De Ma Cuisine

dinner Archive

Wednesday

16

October 2013

5

COMMENTS

It’s a Tuna Mac!

Written by , Posted in Cheese, Dinner, Fish, Main Dishes, Meat, Pasta, Quick and Easy, Vegetables

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I love to make something fancy-ish for dinner. It’s fun for me. Buuut, there are some days when I need something simple.

Those are the nothing’s working, I’ve been up since 5am, woe to me days.

Thank goodness for Mac and Cheese… with tuna… and peas.

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Husband and I are both big fans of this meal. Yet, it’s another one that I didn’t think I liked. What’s wrong with Shepherd’s Pie and Tuna Mac, younger self? I think we need to have a talk (and yes, then we can have a conversation about time travel and whether or not it’s possible… I’m of the school that it’s not, although I don’t mind shows and movies where they think it is… Tuna Mac to time travel… cool).

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This dish is also affectionately known as Tuna Casserole. I’ve been avoiding those words. They have negative connotations. Right?

Push those aside and give it a try.

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And hope tomorrow is a much better day.

Happy Eating!

Tuna Mac
Recipe Type: Main, Dinner, Pasta, Fish, Cheese, Stove Top, Vegetables
Author: Rachel Oberg – De Ma Cuisine
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 2-4
Ingredients
  • pasta, enough for 2-4 people
  • 1/2 T olive oil
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 1 medium zucchini, diced
  • 1/2 t salt, or to taste
  • 1/2 C peas (frozen are fine)
  • 2 T olive oil
  • 2 T all purpose flour
  • 1 C (or more) milk
  • 1/4 C pasta water
  • 1 to 1 1/2 C cheese, grated
  • 1 – 0.5oz. can tuna, drained
Instructions
  1. Cook pasta.
  2. Heat pot. Add 1/2 T oil. Add onion, zucchini, and salt. Cook over medium-low for 5-7 minutes, or until veggies are soft.
  3. Add peas. Cook 2-3 minutes.
  4. Add 2 T olive oil and flour to pot. Whisk together and cook for 30 seconds. Slowly add milk, a little bit at a time, whisking and letting it thicken between additions. Add pasta water and tuna. Heat until steam rises from the pot, but do not boil.
  5. Remove from heat. Stir in cheese, a bit at a time.
  6. Taste and adjust seasoning.

 

Friday

4

October 2013

4

COMMENTS

For a Simple Supper – Argentine Sausage with Zucchini and Bulgur Wheat

Written by , Posted in Cheese, Dinner, Grains, Main Dishes, Meat, Pork, Thoughts, Vegetables

ArgentineSausageBulgurWheatI really love to menu plan. But that doesn’t mean that things always go the way I have intended. Sometimes it means grilled cheese or some sort of re-heated leftovers from the freezer. But, occasionally inspiration hits and a new meal is concocted.

This is such a meal.

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We tried this Argentine sausage a while ago. I absolutely love it. It may be my new favorite. I don’t know why I had never tried it before. I didn’t know what I was missing. Now I do. We had a lot of zucchini in the fridge. It needed to be eaten. Perfect, because I wanted to eat it. And then we had bulgur wheat in the pantry. I bought it aaaaaages ago, thinking I would do something with it and never did. I was going to use rice in this meal, but why not switch it up?!

It comes together in a snap. Yeah, the bulgur wheat takes a while to cook, just like rice. But it’s not really that long. Pop it on the stove and then work on the rest. They’ll probably be done closer to the same time than you may have expected.

If you have other veggies that you want to use, I think that’s a good idea. If you have Italian sausage instead of Argentine, please use it! The basics of this dish are that it’s a grain, with some veggies, nuts, a bit of cheese, some fresh herbs, and some excellent olive oil.

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If you don’t have something in this recipe on hand – here are some other ideas that could work well:
Italian sausage, red pepper flakes, chopped rosemary, lemon zest, broccoli, and bulgur wheat or rice.
German sausage, onions, dijon mustard, parsley, dill, and bulgur wheat or rice.
Italian sausage, kale, onions, bell peppers, red pepper flakes, thyme, bulgur wheat or rice, with a drizzle of cream when you serve.
So many ways you could transform this simple dish.

Argentine Sausage with Zucchini and Bulgur Wheat
Recipe Type: Main, Easy, Dinner, Meat, Vegetables
Author: Rachel Oberg – De Ma Cuisine
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 2-4
Ingredients
  • 1 C bulgur wheat
  • 2 C vegetable stock (water or chicken stock are fine too)
  • 2 T olive oil
  • 2 Argentine sausages, cut into rounds
  • 1 medium zucchini, cut into chunks
  • 3 cloves garlic, diced
  • 1/2 t red pepper flakes
  • salt, to taste
  • pepper, to taste
  • 1 T lemon juice
  • 1 T fresh parsley, chopped
  • 1 T fresh basil, chopped
  • 1 tomato, chopped, for topping
  • parmesan cheese, grated, for topping
  • 1/4 C walnuts, chopped, for topping
  • olive oil, for drizzling
Instructions
  1. Cook wheat (similar to cooking rice): Add stock and wheat to a medium pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook, partially covered, for 30-45 minutes.
  2. Heat skillet, add oil. When oil is hot, add sausage and zucchini (if using fully cooked sausage – if not, cook sausage until it’s almost done and then add zucchini). Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes.
  3. Add seasonings, lemon juice, and garlic to skillet. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
  4. Add wheat and herbs. Stir and cook 1-2 minutes.
  5. Serve topped with tomato, walnuts, parmesan cheese, and a drizzle of excellent olive oil.

Happy Eating!

Friday

27

September 2013

2

COMMENTS

Sweet and Spicy Lemongrass Stir Fry

Written by , Posted in Dinner, Herbs, Lunch, Main Dishes, Pasta, Quick and Easy, Vegetables, Vegetarian

SweetSpicyLemongrassStirFry5We ate this for lunch today. Husband is home sick, so he’s been laying around while I work. Today’s work included making a stir fry so I could take pictures of it. After a few bites he exclaimed, “THIS IS LITERALLY PERFECT”. I had to agree.

I’m not sure what I like the most about this stir fry. I don’t know if it’s the hint of spicy that’s behind the sweet gingery sauce. It could be the tender-crisp veggies that are so hot but still bright green. Or maybe it’s the time it takes to prepare this dish from start to finish.

Or… it might be the excitement about finally finding a way to use lemongrass. Even after all these years of getting a weekly box from Abundant Harvest Organics, there are still vegetables that I don’t know what to do with. I was going to make a stir fry anyways, and when I opened the box and saw those lemony sticks sitting in there, it just made sense.

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So, I did a little research and figured out how to use it. There are some parts that you don’t want to eat, those could be saved for soups or a creative cocktail. Personally, I think I could just keep a split stalk around me all the time so I could smell it whenever I wanted to. Wow. With all the synthetic fragrances out there, I’m not sure that there’s anything that I’d rather smell than things like lemongrass, basil, or garlic. I’ll take those over an eau de something fake any day. Smell your food, friends. It’s too good to just eat… I think I will use the top portion for soup (which might be what we’re having for dinner – sickness just seems to need soup). I think it would be lovely in a vegetable broth with some zucchini, peas, carrots, ginger, and noodles. I also have plans to make up some sort of cocktail with it. There will be ginger involved. Ginger and lemongrass seem to be good friends. Or maybe I’ll just keep making this stir fry over and over and over again.

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I hope you make this stir fry. We really enjoyed it. And however you use the rest of the stalk of lemongrass, remember to smell it first. For real.

Happy Eating!

Print
Sweet and Spicy Lemongrass Stir Fry

Yield: 2

Sweet and Spicy Lemongrass Stir Fry

Ingredients

  • Soba noodles
  • 1 T coconut oil
  • 1 head broccoli, cut into bite sized pieces
  • 1 medium summer squash, julienned
  • 1 serrano pepper, seeds and ribs removed, minced
  • 1-2 T prepared lemongrass
  • 2 lg cloves garlic, sliced
  • Sauce: 1 T cornstarch
  • 1/2 C cold water
  • 1/2 T red wine vinegar
  • 2 T white vinegar
  • 1 T honey
  • 1/2 t ginger, dried
  • to taste, salt

Instructions

  1. Boil salted water.
  2. Whisk together sauce ingredients. Set aside.
  3. Add pasta to boiling water. When cooked (takes about 4 minutes), drain, toss with a bit of coconut oil, and keep warm.
  4. Prepare lemongrass: Chop off top and bottom of stalk (use only bottom 3-4 inches of stalk). Peel and discard tough outer layers. Mince tender inner layers.
  5. Heat skillet and add oil. When hot add broccoli, squash, chili pepper, and lemongrass. Cook over medium to high heat, using tongs to turn veggies often. After 3 min add garlic and cook 1 min more (or until veggies are tender crisp).
  6. Pour sauce into skillet. Toss with veggies and let it thicken, about 1 minute.
  7. Serve veggies over pasta.
http://www.de-ma-cuisine.com/sweet-and-spicy-lemongrass-stir-fry/

Friday

13

September 2013

3

COMMENTS

Saving Dinner – Rotini Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce

Written by , Posted in Beef, Cheese, Dinner, Fruit, Gluten Free, Main Dishes, Meat, Pasta, Sauces, Thoughts, Vegetables

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Picture this: You’ve had a long day. You’re tired, kinda grumpy, and gosh you’re hungry. Maybe you’re cooking for 1, maybe it’s for 7… and you don’t have dinner planned. Does this ever happen to anyone else? No? Just me? That’s ok. Because I almost always have pasta on hand.

Add to it a bit of tomato sauce, some fresh veggies, and you’ve got dinner. If you have ground beef, that’s a bonus. If not, don’t worry. I think you’ll be just fine.

Maybe you haven’t made it to the store yet this week. You’ve got some cheese and veggies, but no tomato sauce in the pantry. I’ve got you covered. Sauté some veggies (the ones from this recipe if you have them, minus the tomatoes). Once they’re cooked, remove them from the pan. Then make a béchamel sauce (fancy sounding way to say a white sauce): add 2 T olive oil to a pan, heat it until it shimmers, then add 2 T all purpose flour and whisk. Cook for about 30-60 seconds, then slowly add some milk (1 to 2 C should do), whisking and letting it thicken between additions. Let it heat up, but don’t boil (the sauce may break) – just heat until steam rises. Remove from the heat and whisk in 1/2 to 1 C cheese, a little at a time. (You could add the fresh tomatoes now. Just let them warm through.) Add your sautéed veggies, some salt, pepper, and Italian seasonings.

Or, you could do both… I call it Spaghetteroni and Cheese. It’s any sort of pasta with tomato sauce that gets topped with cheese sauce. In our home, we think it’s crazy good.

I don’t think you can really go wrong with any of these options. And I’m not sure if I can choose a favorite. But, if I’m going with easiest, this Rotini Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce is super simple and doesn’t take too long to go from starving to eating.

Dinner is saved.

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Leftovers can be frozen, so don’t be shy about making a double or even triple batch. Store a few single servings in freezer-safe containers – they’ll be great for lunches if you’re tired of PB&J (I mean, who doesn’t love PB&J?! I do, but it can get old…). I don’t know that I’d recommend freezing the pasta, but you could make enough for dinner and for everyone to take some for lunch the next day. The sauce would also be delicious over top of some Roasted Summer Squash (toss thinly sliced squash with olive oil, salt, and pepper, then bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes, or until slightly crispy), mixed in with a roasted spaghetti squash, as Stuffed Tomatoes (heat sauce, hollow out large tomatoes, fill with sauce, serve topped with parmesan cheese), or mixed with rice to stuff a Zoo Boat (Stuffed Summer Squash)… the possibilities are endless!

Aaaand now I’m craving PB&J.

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Happy Eating!

Print
Rotini Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Yield: 4

Rotini Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce

Ingredients

  • 1/2 lb ground beef
  • 1 T olive oil (opt.)
  • 1 small red onion, chopped
  • 2 small zucchini, chopped
  • 3-4 medium tomatoes, chopped
  • 1 bell pepper, chopped (opt)
  • 1 carrot, grated (opt)
  • 3 cloves garlic, diced
  • Salt, to taste
  • Pepper, to taste
  • 1/4 t dried savory
  • 1/2 t dried Parsley
  • 1/2 t dried basil
  • 1/4 t dried oregano
  • Pinch coriander
  • 1 T balsamic vinegar
  • 2 T lemon juice, divided
  • 2-3 8oz cans tomato sauce
  • 1/2 C pasta water
  • 1/2 pkg rotini rice pasta (or your favorite kind of pasta)
  • Parmesan cheese, grated, for topping

Instructions

  1. Cook beef. Remove from pan and set aside. Wipe out pan if desired.
  2. (If pan has been wiped out, add 1 T olive oil. Let it get hot.) Add veggies and some salt. Cook over medium-low heat until tender, 10 min or so.
  3. Add seasonings, balsamic vinegar, 1 T lemon juice, tomatoes, and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 20-30 min.
  4. Cook pasta according to package directions.
  5. Before draining pasta add 1/2 C pasta water to tomato sauce and stir in. Add 1 T lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
  6. Top pasta with sauce and some parmesan cheese.
http://www.de-ma-cuisine.com/saving-dinner-rotini-pasta-with-fresh-tomato-sauce/

Monday

2

September 2013

4

COMMENTS

When Winter Veggies Arrive Early – Spaghetti Soup

Written by , Posted in Cheese, Dinner, Fruit, Gluten Free, Main Dishes, Roasting, Soups, Vegetables, Vegetarian

SpaghettiSoupWhat to do with a winter squash… when it’s still summer?! Make it into a soup that has summery flavors.

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It’s kinda the best of both worlds. I get to eat soup when it’s 95 degrees F out, but I also get to use the wintery veggies that we’ve started getting in our weekly box of produce.

This one is a bit like a soupy version of the Spaghetti Squash Rock that I made on the show last year. The squash is roasted, stock is made, veggies are sautéed. Then it all comes together pretty quickly.

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I like to top this soup with a good amount of parmesan cheese. And some hearty, crusty bread, with some butter on it goes really well (perfect for dipping and then cleaning out the bowl).

Happy Eating!

Print
Spaghetti Soup

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour, 35 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 50 minutes

Yield: 4-6

Spaghetti Soup

Ingredients

  • 1 T olive oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 3 sweet peppers (or 1 bell pepper), chopped
  • 6 cloves garlic, diced
  • 1 t honey
  • salt, to taste (about 1 to 1 1/2 t)
  • pepper, to taste
  • 1-8 oz. can tomato sauce
  • 6-8 C stock (chicken or vegetable will work)
  • 2 spaghetti squash, cooked (about 4 C)
  • 2 T balsamic vinegar
  • 1 T butter
  • parmesan cheese, grated, for topping

Instructions

  1. Cook squash: Halve, remove seeds, brush with olive oil, and bake cut side down at 350F for 45-60 minutes (or until flesh pierces easily with a fork). Scrape flesh from skin and set aside.
  2. Heat a soup pot, add oil. When oil is hot, add peppers, onion, salt, and pepper. Cook over medium-low heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic and honey and cook for about 1 minute.
  3. Add tomato sauce, squash, balsamic vinegar, and stock. Cover and bring to a boil. Uncover and reduce to a simmer and cook for 20-30 minutes.
  4. Remove from heat and add butter. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
  5. Serve topped with parmesan cheese.

Notes

Most of the cooking time is inactive.

http://www.de-ma-cuisine.com/when-winter-veggies-arrive-early-spaghetti-soup/

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