Filed under: Italian, pasta | Tags: vegetarian, tomato, pasta, chevre, cous cous, feta, spinach
So I realized that almost everything I make now is inspired by the cheese that I get from Guinevere. Here are two more dishes that I made with them that turned out well, one with feta and the other with chevre. I am busy snacking on some cheddar and crackers as well!
From recipezaar:
Alexandra’s Feta Pasta (I don’t know Alexandra, jus the name of the recipe!)
1 (16 oz) bag frozen chopped spinach
2 (14 1/2 oz) cans diced tomatoes (one with Italian seasoning the other with onion and garlic)
1 onion, choppped
8 oz crumbled feta (but you can use more or less, I probably used less)
2/3 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tbl olive oil
16 oz pasta (something large, short, and shapely like ziti… I used multigrain)
1/4 cup fresh parmesan, grated
4 cloves garlic, minced
salt, crushed red pepper, and pepper, to taste
Preheat the oven to 350 F and defrost the spinach. Boil water for pasta according to package directions in a saucepan. Meanwhile, saute the onion in in the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once onions are soft, add the garlic, then the tomatoes (partially drained) and the drained spinach. Drain the pasta when cooked and put half in a 9″x13″ pan. Put half the veggies on top, half the feta, and half the cream (and seasoning). Mix together and repeat. Sprinkle the parmesan on top, cover with foil, and bake for 30 minutes. Take the foil off for the last few minutes to get a crusty top. Some people suggested adding bacon, green peppers, Italian sausage, or chicken breast, but I thought it was pretty good as is!
This recipe tastes really good and is simple to make but I am not always a big fan of using canned tomatoes and frozen spinach. Frankly, this time of year produces pretty watery tomatoes at the grocery store and there is no farmer’s market to speak of so canned seemed like a good alternative and I gave in.
Another recipe I tried was just jazzed up cous cous. I have had three boxes of “Roasted Garlic and Olive Oil” cous cous sitting in my pantry for at least a year so I finally decided to cook one. To make it more of a complete meal, I added bits of chevre and chopped fresh spinach. So try that too!
I have been cooking up a storm but haven’t updated for a while. I feel like I should be able to offer more insights into food than simply listing recipes. My insight here is that this is really good! Haha. I feel cool/talented when I cook it because there is a chemistry and transformation of ingredients that goes on. I made it for my Valentine as a pre-Valentine’s day treat.
Gnocchi in a Sun-Dried Tomato Bechamel Sauce
1 lb gnocchi
butter for cooking
1 yellow onion, diced
1/2 cup parsley, minced
handful of sun-dried tomatoes, ready to eat (I think the more the better!)
1/4 cup white wine
salt, to taste
2 cups bechamel sauce
For the bechamel sauce:
3 tbl butter
3 tbl flour
2 cups whole milk
salt an any combination of herbs, nutmeg, or cayenne
Melt the 3 tbl of butter for the bechamel sauce in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour, stir, and cook for about 3 minutes. Slowly whisk in the milk and bring to a boil, stirring the whole time. Let the sauce simmer on low heat for about 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Add salt and any herbs or spices that you like.
Melt the butter over low heat in a skillet. Cook the onions and parsley for about 10 minutes over medium heat and sprinkle with salt. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and wine and cook until the wine has evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add the ingredients to the bechamel sauce and mix well. Cook the gnocchi according the directions, drain, and mix in with the sauce.
Filed under: Italian, pasta | Tags: caramelized onion, cheese, greens, pasta, vegetarian, walnuts
First post in a while! I’ve been slacking off on any sort of cooking over winter break (although there has been plenty of eating). I got the New Moosewood Cookbook for Christmas and this was the first recipe I made. Moosewood is like the vegetarian Bible and this pasta was elegant, delicious, complex, nutritious, and just damn pretty.
Caramelized-Onion Sauce
1/2 cup olive oil
4 to 6 large onions (6 to 8 cups), thinly sliced
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 to 1 cup dry white wine
1 medium bunch arugula, spinach, or other leafy green, stemmed and minced
1 cup crumbled feta or blue cheese
3/4 lb short, shapely pasta (I used farfalle)
1 cup chopped, toasted walnuts
parmesan
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium. Cook the onions for about 15 minutes. Add the salt, lower the heat, and cook from 10 minutes to an hour. Add the white wine and simmer uncovered for about 15 minutes over medium heat. Start cooking the pasta in boiling water and add the minced greens to the onions and cook for about 5 minutes (until wilted). Stir in the cheese over low heat. After draining the pasta, add it to the sauce and stir for a minute to coat in the sauce. Sprinkle on walnuts and parmesan and serve. Serves 4 to 5.
*Toast walnuts: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Chop the walnuts. Bake until brown, about 5 minutes. Be careful not to burn them!
I don’t like marinara aka “red sauce.” I like my pastas chunky! I am in a bit of a pasta rut lately. I want to find recipes that are interesting, simple, and nutritious but usually the best recipes I can find involve meat or gobs of cheese. Don’t get me wrong, cheese is delicious and often essential to pasta dishes, but I want a little variety. I picked mushroom ragu from Alice Water’s The Art of Simple Food. Chunks, tasty, nutritious, simple preparation with complex flavor… everything I was looking for! I served it on fancy colorful Italian pasta that my friend Erica left in my pantry in August and ate it with my neighbor Jamey.
Mushroom Ragu
olive oil and butter for cooking
1 large yellow onion, peeled and diced fine
1 large carrot, peeled and diced fine
2 celery stalks, diced fine
pinch of dried thyme or 6 thyme sprigs, leaves only
6 parsley sprigs, leaves only, chopped
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup diced tomatoes
2 pounds of mushrooms (I used white button but Alice advises a mixture of two or three types like chanterelles, black trumpets, hedgehogs, brown or white button)
1/2 cup cream or creme fraiche
1 cup water, vegetable broth, or chicken broth
salt
Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, and celery with some salt and cook until tender. Add the herbs. Cook for 1 minute, then add the tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes. Set aside. Clean the mushrooms if they are dirty. Saute each type of mushroom separately until tender and lightly browned in olive oil and a little butter. Turn the cooked mushrooms onto a cutting board and chop to the size of the vegetables. Combine with the vegetables and herbs and add the cream and broth. Bring to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes. Serve over pasta. Makes about 2 cups.
The soffritto or mirepoix
Cookin’ the mushrooms
Filed under: Italian, rice | Tags: cheese, gorgonzola, Italian, rice, risotto, vegetarian
This is the ultimate comfort food. Not only is it incredibly rich but it forces me to slow down during its preparation and relieve the stress of life as a college senior. I had everything for this except for the wine on hand. I went to McNally’s and bought Veramonte, a very good Chilean Sauvignon blanc that is modestly priced at $10.99 (not exactly Carlo Rossi cheap but incomprably better). I also used vegetable broth instead of beef broth but you can follow the recipe if you prefer.
Gorgonzola Risotto
2 1/2 cups aborio or other risotto rice
5 tbl unsalted butter
1/2 onion, minced
1/2 glass of white wine, warmed
1 1/2 quarts simmering beef broth
1/2 lb of gorgonzola (1/3 dolce, 2/3 picante… I didn’t follow this)
1 tbl cream
Saute the onion in the butter over low heat until golden. Remove onion with a slotted spoon and toast the rice in the butter over medium heat for a few minutes, coating the grains with fat. Add the onion and wine and cook until evaporated (this will happen quickly). Add broth one ladle at a time. When half cooked (the rule of thumb for risotto is that you’ll be done 17 minutes after you add the wine, but taste it constantly so as not to overcook it and get a mushy risotto), stir in the cheese. Stir to make sure the cheese doesn’t burn and stick to the bottom of the pan. Keep adding ladles until cooked al dente (a little chewy still). When done, stir in cream. Serves 6.
From: http://italianfood.about.com/od/creamyrisotti/r/blr0468.htm
Filed under: Italian, Legumes, rice, soup, vegan | Tags: beans, grain, herbs, kale, kasha, rice, soup, vegan, vegetarian
I try a lot of different recipes but soup has never turned out badly for me. I think that’s why it onto here so often. I clipped this out of a magazine last year (sadly I forget which one) and have since shared it wiht family and friends to their delight. It is incredibly healthy and nourishing and probably tastes better than any other soup you have ever had.
Hearty Grain Soup with Beans and Greens
2 tbls olive oil
1 large onion, coarsely chopped (1 1/2 cups)
2 cloves garlic
4 cups vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups cooked kasha (I used brown rice… you put it in uncooked, so 1/2 cup)
15 oz can crushed tomatoes
15 oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed (I used 1/2 cup dried, soaked overnight, pre-cooked)
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 lb kale, trimmed and chopped (you can use other greens but some hold their shape better than others)
3 tbls chopped fresh parsely
2-3 tsp balsamic vinegar
1. Heat 1 tbls olive oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, cook 3 min. Add garlic, cook 5 more minutes.
2. Stir in broth, kasha/rice, tomatoes, 1 cup beans, oregano, and rosemary. Bring to boil. Press half of kale/spinach into liquid until it wilts.
3. Press remaining kale/spinach into liquid. Reduce heat to medium and simmer 15-20 minutes.
4. Puree remaining beans in food processor. Add pureed beans, parsely, and remaining 1 tbl olive oil to soup. Stir in vinegar and season with salt and pepper.
Per serving: 204 cal, 8g prot, 6g total fat (1g sat fat), 33g carb, 0mg chol, 521mg sod (with low-sodium broth), 7g fiber, 5g sugars
Filed under: Italian, pasta, side | Tags: basil, caper, fresh mozzarella, pasta, tomato, vegetarian
My neighbor, Nate, and I ate this the other night while watching The Birds. I requested it so often growing up that my family started calling it “my pasta” (or “your pasta”). I have never seen this exact combination in a pasta anywhere else. It is pretty much my favorite thing to eat and Nate was very impressed.
Caroline’s Pasta
8oz fresh mozzarella, chopped
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half
1 3oz jar capers
fresh basil, chiffonade
3 cups pasta (penne and farfalle are good for this)
olive oil (enough to coat the ingredients)
salt and pepper, to taste
grated parmesan
Mix the fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, capers (with brine), fresh basil, and olive oil in a bowl. Ideally you should let it sit and marinate for a couple hours. Cook the pasta in salted water according to the package directions. Drain and combine with the other ignredients in the bowl. Season and sprinkle with grated parmesan. It can be served warm or at room temperature. Makes 6 servings.
Filed under: Italian, dessert, snack | Tags: blue cheese, bread, bruschetta, gorgonzola, honey, Italian, vegetarian
Is that not the most beautiful dish you’ve ever seen? Giada De Laurentiis is responsible for this gem but I’ve made it a dozen times since I first saw it on Everyday Italian. Her recipe is Bruschetta with Gorgonzola Cheese and Honey, but you can use any blue cheese. The gorgonzola is to Italian it up. It is also creamery than other blue cheeses so it definitely makes a difference, but it is not the only way. I used blue cheese that my friend Karl gave to me in the library of all places and ‘creamy’ raw honey that I bought at the farmer’s market in North Carolina. The bread is a loaf of fresh baked 7 grain from New Pioneer Coop in Iowa City. They used Paul’s Grains 7 grain cereal and 7 grain flour in making it!
So here’s what to do:
Preheat oven to 375F.
Slice up a crusty loaf of bread (Giada says baguette)
Sprinkle with olive oil and toast.
When crispy and hot, remove the bread from the oven. At this point you can spread on thick raw honey like I did and then sprinkle it with cheese or you can add honey after it is done baking.
Put the bread back in the oven until the cheese melts. Put honey on or, if you already have, serve warm. This could be an appetizer or snack but I ate it as a meal with sauteed kale and Annie’s Natural Goddess Dressing. Per usual, I licked the bowl clean of the Natural Goddess Dressing.
