of eggplant in the egg and then coat with the flour.  Fry the eggplant slices a few at a time, only fit as many in the pan as you can while maintaining a a single layer with a bit of space between each piece. It should only take few minutes on each side, just until  lightly browned. Drain on paper towels.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  Spray a large casserole dish or two if needed with cooking spray.  Lay down one layer of eggplant slices.  Cover each slice with a a little bit of mozzarella, using about half.  Cover each slice with another slice of eggplant and then top each slice with the remaining mozzarella.  Bake for about 10 minutes.  Meanwhile cook the linguine.

Serve the eggplant with the linguine and top with the red sauce. Enjoy.

Pepper Steak with Penne

I've been making versions of this pepper steak for years.  It originally came from the back of some package, to which I would give proper credit, but the recipe is long gone and I can't remember the product.  That's okay, I think it's been morphed into my own thing anyway.

This dish is super easy and has wonderful fresh flavors due to the green peppers and tomatoes being added in at the end. It does take a bit of time though, you need to simmer the beef for over an hour before you can finish off the dish.  This is very important, otherwise the flank steak will tough rather than tender, and your fabulous dish will only be mediocre.


Pepper Steak with Penne

1 1/2  lbs flank steak, cut into 1/8 inch strips
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup onions, sliced
3 cloves garlic, pressed
2 each beef bouillon cubes
2 cups water
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup  red wine
1 each  green pepper, sliced
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup water
3 tomatoes, sliced
12 ounces penne pasta
1/4 cup fresh parmesan cheese, grated

In a very large skillet, brown the steak in the olive oil, season with salt and pepper then add the onions, cook until slightly tender.  Add the garlic and saute about 3 seconds longer.  Add the water, bouillon cubes, Worcestershire sauce and red wine.  Bring to a slight boil then turn to low and cover.  Simmer on low for about 1 and 1/4 hours.

Once the beef is tender, cook the pasta according to package instructions.

Add the green pepper to the beef and cook for 2 minutes.  Mean while mix the water and cornstarch together.  Add it to the beef mixture and stir until thickened.  Add the tomatoes and heat through.  Stir in the cooked pasta and top with grated Parmesan.

Israeli Couscous with Red Pepper and Spinach

This is a quick and flavorful side dish to go with pretty much anything.  I paired it with the Parchment Roasted Salmon and some steamed spinach the other night. A meal with restaurant quality attention to detail and flavor was on the table in less than 30 minutes.

I've had a hard time finding time for the blog lately, but I knew I wanted to post about this dish.  As usual it was a dish on the fly and I didn't want to forget the details.  I was too lazy to go type the ingredients so I decided to send myself an email using voice technology.  Easier said than done.  When I said "chopped spinach" the voice technology interpreted it as "shop with kids" and then it interpreted " vegetable broth" as "see my bra". Yes, this could have been a very strange post indeed.

Israeli Couscous with Red Pepper and Spinach

1/4 cup diced onion
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/2 large red bell pepper, chopped
1 1/4 cups vegetable broth
1 cup Israeli couscous
2 handfuls fresh spinach, roughly chopped
Kosher salt and pepper to taste

In a medium pan with a tight fitting lid, saute onions in olive oil over medium heat until soft.  Add the garlic and saute 30 seconds longer. Toss in the red bell pepper and then add the vegetable broth. Raise the heat and bring the broth to a boil.  Add the couscous and stir.  Add the spinach on top and cover.  Cook 8-10 minutes stirring once or twice to incorporate the spinach.  Add salt and pepper to taste. Set a side for a few minutes before serving.

Pasta, Sausage and Spinach with Butternut Sauce

Well, the stay at home mom gig is over. I've gone back to work. In general it's a good thing; I've missed the other identity that you have in the workplace, instead of being a 24-7 mom.  Although, I have to admit the 24-7 mom thing is a wonderful luxury to experience. Anyway, this why you haven't heard much from me lately and I am sure the postings will continue to be few and far between. But I love writing this blog, plus when combined with the power Pinterest, it's a great way for me to record and save my favorite recipes, so I plan to keep it hobbling along.  My guess is it will get more focused on meals for busy moms.

This recipe isn't necessarily a quick get it on the table in twenty minutes kind of thing, but it's not far from it. So I think it will qualify, plus it's got good veggies for the kids. In fact, it passed the kid test with my picky eater, who would not touch a chunk of butternut squash if her life depended upon it.

So I had this butternut squash sitting around; it came in my CSA box a week or so back and I was feeling unenthused. What do you do with a butternut squash?  I have to admit I am not very creative with it.  I usually peel it, cut in cubes, drizzle on some olive, season with salt and pepper and roast it.  Boring. I was wasting some of the little precious free time I have surfing on Pinterest, and a pin of SkinnyTaste.com's Pasta with Butternut Sauce, Spicy Sausage and Baby Spinach caught my eye. I put it on the menu for upcoming week.

This is really a review of the recipe, because except for a few very minor changes that fit my taste, I did nothing to change this recipe.  It's really simple, fairly quick and quite tasty. I will be making it or a version of it again.

Pasta, Sausage and Spinach with Butternut Sauce
(Adapted from SkinnyTaste.com's Pasta with Butternut Sauce, Spicy Sausage and Baby Spinach)

1 butternut squash, peeled and cut into cubes

6 ounce package of hot Italian sausage links

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 lb orecchietti pasta

2 shallots, minced

4 cloves garlic, minced

¼ teaspoon ground sage

2 cups fresh spinach, roughly chopped

2 tablespoons shredded parmesan cheese

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Cook the butternut squash until soft in a large pot of salted, boiling water. Using a slotted spoon, remove the squash and put it in a blender, let it cool a bit, then puree it.

Reheat the squash water to boiling and cook the pasta until done. Before draining the pasta reserve a cup or more of the water for the sauce.

While the pasta is cooking, heat a deep non stick skillet over medium high heat, open the sausage links and crumble the pieces into the pan.  Cook until the sausage is done. Then remove it from the pan. In the same pan on medium low, heat the olive oil and saute the shallots until soft. Add the garlic and cook a minute longer.  Add the squash puree, sage, 1 cup of the reserved water, the cooked sausage and spinach.  Stir to combine the ingredients. Add the pasta and parmesan cheese, stir again, adding more reserved water if needed.  Season with salt and pepper.

Spicy Eggplant Tomato Sauce

This is going to a quick one, because school is back and session and somehow I find myself with even less time than I had before.  Maybe it's prepping for all the after school activities that happen to fall right during the time I would normally make dinner.  As was the case last night.

One the caveats of running short on time is that I am falling behind on using all my fabulous CSA veggies.  In fact, yesterday when I picked up my box I still had several things leftover from last week. I don't want anything to go to waste, so I looked at what I had.  Two of the items were jalapenos and a bag of fairytale eggplants, yummy stuff! I knew they had to be part of last night's dinner.

I threw together this quick and easy pasta sauce, and let it sit on the stove ready and waiting for us to return from soccer practice. It was perfect served over some nice mild cheese ravioli.

Spicy Eggplant Tomato Sauce
8 servings

1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups eggplant, sliced
3 cloves garlic, pressed
2 each jalapeno peppers, sliced (discard the seeds from one, use the seeds from the other)
14 1/2 ounce can diced tomatoes
32 ounce can crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup red wine
kosher salt
pepper

Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat.  Add the onion and eggplant and saute until slightly tender.  Eggplant will soak up all the oil so once that happens, add a bit of water to keep the process going.

Once you see the eggplant softening, add the jalapenos and continue to saute for a minute or two then add the crushed garlic.  Saute a minute longer.

Add both cans of tomatoes, red wine and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for about 30 minutes then cover and let sit until ready to serve.

Serve over any type of pasta.


Nutritional Information from Mastercook:
Per Serving: 119 Calories; 7g Fat (52.3% calories from fat); 3g Protein; 12g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 0mg Cholesterol; 159mg Sodium.

Israeli Couscous with Shrimp and Summer Vegetables

Tomatoes, zucchini and corn. Tomatoes, Zucchini and Corn. TOMATOES, ZUCCHINI, and CORN! Yes, it's that time of year and whether you are a gardener, a CSA recipient or just an average shopper who loves seasonal goods, you are swimming in them. That's fine, in a few weeks you'll start to miss them and by mid-winter you'll be dreaming of them.  That's because there is nothing like the taste of these veggies (and fruit) in the heart of summer.  Today's recipe makes the most of these fresh flavors.

One of my favorite parts of this dish is the use of fresh corn. It's a method used in another recipe here on my blog, Pappardelle with Corn and Tomatoes.  Parboil the corn, slice it off the cob and mix it into the recipe.  It also utilizes a bit of the water used to boil the corn, so don't dump it out.  I love how the sweetness of the fresh corn permeates the entire dish.

You could make this dish with regular couscous or even any type of pasta you like, but if you haven't gotten into Israeli couscous, you've got to give it a try.  The small pearl sized balls of pasta are a favorite in our household.

Israeli Couscous with Shrimp and Summer Vegetables
Serves 3

3 ears corn
olive oil
1 lb extra large shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/3 cup onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup reserved corn water
1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 large zucchini, quartered and sliced
1 1/2 cup Israeli couscous
3 Roma tomatoes (or 2 regular), chopped
Kosher salt and pepper

Boil corn in a large of water for 5 minutes. Remove corn and set aside to cool.  Once cool, cut the corn off the cob. Reserve some of the water for use in the recipe.

In a large saute pan, in 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat, cook onion until slightly soft. Add 2 cloves pressed garlic and saute 1 minute longer.  Add the wine, broth and 1/4 cup reserved corn water. Bring to a boil and add the zucchini and corn, make sure to bring the liquid back to boil and then add the couscous.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, cover and simmer another 3 minutes.

Once the couscous is simmering, in a separate pan heat 1 teaspoon olive oil over medium high.  Add the shrimp and 1 pressed clove of garlic then quickly saute until the shrimp begins to curl. Empty the contents of the shrimp saute pan into the couscous mixture, add salt and pepper to taste.  Stir to mix, add a few teaspoons of reserved corn water if needed.  Cover simmer a minute or so longer, remove from heat and let set for 5 minutes before serving.

My Favorite Lasagna

Nothing says comfort food like lasagna, and nothing lasts for several meals like a nice big lasagna. In fact doesn't that just bring more comfort knowing that dinner is ready for more than one night.  I love lasagna and even though it may seem like a production, it's really quite easy and well worth the effort.

One of the most important factors is the sauce, please don't waste your time using sauce from a jar.  This sauce is easy enough to throw together and will make all the difference. In fact, double the sauce recipe and put some away in the freezer for a quick pasta dinner on a lazy night.  I actually did it the other way around.  I made a double batch of sauce a night or two earlier and then decided to use the rest for this lasagna. It came together super fast and lasted for several days.


My Favorite Lasagna

Sauce

1 lb ground beef

1 T olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

8 ounces mushrooms, sliced

1 green pepper, chopped

4 cloves garlic, crushed

2 - 32 ounce cans crushed tomatoes

¼ cup red wine

20 or so basil leaves, cut into slivers

salt and pepper

2 T. Honey

1 lb lasagna noodles, cooked

salt

Ricotta Mixture

32 ounces part skim ricotta

½ cup grated parmesan cheese

16 oz whole milk mozzarella, 12-13 ounces cut into small chunks, the rest shredded and reserved for later

1 egg

1 teaspoon salt

   

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare large pan with cooking spray.  Start with the sauce.  Brown ground beef in olive oil in a dutch oven over medium heat. Once browned add onions and saute for 2-3 minutes, then add mushrooms, green pepper and garlic.  Saute for about 5-8 minutes. Add the remaining sauce ingredients and allow it to simmer while preparing the ingredients for the other layers.

Cook pasta in salted water according to the directions on the package. Drain and set aside in cool water until needed.

In a large bowl, mix the ricotta mixture ingredients.

Assemble lasagna:  pour about 1 cup or so of sauce in the bottom the pan.  Then line the bottom with 4-5 noodles.  Top with 1/3 of the ricotta mixture. Add a layer of the sauce. Repeat noodles, ricotta and sauce 2 more times.  Top with the remaining noodles and then the rest of the sauce. Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes to an hour or until bubbly.  The pan I use is a huge a Polish stoneware pan and it takes longer to bake in this pan than others, so start checking at 40 minutes if using a glass or aluminum pan.  Once the lasagna is nice and bubbly, remove foil and sprinkle the reserved mozzarella on top.  Return to the oven for a few minutes for the cheese to melt.  Allow the lasagna to set for at least 15-30 minutes before slicing.

Fettuccini with Shrimp and Fresh Tomatoes

Ah, it's nice to be back!  It's been vacation time for our household, and I have been out so much I haven't had time to have fun in the kitchen.  Last week we were at the beach for 9 days.  Yes I cooked there, but I hate cooking in the vacation rental kitchens, it's absolutely no fun. There are weird pots and none of my handy kitchen gadgets. On vacation I revert to a method cooking that I rarely employ at home.  I try to use as few ingredients as possible, do very little chopping and creating, and even rely on processed foods.  Yes, that includes jar pasta sauce, oh how far we can sink for convenience. I did bring a few things like a zip lock bag with my homemade oven fried chicken coating and some fresh corn from my CSA box. That was a good easy meal; I'll need to think about more home pre-prep, next time.

Anyway, we are back and just in time because it's Tomato season!  Nothing says summer like a fresh tomato and this week's CSA box had tons.  There were gorgeous large red slicing tomatoes, cute multicolored cherry tomatoes, and a huge batch of yellow plum tomatoes.  For this recipe you could any of them, but I decided on a mix of the red and yellow tomatoes. There were also onions, basil and zucchini in the box so I added them to the party.

This recipe, in some ways is a take off of Pappardelle with Corn and Tomatoes, I like how the wine and veggie broth are added to make the sauce. I do this often, I find a method or mix that works then I change it around to fit different ingredients, no need to recreate the wheel every time I cook something new.

 Fettuccini with Shrimp and Fresh Tomatoes

2 teaspoons olive oil
5 tablespoons butter
1 lb shrimp, shelled and deveined
12 ounces Fettuccini
1 large zucchini, quartered and sliced thin
¼ Vidalia onion, sliced thin
4-5 vine ripe tomatoes, cut into cubes
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup vegetable broth
2 tablespoons basil, chopped
kosher salt
black pepper

In large wok or skillet melt 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 teaspoon olive oil.  Add the shrimp and sauté until the shrimp turn pink.  Remove from pan and set aside.

Cook the pasta as the package directs. Meanwhile

Over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter and the rest of the olive oil in the same pan. Add the onion and cook for 2-3 minutes until the onion begins to soften.  Add the zucchini and cook 3-4 minutes longer.  Add the tomatoes, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 pepper, cook for 3-4 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook for another minute.  Add the wine and reduce for 5 minutes.

Add the shrimp and the broth to the skillet and allow it to simmer for 1 minute.  Add the pasta, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the remaining butter to the skillet.  Stir and add more broth if needed to help combine the ingredients. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with the basil.

Kale and Mushroom Lasagna Roll-ups

When you support your local farmers though a CSA program you get veggies that you don't normally buy.  I think this a good thing, it gets me thinking outside of the box.  But sometimes those veggies are not a big hit with the family.  The first time we got kale, it flopped.  Steamed and sauteed with some olive oil and salt and pepper, it was too strong for everyone including me. Well anyone who gets a CSA box knows you're going to get some kale, in fact you are going to get a lot of it.  That means creativity needs to come into play.

I have found that kale goes over best in my house when it's pulverized to bits, such as in a winter pesto.  Another way is in these yummy lasagna roll-ups.  I found this recipe on Pinterest (of course) and it has become a regular in the rotation. As usual I adapted the recipe to fit my family's tastes and my cooking style.


Kale and Mushroom Lasagna Roll-ups
Adapted from Skinny Taste.com (Mushroom Kale Lasagna Rolls)

Sauce:
6 cloves garlic crushed
2 T olive oil
Several fresh basil leaves thinly sliced
2 -28 cans crushed tomatoes
¼ cup red wine
salt and pepper
2 T. Honey

15 lasagna noodles

Filling:
5 cups kale, thoroughly rinsed, stems removed, roughly chopped
8 oz mushrooms, roughly chopped
1 tsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
15 oz part skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 egg
Kosher salt and black pepper
6 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, shredded

Start with the sauce.  Heat oil in sauté pan over medium heat and add garlic, stir for a minute or two.  Add the remaining sauce ingredients and allow it to simmer

Cook the lasagna noodles according following the instructions on the package.

In a food processor, pulse kale a few times until chopped.

In large skillet, sauté the garlic in oil for about 1 minute.  Add the kale, salt and pepper and sauté 5 minutes more minutes. Then add the mushrooms, cooking and additional 5 minutes or so. Season to taste with salt and pepper

Place the kale in a medium bowl and add the mushrooms mixture, ricotta, Parmesan cheese, egg, salt and pepper. Stir to combine

Preheat oven to 350° and ladle about 1 cup sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 12 baking dish.

Working with about 3 noodles at time lay the noodles flat on cutting board or other surface. Spread out 1/3 cup of the filling across each noodle. Roll each noodle up and place in the pan, allowing a bit of space between each roll up. Continue this process until all the noodles are used.  Cover the roll ups with the desired amount of sauce, saving a bit for serving. Cover the pan with foil and bake for about 35 minutes.  Remove the foil and sprinkle the mozzarella on top. Return the pan to oven bake another 5 minutes.  Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

Pappardelle with Corn and Tomatoes

I am sure that I have shared my family's desire to change the balance of meat and veggies in our diet.  Turning the tables to make sure we eat a lot less meat and a lot more veggies. Last week I made the meal in the picture above and it was a big hit, claiming a spot in the rotation. I found this recipe on the Food Network, and made some small changes to fit our tastes.  The star of this dish is not the pasta, but the corn.  This is the time of year for this dish, fresh local corn is everywhere. In the winter we may have to try frozen corn (on the cob), but I am sure it won't be the same.

I find that if I allow it, many of my vegetarian selections rely on a hearty amount of pasta.  I love pasta, but this is not what I want to fill up on instead of meat. The whole point of less meat is more veggies, so this meal cuts back the quantity pasta in the original recipe.  Instead of making this a one dish meal, I used wonderful fresh veggies from our CSA box to fill our plates. The fresh spinach was steamed and dressed with a drizzle of olive oil and salt and pepper, while the English peas were also steamed and dressed with a small amount of butter an salt. Just because you are serving a vegetarian main dish doesn't mean you should skip good sides!

Pappardelle with Corn and Tomatoes
(Adapted from Food Network's Pappardelle With Corn)

3 ears corn, shucked
5 tablespoons butter
3 vine ripe tomatoes, cut into cubes (use fresh local summer tomatoes when available)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small purple onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup white wine
9 ounces pappardelle pasta
1/2 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, chopped
kosher salt
black pepper

Cook the corn in boiling salted water for about 4 minutes.  Remove the corn the corn to cool and reserve the water, keeping it at a low boil.

Over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in large skillet. Once melted, add the tomatoes, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 pepper, cook for 3-4 minutes.  Add the onion, cook for another minute and then add the garlic and cook for another minute.  Add the wine and and reduce for 5 minutes.

Once the corn is cool, cut the kernels off the cob.  Cook the pasta as the package directs in the same water used to cook the corn. Remove about 1 cup of the water and reserve before draining the pasta.

Add the corn and broth to the skillet and allow to simmer for 1 minute.  Add the pasta, parmesan 1/2 teaspoon salt and the remaining butter to the skillet.  Stir and add the reserved cooking water to help combine the ingredients. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with the parsley.

Vegetable Cannelloni with Spinach Tomato Sauce

Here's another homemade pasta recipe for you.  I know I can't help myself, the difference between store bought pasta and homemade pasta is like the difference between a winter grocery store tomato and a summer homegrown one. But I tell you what, this recipe is good even with store bough pasta, so if you can't deal with the thought of rolling your own, you can still give this recipe a try.

This recipe came up after my veggie ravioli recipe, mainly because I had leftover filling (I have halved the recipe here for you, so no need to worry about excess filling.) Such good veggies should not go to waste.  The sauce for this dish is quick and if the spinach part is too much for you (or you don't have any in the house) it's great without it also.  Make it work for you.

Vegetable Cannelloni with Spinach Tomato Sauce

Sauce:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 cup onion, diced
4-5 handfuls spinach leaves
4 cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 cup red wine

28 ounces canned crushed tomatoes

1 teaspoon kosher slat
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 sugar

Filling:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 red bell pepper
1/2 small red onion, diced
1 portabello mushrooms, diced
1/2 large zucchini, diced
2 cloves garlic, pressed
2-3 handfuls spinach, chopped fine
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, shredded
1/2 cup mozzarella, shredded
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
12 ounces ricotta cheese
1 egg, beaten

Pasta:
3/4 cups flour
3/4 cups semolina flour
3 eggs
1/2 tablespoon Kosher salt
olive oil
water

1/4 cup parmesan, grated ( for topping)

Filling:
Start with the filling, rub a little olive oil on the outside of the pepper and roast it in a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes. Chop fine.

In a saute pan heat the olive oil over medium high heat and cook onion until soft. Add the mushrooms and cook for about 4-5 minutes, add the bell pepper, zucchini, garlic and spinach and cook 4-5 minutes longer.  Remove from heat and let cool. Stir in the Parmesan, mozzarella, salt, pepper, ricotta and egg. Refrigerate until needed.

Pasta Sheets:
To make the pasta, put the two types of flour and the salt in the bowl of a food processor with the chopping blade. Mix, adding one egg at a time until both eggs are incorporated.  Add about 1/2 teaspoon of each of olive oil and water, continuing to mix until a dough ball forms, adding a bit more olive oil and water as necessary, the ball should be pliable but not wet. If the dough is too wet add a little flour.

Divide the ball into 2 smaller balls and cover with a damp paper towel to keep dough from drying out.  Working with one ball at a time and using a pasta roller such as the Atlas Marcato set on "0", send the dough through the machine a dozen or so times until the dough has a silky texture  Store the sheet on a piece of parchment paper while you work on the other balls.  Once you have turned the two balls into two thick sheets of pasta, let the sheets rest about 10 minutes, covered with parchment paper.

After the past has rested, cut each sheet in half and working one piece at a time send them through the pasta roller set at "2" and then "5". Once the sheet is rolled through a "5" cut it into three sections lengthwise and hang each piece on the drying rack.  Do this all the sheets, you will have 12 pieces on the drying rack.  Let dry for 20-30 minutes.

Sauce:
In a food processor with chopper blade, pulse the spinach until finely minced. In a saute pan over medium high heat, saute the onion in oil until soft.  Add the spinach and garlic and saute 2-3 minutes.  Add the red wine and cook 1 minute then add the tomatoes, salt, pepper and sugar.  Simmer on low for about 15 minutes.

Assemble:
Cook the pieces in boiling water for 3-4 minutes. Drain and and refill the pan with cool water to help keep the pieces separate.  Work one piece at a time put 2-3 tablespoons of filling on the sheet and roll it up, set in a pan prepared with a bit of sauce in the bottom.  Repeat with the remain 11 pieces   Cover with the rest of the spinach sauce and bake covered at 375 degrees for 25 minutes or until bubbly.  Remove the cover and top with parmesan cheese and bake 2-3 minutes more or until the cheese melts. Let set for 15 minutes before serving.

Vegetable Ravioli with Pink Sauce

As long as I can remember one of my absolute favorite foods has been ravioli. Wonderful little pasta pockets stuffed with filling and covered with sauce. It doesn't matter if they are filled with meat, cheese, lobster, veggies, it's all good.  As many things as I have cooked over the years I have never made ravioli, mostly because until a few months ago I had never made fresh pasta.  Once I got my Atlas Marcato, I knew it was only a matter of time.

The Atlas Marcato is not a fancy super automated pasta machine, it is a simple pasta roller that comes with a variety of attachments to cut the pasta into shapes.  The main purpose of the machine is to roll it out, which basically kneads the dough and delivers nice flat sheets.  You start on the widest setting and send the dough through a number of times until is has a nice silky texture.  Then you set the dial higher and higher to start thinning the sheets to the desired thickness. As far as the actual dough creation is concerned, I like to use my food processor to combine the ingredients.  It's fast and efficient.

Now really I thought my first experience with ravioli making would be cheese ravioli, but I've been on this veggie kick lately and thought it would be great to do a veggie filling. Something lighter with less calories. Plus I had the veggies in the refrigerator, if I wanted some ricotta I would have had to go to the grocery store.

If you don't  have a pasta roller you can still make this, you would just need to roll the dough out by hand. Yes, even I am rolling my eyes at that one.  Okay no pasta roller, you could use won ton wrappers and skip the dough making step, but of course you would be missing all the fun.

Vegetable Ravioli

Filling:
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 red bell pepper
1/2 small red onion, diced
1 portabello mushrooms, diced
1/2 large zucchini, diced
2 cloves garlic, pressed
2-3 handfuls spinach, chopped fine
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, shredded
1/2 cup mozzarella, shredded
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Pasta:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups semolina flour
4 eggs
1 tablespoon Kosher salt
olive oil
water

Start with the filling, rub a little olive oil on the outside of the pepper and roast it in a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes. Chop fine.

In a saute pan heat the olive oil over medium high heat and cook onion until soft. Add the mushrooms and cook for about 4-5 minutes, add the bell pepper, zucchini, garlic and spinach and cook 4-5 minutes longer.  Remove from heat and let cool.  Add the parmesan, mozzarella, salt and pepper. Refrigerate until needed.

To make the pasta, put the two types of flour and the salt in the bowl of a food processor with the chopping blade. Mix, adding one egg at a time until all the eggs are incorporated.  Add about 1 teaspoon each of olive oil and water, continuing to mix until a dough ball forms, adding a bit more olive oil and water as necessary, the ball should be pliable but not wet. If the dough is too wet add a little flour.

Divide the ball into 4 smaller balls and cover with a damp paper towel to keep dough from drying out.  Working with one ball at a time and using a pasta roller such as the Atlas Marcato set on "0", send the dough through the machine a dozen or so times until the dough has a silky texture  Store the sheet on a piece of parchment paper while you work on the other balls.  Once you have turned the four balls into four thick sheets of pasta, let the sheets rest about 10 minutes, covered with parchment paper.

After the past has rested, cut each sheet in half and working one piece at a time send them through the pasta roller increasing the dial until it is set at "4". When you are finished you will have 8 sheets.  Keep the sheets covered when not working with them.  Take one sheet and spoon 8-10 centers of filling spaced evenly in two rows across the sheet. Lay another sheet on top and press lightly around each spot of filling to shape a mound.  Use a ravioli cutter or pizza cutter the cut the raviolis into squares.  Use a fork to press the edges of each ravioli closed. Make three more sheets of ravioli.  Set the raviolis uncovered on parchment paper to dry for about an hour, turn the raviolis over to let the other side dry.

Cook in boiling water for 7-8 minutes. Serve with desired sauce. I made a quick pink sauce using coconut milk, see the recipe below.

Pink Sauce

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 red wine
28 ounces canned crushed tomatoes
1 teaspoon kosher slat
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 sugar
14 ounce can coconut milk

4-5 fresh basil leaves slivered


In a saute pan over medium high heat, saute the onion in oil until soft.  Add the garlic and saute 30 seconds or so more.  Add the red wine and cook 1 minute then add the tomatoes, salt, pepper and sugar.  Simmer on low for about 15 minutes, then add the coconut oil and basil.  Heat through.

Pantry Pasta

Meal planning is a great tool.  You set up the plan in advance so you know what you are having for dinner, you organize a good shopping list which in turn cuts down on impulse buying and wasted food.  I try to keep a meal plan going most weeks, but let's face it this is real life and sometimes things don't work out as planned or maybe there was no time to make a plan.  That's what this post is about, what to do for dinner when there is no plan.

This vegan dish is a good crowd pleaser and it is simple. What's more, I almost always have all the ingredients on hand.  So it's great for an impromptu pot luck, teacher's dinner or just OMG dinner time is here and I haven't got a planned meal.

Wait, did I say vegan?  It looks so creamy! Yes, the secret to this cream sauce is coconut milk.  This may seem odd to some but coconut milk makes a great pink sauce.  Don't let the fat scare you.  Coconut milk does a body good, check out the changing views on coconut milk and oil to see for yourself.

Pantry Pasta

2 T olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1/4 cup red wine
2 cans diced tomatoes
1/4 t oregano
1/2 t basil
1/8 t crushed red pepper
1/4 t salt
1/8 t black pepper
1 can beans (Roman, kidney, butterbeans, whatever you have on hand), drained and rinsed
12-14 oz coconut milk
1 lb box of pasta

Saute the onion in olive oil until soft, add garlic and saute another minute.  Add red wine, stir then add tomatoes, and spices (the measurements are approximate, so season to taste).  Simmer for about 15-20 minutes.  Meanwhile, prepare the pasta.  Add the beans to the sauce and cook for about 5 minutes, then stir in the coconut oil.  Cook for another 5 minutes.  Mix sauce over pasta.

Creamy Cauliflower Alfredo Pasta

I feel like am starting to blossom as a vegetarian cook. Yes, we still eat meat, but less and less.  I am learning how to think outside of my box and to use plant based foods in new ways.  Now it's not that I am overflowing with these ideas on my own, I get sparks from the ideas of others and then build on them.  Today's dish is one of those take a good idea and build on it recipes.

There is a great site called FatFree Vegan Kitchen.  I'm not really into the whole fat free veganism thing, but she's got some great ideas that I can build on.  The other day a post came out for Fettuccine No-Fredo with Broccoli and Sautéed Mushrooms, and it looked quite tasty.  Now using cauliflower to make a lighter, healthier creamy sauce is not a new idea, but it is something I have never tried. Knowing that I like a little fat in my cream sauce, I knew I wanted to modify it a bit. After viewing this recipe, I surfed around a bit to see what others were doing.  Many non-vegans were adding in some heavy cream.  That did not appeal to me, plus I was already starting the first steps of making dinner.  What did I have on hand?  Plain Greek yogurt, that was the ticket.

My version came out nice and creamy, with lots of veggies to help even out the ratio of veggies to pasta.  What did my picky eater think?  She loved it, except for the mushrooms, but that was to be expected.  This will definitely go into the rotation.

Creamy Cauliflower Alfredo Pasta

1 large head cauliflower, cut into pieces 

4 cloves garlic, minced 

2 cups water 

1/2 teaspoon oregano 

1/2 white pepper 

1lb fettuccine

3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt

salt

pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil 

1/8 cup red onion, diced

8 oz mushroom, sliced

small bunch asparagus, cut into 1 inch pieces

2 small broccoli crowns cut into florets 

kosher salt

black pepper 

2 teaspoons fresh parsley roughly chopped

Put the cauliflower and the next 4 ingredients into a pot and bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover.  Cook for about 15 minutes or until tender.  Pour contents of the pot into a large food processor.  If you don't have a food processor, use a blender. Don't blend yet, just let it cool a bit.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the instructions on the package. Reserve a bit of the water in case you need it for the sauce.

In a wok or other large pan, heat the olive oil and saute the onions until soft.  Add the mushrooms and toss to coat with the oil.  Cook for about 3-4 minutes, stirring.  Add the asparagus and broccoli and stir fry another 3-4 minutes.  Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper.

Now that the cauliflower has cooled a bit, blend it until smooth.  Add a bit of the cauliflower puree into the yogurt and mix to temper it before adding it to the food processor.  Blend in the yogurt and salt and pepper to taste.

Put the pasta into a large bowl and toss with the cauliflower sauce.  If it is too thick, you can add a bit of the pasta water.  Once mixed, gently toss in the sauteed veggies and garnish with parsley.

Linguine with Swiss Chard Pesto and Ricotta

Ever since I stumbled across The Kitchn's Winter Greens Pesto recipe, I have been in love. With winter greens that is. I can't enough of this stuff. I mean what is there not to like, wonderful healthy greens, walnuts, cheese, garlic and olive oil?  Put it over some pasta and I could live on it forever.  How it could it get any better?  Well, I just figured that out today.

First let me tell you about my other new favorite, ricotta cheese.  Not your grocery store variety but gourmet fresh ricotta, or even better homemade ricotta. I got turned on to homemade ricotta last week in Philadelphia.  There is a British Style pub there called The Dandelion.  If you are in Philly, go.  While you are there order the homemade ricotta with sour bread, you wont be sorry.  I know sometime soon I will have to make my own.  Until then I found something not quite as good, but way better than the regular grocery store variety. It's fresh Piacci Ricotta and I don't think I can ever go back to the old stuff.

As lunch time came around today I was torn.  I had both the pesto and ricotta in my refrigerator begging to be used.  There was only one thing to do, cook up some linguine and combine them.  There you go, two new favorites mixed together and served over an old favorite.

Linguine with Swiss Chard Pesto and Ricotta
adapted from The Kitchn's Winter Greens Pesto 

1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

1 bunch Swiss chard, trimmed, rinsed and chopped

3/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

4 cloves garlic, chopped

Juice from one lemon

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

¾ - 1 cup fresh ricotta cheese

1 lb linguini

Toast the walnuts on a baking sheet in a 350 degree oven for 6 minutes.

Quickly blanch the Swiss chard in boiling water removing as soon as it begins to go limp. Immediately plunge it into cold water to stop the cooking process. Drain the Swiss chard and dry it on towels or in a salad spinner. Then place it in a food processor.

Add the nuts, Parmesan, olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper and pulse until smooth. Add more olive oil if needed.

Cook the linguine and drain it.  Mix in the desired amount of pesto and then the ricotta cheese.  Serve immediately.

Very Veggie Lasagna

Some of you may have seen this recipe before. That's because I originally posted a version of this recipe last year on my old blog.  This is a lighter lasagna, chock full of veggies, that has become a family favorite.  It's different each time I make it, since it can be made with whatever veggies are in season, are in the refrigerator, or whatever you want. Anyway since I am trying to get all my recipes in one place, it needs a new home here on Witchery in the Kitchen.

I love lasagna, but the reality is that it is filled with low value carbs and fat.  I've been cutting the fat content for years using part skim dairy products, but I wanted to up the nutritional value of this favorite to make it a guilt free option on our menu.  So I decided an increase in veggie count would be the way to go.

I started by breaking down the elements of my regular lasagna, first on the list was the sauce.  I usually use some sort of meat in my sauce, so to cut calories and fat I decided to go with a straight tomato sauce.  This does not need to be boring, there is something really fabulous about a sauce of tomatoes, garlic and fresh basil.  These ingredients served as the base.

The next element is the cheese. Usually I go with a mix of ricotta, mozzarella, parmesan and egg. I also saw some room to cut calories here.  I like the cheese, but I wanted a lighter feel to the lasagna and envisioned a thin creamy layer instead of a thicker heavy layer. To accomplish this, I cut the amount of ricotta in half, skipped the egg and added milk to make it more of a sauce, allowing a little to go a long way.

The last item, and star of this lasagna was the addition of lots of veggies.  I used a mandolin to make the most delicate paper thin slices.  I knew that these slices would not only add great flavor and bulk, but that they could also replace some of the noodles. In fact, my daughter thought they were noodles and actually ate them! SCORE!
  .
Very Veggie Lasagna

Sauce:
6 cloves garlic crushed
2 T olive oil
Several fresh basil leaves thinly sliced
2 -28 cans crushed tomatoes
¼ cup red wine
salt and pepper
2 T. Honey

12 lasagna noodles
salt

Cheese:
15 oz small part skim ricotta
½ cup 2% milk
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
2 oz shredded fresh mozzarella

Veggies:
1 large yellow squash
2 small to medium zucchini
10 ounces portabella & white mushrooms, thinly sliced

 6 oz shredded fresh mozzarella

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare large pan with Pam spray.  

Start with the red sauce.  Heat oil in sauté pan over medium heat and add garlic, stir for a minute or two.  Add the remaining sauce ingredients and allow it to simmer while preparing the ingredients for the other layers.

Cook pasta in salted water according to the directions on the package. Drain and set aside in cool water until needed.

In medium bowl, mix the cheese sauce ingredients.

Prepare the veggies by slicing the squash super thin using a mandolin slicer.  Then slice the mushrooms by hand.

Assemble lasagna:  pour about 1 cup of sauce in the bottom the pan.  Then line the bottom with 4 noodles.  Top with the eggplants slices, then half of the cheese sauce. Add a thin layer of the red sauce then layer on all the zucchini   Add another thin layer of the red sauce and a layer of 4 noodles.  Next put the layer of mushrooms and then the other half of the cheese sauce.  Top with the zucchini, the last 4 noodles and a layer of red sauce. 

Cover with foil and bake for 1 to 1 ¼ hours or until bubbly.  The pan I use is a huge polish stoneware pan and it takes longer to bake in this pan than others, so start checking at 45 minutes if using a glass or aluminum pan.  Once the lasagna is nice and bubbly remove foil and sprinkle 6 oz of mozzarella on top.  Return to the oven for a few minutes for the cheese to melt.  Allow the lasagna to set for at least 25 minutes before slicing.

Chicken Pho - In the Crock Pot!

Do you love the Vietnamese noodle soup known as pho?  I do. I've perused a number recipes for this dish and found myself a bit intimidated by the all the seasonings and the meat bones that go into making the broth.  It seems to make good pho, you need to make a good broth. 

The other day I ran across a recipe on Pinterest for chicken pho, in the crock pot no less.  I thought that could be doable.  First because I never buy chicken pho, it's always beef, I thought I wouldn't get caught up in comparisons. Second, because it's made in the crock pot, how hard could it be!?  Turns out not hard at all.  The only item I didn't have on hand was the star anise which I found in the Badia spice section of my grocery store.

The original recipe Load & Go Spring Slow-Cooker Chicken Pho was posted on Shine food on Yahoo. As usual, I made few changes that I thought would work for me.  One thing I like about this recipe is that everyone in my house liked it, even my daughter who does not like traditional pho.  Also because of the condiments, you can easily personalize the heat in your own serving.

This was super simple and although it is not the same as traditional pho, I think now that I've used it to get my feet wet, I will need to give the traditional one a try.

Crock Pot Chicken Pho

adapted from Load & Go Spring Slow-Cooker Chicken Pho

Ingredients:
10 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 tablespoons fish sauce
8 whole star anise
6 whole cloves
1 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
1 cinnamon stick
2 bone-in chicken breasts
10 ounces wide rice noodles
6 cups chopped bok choy

Garnishes and Condiments:
1 cups mung bean sprouts
1/2 cups fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
3 jalapeno peppers, thinly sliced
1 lime, cut into wedges
Hoisin sauce
Sriracha sauce

Combine broth, brown sugar, fish sauce, star anise, cloves, ginger and cinnamon stick in a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker. Add chicken breasts, meat-side down. Cover and cook on High for 4 hours (or on Low for 8 hours).

Remove the chicken and let it cool. Also remove the spices and discard. Remove the skin and bones from the chicken and shred the meat with two forks. At this point the broth can simmer on low in the crock pot until you are about 30 minutes away from serving.  Refrigerate the chicken until needed.

When ready to resume, turn the slow cooker up to high and add noodles and bok choy. Cover and cook for 20-30 minutes.

When the noodles are tender, stir in the shredded chicken and reheat. Serve the bowls of soup with bean sprouts, basil, cilantro, peppers, hoisin sauce, sriracha sauce and lime wedges on the side so everyone can add their own toppings.