I’ve said it time and time and time and time again. Pasta is one of my go-to meals for a quick and easy dinner. It has come to the rescue many times. It just happens, doesn’t it? The dinner hour arrives and there’s nothing to eat… dun dun dun.
One of my favorite, all time best, totally the yummiest ways to eat veggies is when they are roasted. Don’t even get me started on how they taste… Ok do. They get kinda sweet, a bit nutty, crispy outside, tender inside. I can eat a whole pan by myself. No joke. I usually make extra because I know how much I want on my plate, and I know that I have to share with Tim. Yes, I’m selfish that way. I don’t like to share my roasted veggies.
I liked shells for this dish, but I think elbows would be delicious, rotini could be amazing, maybe even orzo would be good… You get it. Use the pasta that you and your family love best. I just like the shells because the sauce seems to get trapped and makes each bite so much yummier. Oh, and also, they’re multi-colored and they look fun.
Maybe it’s a pasta night tonight. There are endless ways to make it great.
Drizzle garlic with olive oil and wrap in foil. Place on a baking sheet a roast for 15 minutes.
Toss veggies with a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Add to garlic baking sheet and continue to bake for about 25-30 minutes more.
Cook pasta, reserving 1/2 C starchy water for sauce before draining.
Heat a medium pot. Add 2 T olive oil. When hot, whisk in flour. Cook for 30-60 seconds. Slowly add milk, a little at a time, whisking and letting it thicken between additions. Heat until steam rises, but do not boil (sauce may break). Add pasta water.
Remove from heat and whisk in cheese, a bit at a time. Season with salt and pepper.
Mash 6 cloves of roasted garlic and whisk into sauce. Stir in butter. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
Combine pasta with veggies and sauce. Let it stand a few minutes before serving.
I would almost be happy just to look at it. Even the one I made for the most recent show, as ugly as I made it (I had some trouble crimping the crust… I think I need more practice), still looked amazing. But, then you cut into it… Steam pours out and you get a whiff. Oh that filling… And you know that you have to eat it right away. Something this good just can’t be made to wait.
A classic comfort food, this Chicken Pot Pie is perfect for a cool fall evening.
Ingredients
1 T olive oil
1/2 C carrots, chopped or diced
1 onion, chopped or diced
1 C potatoes, chopped or diced
1 C zucchini, chopped or diced
1 t fresh savory, chopped
1/4 t dried rosemary
1/4 t dried thyme
1/4 t dried oregano
1/4 t dried parsley
to taste, salt
to taste, pepper
3/4 C peas (frozen are fine)
3-4 cloves garlic, diced
1-2 T lemon juice
1/2 t dijon mustard
1 1/2 to 2 C cooked chicken, shredded
2 T all purpose flour (or 1 T cornstarch for gluten free)
1 1/2 C cold water (or stock)
1/2 C milk
1 pie crust
1 egg white, beaten with a fork
Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 375F.
Heat ovenproof skillet. Add olive oil. Add carrots through pepper. Cook for 10-15 minutes, or until veggies are tender, over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally.
Add garlic, chicken, peas, dijon, and lemon juice. Cook for 2-3 minutes.
Whisk flour (or cornstarch) and water. Add to pan. Bring to a boil and let it thicken for a few minutes. Add milk and cook a few minutes more, but do not boil.
Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
Top with crust (be careful, the pan is hot) and crimp edges with fingers or a fork. Brush with egg white. Make three or four slits in the center of the crust.
Place ovenproof skillet on a baking sheet and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the crust is golden and flaky.
Sometimes I feel like I can’t quite get ahead. Like I’m stuck in a downward spiral. Overwhelmed by a never ending list of things to do. Sometimes. Or right now.
I understand why people resort to take out and pre-made meals. My go-to meals have been random leftovers, grilled cheese, and pancakes. I feel like I don’t have time to cook. I feel like I don’t have time for anything… except work. Isn’t it funny that my job is food, but I don’t have time for it?!
I’m realizing that part of the fault lays in my time management. I can make list after list after list, but if I spend all my time on figuring out when to do it all, I’ll never have time to get it done. So I’ve put away the day planner… for a while. I’m focusing on getting things done. I’m trying to do my best at what I love. I’m working on more than just feeding us so we have the calories we need, but instead finding a balance between working hard and having time to spend on the rest of life. I don’t know that I’m finding much success. Yet. I’m working on it.
For days like these, there are meals like this one. It can be made ahead of time and frozen. It can be whipped up the night of in no time at all. It’s yummy enough to serve to guests, simple enough to eat on a weeknight. And the leftovers, if there are any, are perfect for the next day’s lunch.
1/2 serrano pepper, ribs and seeds removed, minced
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
1/4 t cumin
1/4 t ginger
1 t chili powder
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 C black beans
1 C mixture of cranberry and kidney beans
1 1/2 C cooked brown rice
1/2 C corn (frozen is fine)
Sauce: 2 C tomato sauce
1 C vegetable stock (optional)
1 t chili powder
1/4 t cumin
to taste, salt
to taste, pepper
1/2 serrano pepper, ribs and seeds removed, minced
For assembling: 6-8 tortillas
1 to 1 1/2 C pepper jack cheese, grated
salsa, for serving
Greek yogurt, for serving
tomato, chopped, for serving
Instructions
Pre-heat the oven to 350F.
Heat a skillet and add olive oil. When oil is hot, add zucchini through chili powder (in filling section). Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, over medium-low heat.
Add rice, beans, garlic, and corn. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
Whisk sauce ingredients together. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Pour about 1/2 into the bottom of a large greased ovenproof dish.
Divide filling between tortillas. Tuck ends in and roll up. Place seam side down in sauce.
Top with remaining sauce (or enough sauce to partially cover), and sprinkle with cheese.
Bake uncovered for 20-30 minutes, or until cheese and sauce are bubbly.
Right now we’re kinda in between seasons. It’s technically fall. But produce-wise, we’ve still got a few summer treats hanging on (hello zucchini!), yet are simultaneously moving into the winter goodies (hello root veggies!).
This Shepherd’s Pie is a mash of the two (no pun intended, hello mashed potatoes!).
This is a great dish for using leftovers. Mostly on the mashed potato end. You may want to bookmark this one for Thanksgiving, along with Shepherd’s Pie of the South. One uses up the leftover turkey or chicken, the other uses up the mashed potatoes. No, it’s not too early to start planning what you’re going to do with your Thanksgiving leftovers. It’s never too early to menu plan. 😉
Back to October, which is a great month, by-the-way. We celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary a couple weeks ago, and the baseball postseason is in full swing. Yeah, both of these make me happy. Add to that the cooler weather and falling leaves and you may understand why this is my absolute favorite time of the year.
Since it’s my favorite month, we should eat some of my favorite foods. We should enjoy hearty, warm meals. We should bring out the quilts and hot chocolate mugs. We should eat Shepherd’s Pie (and Chicken Pot Pie, and Chili and Cornbread, and… oh I’m getting hungry).
One thing that I love about Shepherd’s Pie is that it’s a great way to use yesterday’s dinner. I’m a big fan of making yummy foods and then repurposing the leftovers. Want to see how it could work? Say Sunday’s dinner is Roasted Chicken, with Mashed PotatoesandMushroom and Savory Gravy, and Steamed Carrots with Honey and Butter. By making a little more than you will need the first night, you give yourself the starting points for the rest of the week’s dinners. Monday: Chicken and Rice Soup. Tuesday: Shepherd’s Pie. Wednesday: Honey Mustard Chicken Sandwiches. Thursday: Chicken Club Pizza. Friday: Sheppy Pasta (make extra Shepherd’s Pie filling and toss with pasta and tomatoes). Saturday: Soup Day (Taco Soup, Mashed Potato Soup, and definitely remember to make some Chicken Stock with the chicken bones). (Of course make sure that foods are frozen if they will be saved for more than a few days, and re-heated to a safe temperature… but you knew that.)
Another thing that I love about Shepherd’s Pie is that it just tastes so darn good. Starting at the top, we’ve got some cheese. It’s all melty and maybe a bit crispy where it touches the skillet. Then a layer of Mashed Potatoes. Well, I love those on their own, so I can’t really go wrong here. And the foundation of this dish, ground beef (you could also use tempeh, chicken, maybe even tofu), veggies, and a bit of sauce. Well, sure, don’t mind if I do. You can make a big skillet to feed the whole family, or make individual portions and heat them up one or two at a time (I like to use medium-sized ramekins for this). It freezes well, so once everyone has eaten their fill, pop them into single serving containers and they can be saved for lunches. I wonder, maybe you could even fry an egg and slide it on top of the pie, then toast some bread, top it with a tomato slice and a sprinkle of salt and pepper, and a drizzle of good olive oil, and have it for breakfast… stranger things have happened.
However it’s eaten, this meal is a winner in my book. Husband’s too. We love pie… especially the savory kind.
Heat oven safe skillet. Add beef. When partially cooked, add carrots through cumin. Cook covered, stirring occasionally, for 10-15 minutes, or until veggies are tender.
Add peas and garlic, cook 1 minute.
Add balsamic vinegar and tomato paste, cook 2 minutes.
Whisk cornstarch with water and stock. Add to veggies and beef. Bring to a boil and let sauce thicken.
Taste and adjust seasonings.
Smooth out and top with mashed potatoes, cheese, and sprinkle with coriander and chili powder. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until cheese is melted and potatoes are hot.
So I had this idea. I’m beginning what I hope will be a regular series based on my experiences in planning dinner parties around our seasonal produce. I’m going to share plans, tips, suggestions, recipes, thoughts, and ideas. I think it sounds like fun. I can always talk about food…
There are people who are experts at party planning. I know some of them personally. I respect and admire their skills.
I am not such a person.
I do, however, love to menu plan and enjoy spending time with friends and family. One of my favorite things to do when hanging out is eat. Food makes things even more fun, so says me.
We are fortunate to have access to amazing organic produce. Our weekly menu is generally planned around what we get in the box. So are the dinner parties that we throw.
And what’s more fun than a themed dinner party?! Maybe lots of things… but I sure enjoy them.
For this first event we kept it small. Six friends: Dave and Bekah, and Nolan and Joanna, and us. I was inspired to get creative with roasting fruit. Figs and grapes are in season right now and are both so yummy when roasted. They get this deep, rich sweetness that is so different from eating them fresh. They are the main component to this meal. All the other dishes were created to compliment them.
Lucky figs.
Lucky grapes.
For our appetizer I made crostini with grapes, havarti cheese, and one sliver of lemon zest. They were gooey, bright, and really tasty (or so I gather – of the 18, I only got 1 ;)).
I made a simple salad with lettuce and tomatoes. The dressing was a basic vinaigrette with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, maple syrup, and roasted garlic.
The main dish was Roasted Chicken with Gorgonzola and Figs. The chicken was topped with figs, salt, pepper, and browned butter (which I had to make twice because I burned it the first time), then roasted for about an hour. For serving, sweet caramelized onions and tangy gorgonzola cheese are piled on top.
I made two sides. One was more of a classic; a simple every day dish. Steamed carrots with butter and honey. But, they didn’t taste normal or boring. The second side was wilted kale with walnuts and bacon. Ok so bacon (good bacon) is always a winner in my book. In this dish it was no different. The bacon worked so well with the nuts and the wilty wilty greens.
And then, dessert. This may have been my favorite part of the meal, and I’m not a sweets person. I roasted some figs. Nothing on them – just figs, parchment paper, and a 375F oven. I melted some chocolate over a double boiler (which was actually a glass bowl resting on a pot of boiling water). I whipped some cream, sweetened slightly by coconut palm sugar, with a hint of vanilla. The figs were a bit crispy, kinda caramelized, super deep and sweet. They’re topped with whipped cream and drizzled with chocolate. Then cinnamon is sprinkled over it all. Not too much, just a hint.
We have a tiny apartment, so we don’t have room for a large dining table. Um and the dining room is my office, so we really don’t have room. But, we make do. We added a couple leaves to the table and plopped it into the middle of the living room (about 4 feet from where it normally lives, leafless). We squeezed 6 chairs around it. It still left just a small surface area, so the centerpiece was a bowl of grapes from the week’s box. Oh and the bowl was a family heirloom – it used to belong to Husband’s grandma. I set the table with mismatched china that we’ve collected over the years. We used silverware that was also from Husband’s grandma, wine glasses that we found at a yard sale, cloth napkins that were a wedding gift. To be honest, with the friends that we were hanging out with, I knew that we were just happy to be together, eating, sharing, fellowshipping. So, there wasn’t too much pressure to have the perfect table or even the perfect food… from them… the pressure was all from me. 😉
A few things that either I did do that are a good idea, or that I will do next time:
Let my friends contribute. Making all the food myself is a daunting task.
Write out a plan. Figure out what can be made ahead of time (the day before, the morning of). It helps things run a lot smoother and allows for less panicked, more relaxed cooking. For example, I made a list of things that could be done early (you don’t have to make a list, I just love lists). Then in the morning I chopped fruits and veggies, roasted the garlic, cooked the bacon, and made the salad dressing. It made the afternoon much less stressful.
Have an appetizer for guests to snack on while I finish last minute preparations, photographing, and setting up.
Let guests know that I’m going to be taking photos/videos. (The photos will look better and guests will be much happier if they know in advance that they’re not just there for the food. ;))
Last modified on 2013-10-27 23:51:50 GMT. 2 comments. Top.
Green Salad with Tomatoes and Maple Vinaigrette with Roasted Garlic
Recipe Type: Side, Salad, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Fruit
Author: Rachel Oberg – De Ma Cuisine
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6
Ingredients
8-10 C lettuce, torn
2-3 tomatoes, chopped
dressing: 3 cloves roasted garlic
1/4 to 1/3 C balsamic vinegar
salt
pepper
1 T maple syrup
1 t dijon mustard
3/4 C olive oil
Instructions
Drizzle garlic with olive oil and wrap in foil. Roast for 45-60 minutes. Remove from oven. When cool enough to handle, squeeze pulp from 3 cloves garlic and mash with a fork. Set aside.
Whisk together garlic, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, maple syrup, and dijon. Slowly stream in olive oil, whisking as you do, creating an emulsion.
Chicken is roasted with browned butter and figs then topped with some sweet caramelized onions and tangy gorgonzola cheese.
Ingredients
1 t olive oil
6 cloves roasted garlic
2 T butter
1 to 1 1/2 C water
6-8 chicken breasts
8-12 figs, sliced in 4
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
2 onions, sliced
1 T honey
1/4 C (or more) gorgonzola cheese
Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 375F.
Drizzle garlic with olive oil and wrap in foil. Roast for 45-60 minutes. Remove from oven. When cool enough to handle, squeeze pulp from 6 cloves garlic and mash with a fork. Set aside.
Brown butter in a small skillet (watch carefully so it doesn’t burn).
Grease a large ovenproof dish. Add water. Add chicken. Top with figs, salt, pepper, and then drizzle browned butter over.
Bake uncovered for 45-60 minutes, or until internal temperature of chicken reaches 170F.
Add onions and honey to a dry skillet. Cook over low heat for 30-40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove from oven and top with mashed roasted garlic, caramelized onions, and dot with gorgonzola.
Last modified on 2013-10-27 23:51:45 GMT. 2 comments. Top.
Steamed Carrots with Butter and Honey
Recipe Type: Side, Steamed, Vegetables
Author: Rachel Oberg – De Ma Cuisine
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6
Ingredients
4 large carrots, cut into chunks
water
pinch salt
1-2 T honey
1 T butter
Instructions
Add water to the bottom of a pot with a steamer basket (about an inch deep, or not touching the bottom of the basket). Add carrots to the steamer basket. Cook until tender, about 15-20 minutes or so.
Last modified on 2013-10-27 23:51:48 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
Wilted Kale with Walnuts and Bacon
Recipe Type: Side, Vegetables, Meat, Pork, Nuts, Stove Top
Author: Rachel Oberg – De Ma Cuisine
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
4 slices bacon
1 T olive oil
3 bunches kale, stems removed, sliced into long ribbons
pinch nutmeg
salt
pepper
2 T balsamic vinegar
1/2 C walnuts, chopped
Instructions
Cook bacon. Drain on paper towel. When cooled, crumble and set aside. Discard fat from pan (or reserve a bit for cooking).
Add olive oil (if all bacon fat was discarded), when hot, add kale and some seasonings. Use tongs to turn and mix kale, as it wilts down, add more kale and more seasonings. Cook over medium-low heat for about 10-15 minutes, or until all kale is wilted. Add 2 T balsamic vinegar. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
Serve topped with walnuts and bacon.
3.2.1255
Roasted Figs with Whipped Cream Chocolate and Cinnamon
Figs are roasted and topped with a cloud of whipped cream, a drizzle of chocolate, and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
Ingredients
12-18 figs, quartered
1/2 to 1 pint whipping cream
1/8 to 1/4 C coconut palm sugar
1 t vanilla extract
3.5 oz. dark chocolate
cinnamon, for topping
Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 375F.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place figs on baking sheet with a bit of space between them if possible. Roast for 10-20 minutes, or until figs are slightly crispy and caramelized.
Whip cream with sugar and vanilla using an electric mixer or by hand. Whip until stiff peaks form.
Heat about 1 C water in a pot. Place a bowl in the pot – it needs to be large enough so that it rests on the edge of the pot on its own and does not touch the boiling water. Break chocolate into pieces in the bowl. Stir with a spoon as it melts. Once melted, remove from pot (carefully, bowl will be hot).
Spoon figs into a bowl and top with whipped cream, a drizzle of chocolate, and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Serve immediately.
