Spinach and Cheese Pie

Ingredients 

12 oz cottage cheese

2 c grated cheddar cheese (I buy the bag already grated)

1 package chopped spinach/or fresh

3 eggs

3 T flour

9” unbaked pie shell or make you own

 

opt: onions, mushrooms, leek, garlic, broccoli, asparagus, or your favorite veggie’s

Directions

Drain spinach and drain well

·      Fry the veggies

·      Combine chesses, eggs and flour in a bowl

·      Add vegies and mix up

·      Bake 400-435 for 40-60 minutes until puffy and browned

Implements

Comments

Salmon Wellington (Jessie, Food Network)

Ingredients

4-5 Tbs butter

4 leeks, washed and sliced

1 red onion, finely sliced

2 Tbs dried tarragon

½ cup white wine

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground pepper

2 puff pastry sheets, thawed (typically bought frozen)

Flour, for dusting surface

1 egg plus 2 tsp water for egg wash

2-3 pounds salmon fillet, skin removed (can ask at fish counter to remove skin)

Directions

Takes about 2 hours (active time is 30 min)

Serves about 6-8

Preheat oven to 350oF. 

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks, red onion, tarragon and saute until onion mix is soft (about 10 min). Add the wine, raise the heat to high, and bring to a boil. Let liquid boil off, add salt and pepper, and let cool.

Unfold 1 pastry sheet and lay it on lightly floured surface. Brush 1 edge with the egg wash and overlap the other sheet by 2 inches. Roll the pastry out until it big enough to fold over the salmon. Spoon the leek mixture down the center of the pastry. Place salmon on top of leeks and fold pastry over the salmon. Egg wash the edge going down the middle to seal and press well. Place the salmon seam side down on a lightly buttered or oiled sheet pan. Brush all over with egg wash.

Cook for 30-40 minutes until the pastry is puffed and golden brown. Remove from the oven and let sit for 5-10 min before slicing.

Implements

Baking sheet

Rolling pin and board

Comments

This absolutely wows guests but is actually pretty easy. A side sauce might be nice such as a hollandaise or yogurt with dill or tzatziki.

Chicken Marsala for Two! - Cooks Illustrated

Ingredients

1 + ⅛ cups dry Marsala
2 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
½ ounce dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed
2 x (6- to 8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed
Kosher salt and pepper
1 cup chicken broth
½ cup all-purpose flour
7 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 ½ ounces pancetta, cut into ½-inch pieces
8 ounces cremini mushrooms, trimmed and sliced thin
1 small shallot, minced
1 ½ teaspoons tomato paste
½ teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon lemon juice
½ teaspoon minced fresh oregano
1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 3 pieces
1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley

Directions

It is worth spending a little extra for a moderately priced dry Marsala ($10 to $12 per bottle). Serve the chicken with potatoes, white rice, or buttered pasta.

1. Bring 1 cup Marsala, gelatin, and porcini mushrooms to boil in small saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-high and vigorously simmer until reduced by half, 4 to 6 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, cut each chicken breast in half crosswise, then cut thick half in half again horizontally creating 3 cutlets of about same thickness. Place cutlets between sheets of plastic wrap and pound gently to even 1/2-inch thickness. Place cutlets in bowl and toss thoroughly with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Set aside for 15 minutes.

3. Strain Marsala reduction through fine-mesh strainer, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible; discard solids. Return Marsala reduction to saucepan, add broth, and return to boil over high heat. Lower heat to medium-high and simmer until reduced to 3/4 cup, 8 to 10 minutes. Set aside.

4. Spread flour in shallow dish. Working with 1 cutlet at a time, dredge cutlets in flour, shaking gently to remove excess. Place on wire rack set in rimmed baking sheet. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until smoking. Place cutlets in skillet and lower heat to medium. Cook until golden brown on 1 side, 2 to 3 minutes. Flip and cook until golden brown on second side, 2 to 3 minutes. Return cutlets to wire rack.

5. Return now-empty skillet to medium-low heat and add pancetta. Cook, stirring occasionally, scraping pan bottom to loosen browned bits, until pancetta is brown and crisp, about 4 minutes. Add cremini mushrooms and increase heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring occasionally and scraping pan bottom, until liquid released by mushrooms evaporates and mushrooms begin to brown, about 8 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer mushrooms and pancetta to bowl. Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil and shallot to skillet and cook until softened, 1 minute. Add tomato paste and garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add reduced Marsala mixture, remaining 1/8 cup Marsala, lemon juice, and oregano and bring to simmer.

6. Add cutlets to sauce and simmer for 3 minutes, flipping halfway through simmering. Transfer cutlets to platter. Off heat, whisk in butter. Stir in parsley and cremini mushroom mixture. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon sauce over chicken and serve.


Comments

This is our new favorite chicken dish.  It's a bit more effort than other chicken dishes - but only really because of the sauce preparations - which, of course, is what makes this meal exquisite.  I'm sure it would be better with better mushrooms, but I used regular old mushrooms from the produce department here in remote Truckee and kept them in the dish, although separated from the sauce before serving using a slotted spoon.  I served the chicken on a bed of spinach leaves, but you could also used steamed kale or pasta.

This recipe came from the Cooks Illustrated November 2015 web site.

Squash and Hazelnut Lasagna - Sue Horwitz

Ingredients
For squash filling:
1 large onion chopped
1 hot pepper minced (optional)
3.5 lbs butternut squash, partly cooked, peeled, and cut into small cubes
2 cloves minced garlic
2 T chopped parsley
2 T chopped fresh sage
1 c. hazelnuts, roasted, skins rubbed off, then coarsely chopped

For sauce:
2 cloves garlic minced
3 T unsalted butter
5 T flour (whole wheat is best but can use white)
5 cups milk (can use some or all unsweetened soy milk)
1 bay leaf

Misc:
1/2 lb mozzarella grated
1 c. finely grated parmesan cheese
no-boil lasagna noodles

Directions
MAKE FILLING:
Cook hot pepper and onion in butter or oil until golden.
Add squash, garlic, salt & pepper to taste.
Cook, stirring occasionally, until squash is tender (may need to
add some water to keep it from sticking).
Remove from heat and stir in sage, parsley, nuts.

MAKE SAUCE:
Cook garlic in butter 1 minute.
Whisk in flour and cook, whisking, 5 mins.
Add milk in a stream, whisking.  (I like to heat the milk first)
Add bay leaf.
Bring to boil, whisking constantly.
Lower heat, simmer 10 mins whisking often.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Remove bay leaf.

ASSEMBLE:
Preheat oven to 425.
Toss cheeses together.
Butter or oil a 13x9x2 inch baking dish.
Put 1/2 cup sauce in bottom.
Add pasta sheets (w/o overlap) then 1/2 of remaining sauce, then 1/2 of
filling, then 1/2 of cheese.  Repeat to form 2 layers.  (Or do 3 layers
if you have enough room and enough filling.)

Cover with foil.
Bake 30 mins.
Remove foil.
Bake 10-15 mins more until golden and bubbling.
Let stand 15 mins before serving.


Comments

Makes 6-8 servings (I think it's more like 10-12)

Spaghetti Sauce - Kooy Style

Spaghetti Sauce…Kooy style

In heavy pot brown:
1 onion
1 pound ground turkey or ground beef
1 Chopped red onion
Chopped box of mushrooms
Fresh garlic

  Add 
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 small can of tomato paste
1 small can of tomato sauce

Rinse out cans with water (to remove the tomato left over) and pour in pot

Add spices
Bay leaf
1 teaspoon salt,
some pepper
1 teaspoon each of oregano, basil (fresh is even better)

 Simmer for 1 hour or so-no lid