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Two Must-Try Dinner Recipes from the Blogosphere

Posted in Fitness, Healthy Meal, Just for fun, New York Antics, Recipes, tagged , , , , , , , , on May 10, 2012 | 2 Comments »

Has it really been a week? Things have been busy around here… For the past week or so, I took a break from coming up with new and delicious recipes to prepare for something that, well, seemed like a good idea at the time! Let’s recap…

I’ve gotten pretty into running since finishing up culinary school earlier this year as a way to fill my newly freed-up weekday evenings (and balance out all the Pistachio-crusted beignets and Cheesy Stuffed Peppers I eat all weekend long). As such, thought it would be a good idea to motivate myself by signing up for an organized race event. After running a 4M in April, a 10K seemed the next logical step, and so I wound up spending most of last week try to run far, and fast, and freaking out that I would trip over my own feet or cramp up and fall over on race day.

Race day was Sunday. Thankfully none of those things happened. The race went relatively well, though I think that’s due in large part to the amazing group of runners that were running 10Ks, half-marathons, and marathons alongside me for the RxR Long Island Marathon. This completely inspirational group of people kept me motivated, excited, and having a blast throughout the entire six-point-two miles – especially the seventy-one year old man who beat me by over a minute! He ran ahead of me for most of the race and every time I looked up to see the back of his tee-shirt, which read, “I’m old and slow – get over it!” I couldn’t help but laugh. It was truly a great experience!

In addition to thousands of other runners and hilarious old men, these cheesy chicken enchiladas are also to thank for fueling Sunday’s success. My parents and I whipped these up, along with a refreshing, limey bowl of guacamole, homemade white flour tortilla chips (these beat out every other chip I’ve ever had!) and a light corn salad. It was a Cinco de Mayo meal to go down in history – so delicious, especially with a cerveza served along side – but then, I learned last summer how amazing these enchiladas are. You’ve gotta try them out!

So, as usual, it takes me a while to get to my point. My point is this – even though I’ve been running instead of recipe developing, I’ve still been doing a heck of a lot of cooking (and not just enchiladas)! Except this time, I’ve been relying on my Google Reader – my link to the food blogosphere – to find the best tasting recipes around. And two of them in particular were just two good NOT to share – so here they are!

First up is this incredibly luscious, slightly spicy, extremely exotic Thai Chicken Curry recipe from Saveur magazine. The recipe comes from the Las Vegas restaurant Lotus of Siam, which many consider to make the very best Thai food in the entire U.S. At home, I make Thai red curry dishes at least once a week (blame it on my coconut milk addiction) because they can be light in fat and calories while still packing huge flavor, and are easy to make with whatever veggies and protein you have on hand.

I was completely surprised, though, that this restaurant-caliber curry recipe was so easy to make! In fact, the simmering-broth method actually proved to be easier than how I have been making curries for weeks now. By simmering the coconut milk and curry paste together, the broth thickens and the flavors meld, giving you a rich, spoon-coating sauce for the chicken and vegetables. Full disclosure: I used Thai Kitchen’s red curry paste instead of Panang curry, as the recipe suggests (I couldn’t find it), and added in some red bell peppers, but the dish still came out beautifully. We served it along with a Spicy Thai Brown Rice Pilaf (recipe to come). Even if the idea of making Thai Curry seems overwhelming to you, I encourage you to give this recipe a shot. It’s straightforward and relatively foolproof – a great way to segue into Thai cooking!

The second fantastic recipe I wanted to share is this Lightened Up Vegan Sundried Tomato Basil Pesto from Angela over at Oh She Glows. Holy freaking yum! This popped up in my GReader yesterday morning, and even though I hadn’t even made it to lunch yet, I immediately started drooling and scribbled down the ingredients on a post-it to pick up after work. Adam and I were planning to have a date-night dinner and this seemed like the perfect dish (the boy loves his pesto)!

Well, this recipe did not disappoint. Not only did the pesto come together in a flash – five minutes! – but the flavors and consistency were dead on. This has all the basil, garlicky goodness of a traditional pesto, but with an excellent added tang and sweetness from the sundried tomatoes. The walnuts are a creative and well-matched spin on pesto’s traditional pine nuts, and with a few sprinkles of nutritional yeast, you definitely won’t miss the parmesan cheese. It also goes quite well with a glass (or two) of Pinot Grigio, I might add.

Pesto is actually one sauce I usually steer clear of since it can often be loaded with extra fat and calories from cheese, nuts and oil – but this pesto was light and super packed with flavor, meaning a little goes a long way! Angela’s recipe made about 3/4 of a cup (as stated on her blog), and I found this to be about six servings – two tablespoons was more than enough per serving of pasta. We tossed the pesto-pasta with some roasted asparagus, sauteed mushrooms and spinach, and pan-roasted chicken breast – what a delicious dinner. Thanks Angela for the awesome recipe!

One more thing I wanted to mention. For those in the NYC area, there’s a great food festival coming up weekend after next (May 19th – 20th) called The Great Googamooga (crazy name, I know)! This food / music / art festival is going to be held in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, and will feature over 70 food vendors, beer, wine, and music, as well as prominent chefs, artists, and food personalities who will be doing demos, giving talks, and meeting fans. I believe Googamooga is still giving out the occasional free tickets and tickets are also available to buy. I’ll be attending and blogging about Googamooga – hope to see you all there!

Well, that’s all for now! Stay tuned for some more great recipes coming up this weekend…

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Farro and Sausage Stuffed Peppers from “Sauce”

Posted in Dining Out, New York Antics, Recipes, tagged , , , , , , on March 27, 2012 | 8 Comments »

Despite the fact that I love to cook, love to eat, and am a quote-”foodie,” over the past year I’ve eaten out a surprisingly dismal amount. Between work, school, externship hunting, and cooking at home often for both practice and the blog, eating out fell by the wayside. So along with a slew of other resolutions, when 2012 rolled around, I vowed this would be the year I got back on the New York City restaurant scene. Adam and I instilled a weekly Thursday night date with plans to try new restaurants more often, and at the very top of our list was “Sauce.”

Sauce opened late last year on the Lower East Side, just a few blocks from Adam’s apartment, which meant we both walked past it multiple times a week. At first we were intrigued by the restaurant’s sign, which instead of being emblazoned with just the name, was covered in endless white words upon a black backdrop: “ricotta” “grass-fed” “meatballs” “butcher” “for sale.” We heard that the neightborhood newcomer was owned by the same guy who runs “Lil’ Frankies,” which we love, and “Supper” in the East Village, and our interest grew. But it took us until weeks after the restaurant actually opened to spot the small, glowing orange script on the front door that read, simply, “Sauce.” Oh. Right!

So we planned a date, and one Thursday night, had a thoroughly enjoyable evening at Sauce on Rivington Street. Despite being closely jammed next to other couples in a row of two-tops, we were able to focus on each other, and the food, which proved to be the restaurant’s main draw. Sauce has mainly small plates, sort of an Italian spin on “tapas,” so we started with their signature meatballs, which were reminiscent of my grandmother’s and melted in your mouth. We moved on to the raw escarole, apple, and ricotta salata salad, speckled with castlevetrano olives and pine nuts, and despite our trepidation over the raw escarole, devoured ever bite of the well balanced dish.

A small bowl of handmade butternut squash tortelloni in a rich brown butter sage sauce (my favorite) along side a plate of rustic, braised grass-fed pork and beef with a caramelized pear polenta, and I knew there was no going back. We had found a true neighborhood gem; one that was well-priced, casual yet trendy, and struck a balance of excitement with its open kitchen, but comfort with its rich dishes. After four plates and much bread, we were full but not bursting, so we opted to order one more dish.

The stuffed pepper.

I’d jealously observed some other diners enjoying this small, gratined creation, and had no hesitation in ordering it. When it arrived at our table, the breadcrumbs crispy and browned, the cheesy oozing as our forks cut into it, the excitement built. And from the first bite to the last, it did not disappoint.

I’ve had plenty of stuffed peppers before – from homemade Italian, to the more Eastern European chopped-meat-and-rice variety, to even those obnoxious Stouffer’s frozen ones (thanks, college). But never had I had one loaded with chewy, dense farro and sweet, fennel-laced sausage. So rich! So creamy! Such complex flavors! I knew as we walked out of Sauce that night I would have to recreate this at home.

And so, I did. My rendition, I’ll admit, is perhaps slightly cheesier than Sauce’s – I  opted for more mozzarella than breadcrumbs on top, to give it more of a cheesy pizza-type topping. But the filling is that same sweet, tomato-based farro and sausage medley that makes Sauce’s stuffed pepper so unique. As I made these Friday night, I literally was jumping up and down with excitement (and trust me, I got teased for that), because I so rarely cook this richly for no reason, and because I could tell it would be oh, so worth it.

And it was. You’ve gotta try this. That is all.

Farro & Sausage Stuffed Peppers – makes 6 portions

Inspired by Sauce Restaurant 

Ingredients

  • 1 cup of uncooked farro or spelt berries
  • 2.5 cups of chicken broth
  • 3 green peppers, cut in half from stem to base, with seeds and gills removed
  • 8 ounces of ground sweet Italian pork sausage
  • 1/2 a medium onion, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon of olive oil
  • 8 ounces of plain canned tomato sauce
  • 6 ounces of water
  • 1 teaspoons  chili powder
  • 1 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp dried oregano
  • 1/4 tsp dried basil
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 8 ounces part skim mozzarella cheese, shredded, divided
  • 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, divided
  • 2 tablespoons of Italian breadcrumbs

Method

1. To start, cook farro by combining the 1 cup of uncooked farro with chicken broth. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for about 50 minutes or until farro is tender, but retains its chew.

2.  Remove seeds and membranes from peppers and rinse well. Fill a large pot about with an inch or so of water and top with a steamer. Bring water to a simmer, add peppers and cover. Steam for about 10 minutes or until tender-crisp. Alternatively, you can boil water and cook peppers in boiling water for 10 minutes.

3. Place the olive oil, sausage and onions in a large skillet. Cook over medium high heat until the onions are tender and the sausage is brown. Reduce heat to medium and stir in the tomato sauce, water, chili powder, garlic powder, oregano, and basil; bring to a low boil. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for about 10 minutes

4. Meanwhile, preheat your oven on the Broil setting.

5. Once the sausage mixture has simmered for 10 minutes or reduced to a sauce consistency, add the cooked farro, half of the shredded mozzarella cheese, and half of the parmesan. Stir well until the cheese has melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon sausage-farro mixture into the steamed peppers.

6. Top each pepper with a bit of the remaining shredded mozzarella, Parmesan, and breadcrumbs. Place in the oven and broil until the top of each pepper is bubbling and golden, about 5 to 7 minutes. Serve immediately.

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A Perfect Pizza Party

Posted in Fun Activity, Just for fun, Recipes, tagged , , , , , on March 5, 2012 | 6 Comments »

Last night, during a particularly aggressive bout of spring cleaning, I found a long-lost treasure in a hidden corner on top of my refrigerator.

Double-Zero (00) Flour. I was pretty dismayed to realize that this quality Italian flour had just been hanging out hidden from sight for almost two years! You see, a few summers ago, after my parents came back from a three-week-long trip to Italy where they had sampled some of the “best pizza of their lives,” they went on a bit of an online shopping spree to order the flour used to make that very special authentic Italian pizza crust. You know, the kind you just can’t get in America (this was before we found Keste, of course). Well, my dad was a little overzealous with the online flour purchasing, and they wound up with several two-pound bags of Caputo ultra-fine flour. Realizing there’s only so often two fully-employed adults will take the time to make (and rest) their own pizza dough for dinner, they graciously turned a couple of bags of said flour over to me. Because really, who’s better to unload your excess flour bags on than your epicurean daughter?

The only problem was, back in my culinarily-immature days, I didn’t do the necessary research on 00 flour before using it. And after one giant kitchen flop using the Caputo (incorrectly, I should add), the bright red sacks were relegated to a high, hidden corner of my kitchen, and forgotten about.

Until last night. While scrubbing every last corner of my countertops, I suggested to Cara and Adam that we finally put that 00 flour to good use – the way it was intended. My cleaning spree had also unearthed a few packets of Dry Active Yeast, and with that, a pizza plot was born.

One of the best things about pizza is the ability to customize it. Sure, pizza is traditionally Italian, but really, crust is just bread – a good, starchy base for whatever toppings fit your fancy. So while you can cure a craving for traditional Mediterranean with a simple crushed tomato sauce, a few slices of fresh, creamy mozzarella, and some sweet basil, you can also take your pizza south of the border with Queso de Papa and ground seasoned beef, or do something slightly less conventional – and more delicious – like my new favorite, barbecue chicken pizza!

Last night, Cara and her friend Carlos took a trip to one of our favorite markets, Agata and Valentina Fine Foods, where the upper east side gains access to some of the most delicious and authentic Italian specialties money can buy. They returned with big bags just brimming with everything from fresh basil and bright ripe tomatoes, to delicate, crepe-thin slices of Serrano ham, dense links of chorizo, and buttery, salty manchego.

Oh – and three balls of burrata. Have I told you all about burrata? Imagine the freshest, sweetest mozzarella you’ve ever had, except when you slice into it, the center is full of rich, creamy cheese – almost the consistency ricotta. The contrast of the silky smooth filling with the slightly denser exterior is pure heaven – particularly on a thin slice of ripe tomato, topped with a sprinkle of Fleur de Sel…

But I digress! After snacking on the various toppings as we sliced and diced, we cranked our baby oven up to 550° F and started rolling out our dough. Because we were trying to achieve a perfectly thin crust, and were working with limited counter space (and square pans), we opted to roll the dough out with a rolling-pin, and it worked beautifully. The result was perfectly thin sheets of pizza crust that cooked and crisped evenly in the oven, and though thin, stood up to the hefty load of toppings we piled onto it.

In the end, we made two each of three type of pizzas. That’s six pizzas. For four people. (Please don’t judge us.) But when you have this dough, this beautiful dough, and so many toppings, how can you not experiment and indulge? Our group just couldn’t resist.

Pizza numero uno – a new favorite, juicy barbecue chicken breast, caramelized red onions, roasted red peppers, hot sauce, more barbecue sauce, and plenty of manchego cheese. This pizza came out bubbling, ooey-gooey, and the perfect mix of salty from the manchego and sweet from the onions, peppers and sauce.

It was to die for!

Our next pizza was a classic for the second course – pizza margherita. We smeared the crusts with a little bit of tomato sauce, then topped it with thin slices of fresh tomato and chunks of burratta, adding some wine-soaked mushrooms to half.

When the pizza came sizzling out of the oven, we hit it with some fresh chopped basil that wilted and imparted amazing fresh flavor onto the pizza. The only thing we agreed we’d do differently was roast off those sliced tomatoes first – they gave off a lot of liquid while the pizza cooked, and left the crust a bit soggy in the center. Still – it was really delicious.

Finally, last but certainly not least, our Spanish stallion of a pizza – Serrano Ham, chorizo, burrata, manchego and caramelized onions. Holy pizza! This was ridiculous – the Serrano ham was so thin and delicate that it practically melted into the crust, leaving behind its rich meaty flavor. And the chorizo was exactly what I always wished pepperoni was – salty, slightly spicy but complex in flavor, and each piece was bite-sized. These toppings are a combo we’ll definitely be trying again.

After having a blast in the kitchen, a great time with friends, and more pizza than our stomachs could reasonably handle, I can’t help but pass along this recipe for an amazing 00 flour pizza crust. Sure, getting your hands on this special flour might take a little extra work – like a quick trip to your local Italian specialty store or a quick search online – but it’s complete worth it. This flour has a long shelf life, and the crust it makes gives you the foundation for a perfect pizza, and a perfect evening with friends.

And, really, what’s more fun than a pizza party?

Perfect Pizza Crust – Makes 3 – 12 inch crusts

Barely adapted from Tyler Florence

Ingredients

  • 1 packet of active dry yeast
  • 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar
  • 1 cup of warm water (around 100° – 110° F)
  • 3 tablespoons of good extra virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 tablespoon of kosher salt
  • 3 cups of 00 flour, plus more for dusting

Method

1. In a large bowl, combine yeast and sugar. Add warm water and stir to dissolve. Let stand for about 10 minutes or until yeast start to foam (you should see small bubbles).

2. Add the salt and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and stir to combine. If using a standing mixer with a dough hook, assemble at this time. Add the flour a little at a time, stirring after each addition to incorporate. If you are mixing by hand, once about half the flour is added you will need to start kneading the dough with your hands. Continue until all the flour is incorporated; if the dough starts feeling very dry, add another tablespoon of water until it has a nice, pliable consistency.

3. Form the dough into a large ball in the center of the bowl. Add the remaining olive oil and coat the dough. Cover with a dish towel and place somewhere warm (like next to the oven) to rest. Allow dough to rest until it has doubled in size – about 60 to 90 minutes.

4. Preheat oven to 550° F.

5. Once the dough has risen, divide it into three equal portions and roll each into a ball. Return dough to the oiled bowl and allow to rest until you are ready to use. If you are not going to use the dough immediately, it can be wrapped up in plastic wrap and refrigerated or frozen at this point.

6. Roll or pat dough into desired shape and thickness (each of the three balls will make a 12″ circular pizza). Place on a pizza stone or sheet pan. Drizzle with a little more olive oil and top with desired toppings. Bake for about 5 to 7 minutes, or until crust is firm and lightly golden and cheese is bubbling. Allow to rest for a few minutes before slicing. Serve immediately.

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Sausage and Peppers Quinoa

Posted in Healthy Meal, tagged , , , on September 22, 2011 | 2 Comments »

Last night’s dinner was a total win, if I do say so myself. Better yet, it was an unexpected win, since expectations were pretty minimal and didn’t have very long to get inflated.

The conversation went something like this:

Me: “Hey, what do you have to eat in your apartment?”

Adam: “Um, Italian sausage, chicken thighs, ground meat, onions, quinoa, pasta, pasta, and more pasta”

Okay, maybe I added that “pasta” part.

But I latched on to the healthiest ingredient available – quinoa - and the one I knew would be most likely to make him happy – Italian sausage – and fed them to my favorite time waster – Google.

I got this little gem of a recipe for Sausage and Peppers Quinoa back in return, so I immediately proposed it. Adam was pretty skeptical that it would be good with quinoa, but as per the usual, cooking executive powers were relegated to me, so we decided to move forward with the plan.

One quick trip to Whole Foods later (thank god peppers are back down to normal, i.e. not $499 for ONE, prices), and we were ready to rock and roll. I set the quinoa to steam, manned Adam’s shockingly great quality IKEA saute pan, and got to chopping while he poured the wine. Drinking wine while cooking is sort of mandatory, if you ask me. Note to Culinary Schools: look into this!

Between the wine drinking, the chit-chatting, and the subconscious decision to cook this all super-slowly, I wasn’t paying the closest attention to what we were doing, so it truly took me by surprise when this dish turned out off the charts delicious! Seriously, I almost dropped my fork after the first bite, because deep down (I’ll admit it), I sort of doubted that an Italian classic like Sausage and Peppers could really taste that good mixed with quinoa. But, it did. You live and you learn, folks! The sausages were super crispy on the outside, moist and juicy on the inside, and lent an incredible amount of flavor, smoothness, and a bit of heat to the quinoa. The peppers and onions were cooked to tender-crisp perfection, and the quinoa provided the perfect fluffy base for soaking up all those juices and a little carby resistance, sort of the way bread does in a Sausage-and-Peppers sandwich, but without all that weight.

And the best part? We didn’t even lapse into food coma afterwards! In fact, we both felt pretty great – full and satisfied, but not on the road to an early bedtime since the quinoa packed more protein than carb overload. Such a pleasant surprise :)

Italian Sausage and Pepper Quinoa – Serves 2

Adapted from WAHM.com 

Ingredients

  • 1 cup of quinoa
  • 1 1/2 cups of chicken broth, or water
  • 1/2 teaspoon of cumin
  • Pinch of red pepper flakes
  • 1/4 teaspoon of dried oregano
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 large onion, minced
  • 2 large green peppers, seeded and cut into 1 inch strips
  • 1 large red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1 inch strips
  • 2 tablespoons of olive oil, divided
  • 1/2 cup of beef broth, divided
  • 4 medium Italian sausages, uncooked
Method
 
In a medium saucepan, add quinoa, chicken broth (or water), cumin, red pepper flakes, oregano, salt and pepper. Uncovered, bring to a boil and then reduce to a very low simmer, cover, and cook covered for 15 to 20 minutes, or until all liquid is absorbed and quinoa is tender with a slight crunch. Turn off the heat and leave quinoa covered.
 
Meanwhile, in a large saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium  heat. Add onion and sweat for about 3 minutes, until softened. Add peppers and saute for a minute or two, then cover the pan and lower the heat slightly. Allow peppers and onions to cook covered for about five minutes. Then, remove the cover, add 1/4 cup of beef broth, and simmer until nearly all the liquid has evaporated. Add cooked peppers and onions to the saucepan full of quinoa, and add salt and pepper if needed.
 
Add the remaining olive oil to the saute pan and heat over medium high heat. Add sausages and brown on each side, about 1 to 2 minutes. Once sausages are brown, lower the heat, add the remaining beef broth, and cover the pan. Cook covered for an additional 1 – 2 minutes. Then, add the quinoa-peppers mixture to the saute pan with the sausages, and cook until all the beef broth has been absorbed by the quinoa, which should be moist and fluffy. Serve hot in large bowls, with two sausages per serving.
 

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