A Nice Little Roasted Veggie Sandwich

Everyone seems to be into this 30 minute meal craze.  The goal in this race is to see how quickly a person can get dinner on the table.  Bonus points are awarded for a well balanced meal.  Double bonus points go to using fresh ingredients in the 30 minute well balanced meal.  Triple points are awarded to doing all that without using half the pots and pans in your kitchen!  To be frank, I’ve tried a few of these and been disappointed.  But, I have learned a few tricks from the ever present Rachael Ray and Cooking Light’s Fresh Food Fast book.  Here we go, in no particular order:

• keep it simple
• add a punch of flavor somewhere
• grill whenever possible

This little weeknight sammie lives up to all three tricks.  First, its a sandwich, which keeps it simple.  The Parmesan mayo with a healthy dose of garlic punches up the flavor and could easily be reworked into a dip.  And finally, keeping a gas grill right outside our kitchen makes year round grilling a breeze.  Several of the Cooking Light recipes have you spritz some salad spritzer on the veggies before grilling, and this is easily one of the best little secrets ever.  Its like the perfect little flavorizer in a spray bottle, and I have used that shortcut year round with great success on all kinds of grilled veggies.

Grilled Portobello Sandwich with Parmesan Mayonnaise

makes 4 sandwiches

Ingredients:

2 Portobello mushrooms

1 red bell pepper

4 lettuce leaves

Balsamic salad spritzer

8 slices sourdough bread

1/2 cup Parmesan mayonnaise

Parmesan Mayonnaise

1/2 cup light mayonnaise

2 cloves garlic, pressed

2 TBS grated Parmesan cheese

2 TBS red onion, minced

1/4 tsp black pepper

Directions:

1.  Heat grill or broiler.

2.  Prepare Parmesan mayonnaise by combining the light mayo, garlic, Parmesan, onion, and black pepper in a bowl.  Refrigerate.

3.  Remove stems from mushrooms and spray bottoms of caps with balsamic spritzer.

4.  Place mushrooms on the grill.  Turn after 7 minutes, or when browned and tender.  Remove from grill, and slice into 1/2 inch sections.

5.  Assemble sandwiches by spreading 1 tablespoon Parmesan mayonnaise onto each bread slice.  On 4 of the bread slices, layer portobello mushroom slices, red bell pepper sections, lettuce leafs, and top with the other pieces of bread.

Notes:

• This Parmesan mayonnaise is really, really good!
• To roast a bell pepper, place it on the grill over direct heat and turn when each side chars.  When all sides are charred, place the bell pepper in a plastic bag, twist the top of the bag to seal in the heat, and let it sit for ten minutes.  Finally, take the bell pepper out of the bag and slide the charred skin off the sides and remove the stem and seeds.  Cut into sections.
• You can use what ever type of sandwich bread you choose of course.  Sourdough is simply my favorite.
• Grilling the bread gives an extra bit of love to the sandwich.
• Yes, roasted red bell peppers are available in jars in the store.  But … I’m just too frugal to spend 6 bucks on peppers.
• This is easily adapted to making under the broiler.
  

Cream Puff Heaven

You may just happen to notice that Livin Local doesn’t sport many dessert recipes, and even fewer baked goods at that.  I’d like to say that is due to the fact there is no local flour milled in this neck of the woods.  But in truth, I just don’t have any baking mojo.  None.

Today our Gourmet Dinner Club is gathering to share a German feast together, and dessert is my assignment.  Give us any other assignment and we can browse and assess recipes like pros, but not desserts.  In testing recipes, we made a peach ditty that was ok, but not special,  and passed it off to our 20 something son with his 20 something friends with their 20 something appetites for their fridge.  A cookie type creation with almond dough wrapping fruit preserves was nibbled at and it sat on the counter in a house with two teenagers before we finally threw it away.  The German chocolate cake, soaked in alcohol, with butter-cream frosting between layers and whipped cream frosting on top, and chocolate shavings all over was so pathetic that we tossed three quarters of it in the garbage because even with all that potential goodness, the cake simply failed.  And none of this surprised me at all.

The cream puffs surprised me.  They are perfect!  On the first try, these lovely pastry shells came out perfectly and we devoured them on the spot.  So, regardless if you are a skilled baker, or if like me, you’ve never found your baking mojo, this is for you.

Recipe from JoyofBaking.com     Makes 18 heavenly cream puffs.

Ingredients:

Pastry:

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp granulated sugar

1/4 tsp salt

4 TBS unsalted butter

1/2 cup water

2 large eggs, slightly beaten

Egg wash glaze:

1 large egg

pinch of salt

Whipped cream:

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 TBS granulated sugar

Garnish:

powdered sugar

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees and place rack in the center of the oven.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2.  In a bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, and salt.  Set aside.

3.  Place butter and water in a heavy saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and, with a wooden spoon or spatula, quickly add the flour mixture.  Return to heat and stir constantly until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan and forms a thick smooth ball (about one minute).

4.  Transfer the dough to an electric mixer and beat on low speed a minute or two to release the steam from the dough.  Once the dough is lukewarm, start adding the lightly beaten eggs and continue to mix until you have a smooth thick paste.

5.  Spoon or pipe 12 to 18 mounds of dough onto the baking sheet, spacing them a couple of inches apart.

6.  Beat together the egg and salt for the glaze.  With a pastry brush, gently brush the glaze on the tops of the dough.

7.  Bake for 15 minutes and then reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees.  Bake for another 30 to 40 minutes or until the shells are a nice amber color.

8.  Turn the oven off and, with the door slightly ajar, let the shells dry out for a further 10 to 15 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack.

9.  Make whipped cream by placing the whipping cream, vanilla and sugar in a mixing bowl, cooling it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, and whisking or mixing it until soft peaks form.

10.  To assemble, split the pastry shell in half and fill with whipped cream.  Place the top half of the pastry shell on the shipped cream and dust with powdered sugar.

Notes:

• Don’t let the number of steps alarm you.  This comes together very quickly. I just write directions out this way because when I read a recipe written in a long paragraph form, I get lost.  Baby steps.
• Did you notice that most of the ingredients are already in your pantry?  Another reason to give this a try.
• Seeing how these were devoured at home, I’m making a batch for the adults at the dinner, and another for our teens while they hang out together.

Roasted Dungeness Crab

Growing up California, Dungeness crab season has always been a favorite time of year.  It is its own season.  And having lived here my whole life, I know how crab is cooked.  Its steamed.  While it is yummy in simple foods like tacos, and disappears in casserole type dishes, the best way to eat crab is to just get your fingers messy picking apart a steamed crab. A little bread, some clarified butter for dipping, and a nice glass of wine.

In recent years, more and more restaurant reviews boast of delectable roasted crab.  Some are spicy, others garlicky, and others including with Vietnamese flavors.  But roasted crab?  Really?

This week, crab and chicken breasts sold for the same price at the grocery store.  What a perfect time to experiment with roasted crab at home.  This is certainly a departure from simple steamed crab and is scrumptious in its own way. The flavor of oranges with just a little heat from the chilies is a perfect match for the dungeness crab.  Messy?  You betcha.  Be sure to have plenty of napkins on hand.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 3 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1  shallot, minced
• 2 teaspoons dried crushed red pepper
• 3 large Dungeness crabs, cooked, cleaned, and cracked (about 4 1/4 pounds)
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme, divided
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, divided

• 2 oranges, juiced
• 1 teaspoon finely grated orange peel

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 500°F.

2.  Melt butter with oil in heavy large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in garlic, shallot, and dried crushed red pepper. Add crabs; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon chopped thyme and 1 tablespoon chopped parsley over crabs. Stir to combine.

3.  Place skillet in oven and roast crabs until heated through, stirring once, about 12 minutes.

4.  Using tongs, transfer crabs to platter. Add orange juice and peel to same skillet; boil until sauce is reduced by about half, about 5 minutes. Spoon sauce over crabs. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon thyme and 1 tablespoon parsley and serve.

Notes:

• The cooking goes pretty quickly, so get all of the ingredients prepared and at your side before beginning.
• For easier cooking and serving, separate the crab into pieces before adding them to the skillet.
• Both the flavor and aroma are amazing!

Arroz Con Pollo For a Crowd

Need to cook for a crowd?  Large family?  Make a few extras to share or stash for lunches?  Here’s your recipe.  Arroz con Pollo.  Basically, we’ve got chicken, rice, and some veggies working together to make sheer comfort food.  This recipe came from my father in law quite a few years ago.  I know that because it is printed in black and white, while anything from the past few years is in color.  He is a good cook and along with Sandi they practice and perfect dishes, then kindly share them out.  Nice!

The original recipe calls for “chicken parts” which could mean whatever is on sale that day.  I tend to go with a whole chicken because it is economical and any home cook clearly equates breaking down your basic chicken with cooking street creds.  And yes, this is one area where I’ve got street creds.

This arroz con pollo is another of those recipes where if you read it through first, you’ll notice that while the meat is cooking you can chop the vegetables, and while the vegetables cook,  you can get out the spices and open the canned tomatoes and wine (ok, you may want to open that wine earlier, but still), and by the time they are all cooking happily together,  you can clean up the chopping board, read the mail, and enjoy another glass of wine.  Once again, nice.

Serves 6 to 8 with leftovers.

Ingredients:

2 TBS olive oil

1 1/2 lb chicken parts or 1 small chicken broken down into parts, patted dry and liberally seasoned with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 lb italian sausage, casings removed

1 small onion, chopped

1 medium green bell pepper, but into 1/2 in dice

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp ground tumeric

1 can crushed tomatoes

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 bay leaf

2 cups medium grained rice, such as Goya

2 1/4 cups water

Directions:

1.  In a dutch oven or large pot, heat the oil on medium high.  Brown the chicken on all sides in batches and transfer to a platter.

2.  Brown the sausage, breaking it up into bite sized pieces.  Transfer to a platter.  Drain all but 1 TBS of the oil in the pan.

3.  Reduce heat to medium and saute the onion, pepper, and garlic until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add the cumin, paprika, chili powder, and tumeric to the pot, and stir.  Return the chicken and sausage to the pot and stir gently to mix evenly.

4.  Add the canned tomatoes with liquids, wine, and bay leaf to the pot.  Increase the heat to medium – high and cook for 2 minutes.

5.  Add rice and water.  Stir.  Bring to a boil, cover,and reduce heat to a simmer.  Cook until the rice is done and the liquid is absorbed, about 25 minutes.  If excess liquid remains at that time, remove the lid and continue cooking until most of the liquid has evaporated.

6.  Remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes.  Serve.

Notes:

• I cut the chicken breasts in half so they are of a similar size and cooking time as the other parts.
• This was served with a simple salad of romaine and spicy ranch dressing.  For the dressing, just add some salsa to ranch dressing and stir.
• The cumin is the must have spice on this list.  If one of the others is not in your pantry today, no need to purchase it just for this dish.

Ribollita

Shopping while hungry is a dangerous act, but putting together the shopping list for the week while hungry allows for a bit of reasoned thought.  Needing some warming vegetarian ideas, I headed over to the Cookbooks 101 which is always a dependable source of healthy homey foods.  She had just posted the Ribollita recipe and, figuring that was some kind of sign from the blogging gods and goddesses, the ingredients were quickly added to the shopping list.  Plus, I’m a sucker for brothy soups with kale.  It adds great texture and flavor, plus you look so healthy when buying that big bunch of dark leafy greens at the store.  Call it grocery store vanity.

The recipe here is straight from the Cookbooks 101 blog, and omitting the olives was my only alteration.

Makes 10 to 12 servings.

Ingredients:

3 TBS extra-virgin olive oil

4 celery stalks, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, chopped

2 medium carrols, chopped

1 red onion, chopped

1 14 oz can crushed tomatoes

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 bunch kale, cut into long strips

2 cans white white beans

8 cups water

1/2 pound crustless loaf of bread

1 1/2 tsp sea salt

zest of one lemon

well chopped oily black olives (optional)

Directions:

1.  In a dutch oven over medium heat, combine the olive oil, celery, garlic, carrot, and red onion.  Cook for 10 to 15 minutes, avoiding browning.

2.  Stir in the tomatoes and red pepper flakes.  Simmer for 10 minutes or until the tomatoes thicken up a bit.

3.  Stir in 8 cups water, kale, and 3 cups of the beans.  Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the greens are tender, about 15 minutes.

4.  Puree the remaining beans with a bit of water until smooth.  Tear the bread into bite-sized chunks.

5.  Stir the bean puree and bread into the soup.  Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the bread breaks down and the soup thickens, 20 to 30 minutes.

6.  Stir in the salt and red pepper flakes.  Adjust seasonings as needed.  Serve with olives.

Notes:

• This really does make a lot of soup!
• For the bread, I just repurposed a few hoagie rolls that have been hanging out in the fridge for a few days.
• This soup comes together quite easily.  Chop the first veggies while the pot warms, the prepare the next ingredients while those veggies cook, and so on.  A relaxing cooking experience to be sure.

Butternut Squash Lasagna

Oh, how can anyone not simply love butternut squash?  Sure, it takes a bit of care, but it can even be purchased ready to steam these days at Trader Joe’s.  Somehow, my family does not yet appreciate the joys of butternut squash.  Surely this would be the remedy.

Results?  I had pretty much the whole thing to myself at home.  When sharing this dish with Renee’s family, they politely said they liked it.  But, their 13 year old son coming back for 3rds was proof that other butternut squash lovers do exist in this universe!

This was made from Giada deLaurentiis’ recipe.  Straight up.  Using only 3 of those lovely Amaretto cookies seemed a shame, until the family quickly snacked them up with no complaints.  Yes, we have the traditional wide noodles.  Between them are a lovely milky roux with fresh basil (hence the hint of green) and steamed and pureed butternut squash.  Somehow, both sweet and savory flavors come though.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 (1 1/2 to 2-pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup water
• 3 amaretti cookies, crumbled
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 1/2 cups whole milk
• Pinch nutmeg
• 3/4 cup (lightly packed) fresh basil leaves
• 12 no-boil lasagna noodles
• 2 1/2 cups shredded whole-milk mozzarella cheese
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan

Directions:

Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the squash and toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour the water into the skillet and then cover and simmer over medium heat until the squash is tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Cool slightly and then transfer the squash to a food processor. Add the amaretti cookies and blend until smooth. Season the squash puree, to taste, with more salt and pepper.

Melt the butter in a heavy medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the nutmeg. Cool slightly. Transfer half of the sauce to a blender*. Add the basil and blend until smooth. Return the basil sauce to the sauce in the pan and stir to blend. Season the sauce with salt and pepper, to taste.

Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F.

Lightly butter a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. Spread 3/4 cup of the sauce over the prepared baking dish. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles on the bottom of the pan. Spread 1/3 of the squash puree over the noodles. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese. Drizzle 1/2 cup of sauce over the noodles. Repeat layering 3 more times.

Tightly cover the baking dish with foil and bake the lasagna for 40 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses over the lasagna. Continue baking uncovered until the sauce bubbles and the top is golden, 15 minutes longer. Let the lasagna stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Notes:

• Honestly, I burned the first batch of butternut squash.  Medium heat?  Which medium?  On the power burner, medium burner, or simmer burners?  Low and slow is what you need here.
• Couldn’t find no boil noodles in my discount grocer, so just got the dry noodles and cooked them al dente.
• This makes a great little breakfast snack.  (really)

Go-To Winter Salad

Everyone needs a dish to whip up at a moment’s notice to stretch a meal for additional guests at the table or to bring to a shared meal.  Lately, this has been my “go to” salad.  It is a snap to prepare, the ingredients last nicely in the fridge for several days or even a week, and it incorporates the sweet, savory, and earthy tastes of winter.  This salad must have made it to at least three Monday Night Football social gatherings before anyone realized I kept bringing the same tasty salad week after week.  And even then, there were certainly no complaints to be heard.  The recipe as listed here is perfect for a small crowd but can be pared down as needed.   While much easier to explain in sentences, here we go in the traditional recipe format:

Ingredients:

12 to 16 oz lettuce (spring mix or butter lettuce work best,  romaine nor iceberg do so well in this salad)

2 to 3 tart apples, cored and diced

6 oz Maytag blue cheese, crumbled

1 cup pecans halves, toasted (optional)

1/2 cup dried cranberries (optional)

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1 TBS Dijon mustard

2 TBS sugar

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1.  Prepare vinaigrette by mixing olive oil, vinegar, mustard, sugar, salt, and pepper.

2.  Place lettuce in a large bowl and add just enough vinegrette to coat the leaves lightly.  Gently mix the greens, adding vinegrette as needed.

3.  Add apples, blue cheese, pecans and dried cranberries.  Toss lightly.

Notes:

• I use a small mason jar with lid for making all of my vinaigrette.  Just add the ingredients, screw on the lid, and give it a good shake.

Turkey Salad Sandwich on Cranberry Bread

Count me in on fans of leftover turkey.  Really now, the reason for cooking a bird really is for those second and third meals.  Especially sandwiches.

Christmas dinner was a several family affair this year.  We LOVE this time together, and decided to share with a few more families which tripled the number of people at our tables.  The Big Deal of this feast is always the amazing prime rib prepared by my husband.  But, with so many at our table this year, we decided to add a deep fried turkey.  That meant left over turkey with lovely crispy skin bits.  Oh, yum!

While I wouldn’t deep fry a turkey just for this sandwich, making or purchasing cranberry bread is a must.  That cranberry bread puts this over the top!

Ingredients:

6 cups turkey meat, roughly chopped

4 hard boiled eggs

6 oz sweet gherkin pickles, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

2TBS Dijon mustard

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup light sour cream

Lettuce leaves

Cranberry bread

Directions:

1.  Peel the hard boiled eggs, remove the yolk from two of the eggs, and roughly chop.

2.  In a mixing bowl, mix together Dijon mustard, mayonnaise, and light sour cream.  Add the chopped turkey, hard boiled eggs, sweet pickles and celery and mix gently.

3.  Toast 2 slices of cranberry bread.

4.  Spread turkey salad mixture on the toasted cranberry bread, top with 2 leaves of lettuce and cover with the remaining slice of bread.

Notes:

• The cranberry bread was made by my mom.  Thanks mom!
• This is based on the Annie’s Turkey Salad recipe on AllRecipes.
• Removing the yolks from half of the hard boiled eggs is just my habit.  I like the texture of the egg whites but don’t want too much yolk to muck up the texture of the salad in the end.
• The overall flavor profile of this is of turkey first, with a few light add ins.  Some people will prefer a more even proportion of add ins to meat.
• With the hearty bread and meaty filling, just half of the sandwich makes a perfect lunch.
  

Basil Pesto Dip with Pita Chips

Cooking Light is one of my favorite magazines.  They have all of those cool exercise activities that may be tried once, but it feels so good just to be looking at them. No longer do they put yogurt in everything, and butter is even allowed.   The big plus to me is the seasonal dishes that are approachable on a week night.

One little recipe in the July issue looked like a great ditty for this family that loves its chips and dips when friends are over.  Taking a closer look at the recipe, it became clear that it is basically fresh pesto with some light sour cream and lemon juice.  Oh yes, I can do that!  The only part that took a bit of planning was the pita chip bake.  Summer has totally arrived on the delta, and that oven does not get turned on after 8:00 AM. Just baked these little pita lovelies in the morning and all was well.

Is this really yummy, or just healthy, you ask.  Umm, after three days, we’re on our second batch!  Yummy?  Oh my yes!  Healthy? Let’s just not discuss portion control right now. 

Basil Pesto Dip

1 cup light sour cream

1/4 cup basil pesto

2 tsp fresh lime juice

Directions

1.  Mix all ingredients and chill for 30 minutes.

Pita Chips

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2.  Split pitas, cut each half into 8 wedges.  Place on a baking sheet, spray with olive oil, and sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper and kosher salt.  Bake for 11 minutes or until crisp.

Notes:

*  Our sour cream was a mixture of regular and light and it held up to the lime juice just fine.  My hunch is that light sour cream with the lime juice would be too runny.

*  The original recipe called for lemon juice, but I’m just on a lime kick these days.

*  Truly, this is addicting!

*  The pesto was made with basil from Lon’s farmstand.

Basil Pesto trifecta

Summer is here and the livin’ is easy.  My strategy this year is to not only enjoy the local bounty today but to also save some for a rainy day.  So many years we just gorge ourselves on the local produce, and honestly think we never want to see it again.  Then the winter months arrive, and surprise, surprise, we’re ready for a taste of summer.

At our local Farmer’s Market and in Lon’s farm stand, basil is ruling the roost.  So, pesto it is!   A few batches of pesto creates treats for months to come.

The Cooking Light magazine has bunches of wonderful summer time treats in the current issue, go figure, but several with pesto caught my eye.  This was not one of those nicely planned, hmmmm, I’m making pesto, what else can I use it in this week kinds of things.  Oh no!  This was one of those, I want to make this, and that, and that other thing, and oh my, what a surprise that they all involve basil pesto.  And at this point some people have their radar way up, considering the word “craving” and may I just stop you right now.  No, nope, nada.  This is really just about the love of the green.  Really.

Warning, this is another recipe that will make measuring mavens crazy.  These proportions worked for three hefty bunches of basil.  But really, pesto is forgiving … you can do it!

Enjoy the basic basil pesto along with the sandwich pesto mayo and pesto dip options!

Basil Pesto

Ingredients:

3 bunches basil, leaves removed

8 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1 1/2 cups pine nuts

4 oz parmesan, grated

1/3 cup olive oil

Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1.  Add add basil leaves, garlic and pine nuts to food processor.  Pulse several times until roughly chopped.  It should look like bulgar at this point.

2.  Add parmesan and pulse processor again.  Slowly add olive oil until it gently puddles at the top of the pesto.  More oil may be needed depending on the temperature that day.

3.  Taste.  Add salt and pepper as needed.

Notes:

*  The parmesan adds a bit of saltiness, so do taste the pesto after adding the cheese and before adding the salt.

*  Don’t get frightened of salt here .. up to a point it just makes the flavor burst!