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By mlb, on December 13th, 2006%
This is a recipe I found on Epicurious about a year ago, emailed it to myself and then forgot about it. While cleaning my recipe folder out last week I came across it. Good things happen when you tidy up your email folders, people!
While the lentil soup was good, the meatballs make it awesome. In fact, a great appetizer would be to whip up a batch of the meatballs and serve them with some cherry tomatoes, chunks of cucumber and kalamata olives. Oh, okay, throw in some feta cubes, the yogurt and flat bread too. You could also impale the meatballs, cucumber and olives on wooden skewers and pretend you are Sandra Lee (but, you know, with actually appetizing and edible food).
Epicurious says that this recipe is adapted from Wolfgang Puck, “Adventures in the Kitchen”.
Lentil Soup with Lamb Meatballs
This makes 8-10 servings, so halve it if needed. That’s what I did and it worked fine. Just beat an egg first, then divide that in half.
Soup:
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped red onion
1/2 cup diced carrot
5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp turmeric
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 celery stalk
1 branch fresh parsley
1 branch fresh thyme
1 pound golden . . . → Read More: Wolfgang Puck’s Lentil Soup with Lamb Meatballs
By mlb, on December 11th, 2006%
It’s a good thing they are damn tasty. I’m participating in a “cookie exchange” at work for Friday and there are nine bakers involved. That means 10 dozen cookies — one for each person making cookies and one for the “table”. When I signed up, I was told six to seven people typically participate. Riiiight. Oh well, it’ll be fun.
To get a jump start, I’ve measured out all of my dry ingredients and have that stored in freezer bags, as well as my chopped white chocolate, diced apricots and almonds. I’m all ready to go except for the eggs, vanilla, butter and almond extract.
I found this recipe on the Food Network site, easily influenced by the promise of an easy recipe. Well, aside from being easy these are absolutely delicious. I’m even going to make a few extra so that we have some at home. I kept it pretty much the same, except for adding the almonds. I also decreased the apricots a bit, (now there are equal ratios of fruit to chocolate). The recipe says this makes around 24 cookies but they’d have to be pretty small cookies. I’d say it’s more around 15 – 18 . . . → Read More: I’m Going to be Making 120 of These: White Chocolate Apricot & Almond Cookies
By mlb, on December 10th, 2006%
This was a meal from a couple of weeks ago — a cold, windy and rainy Friday night. A huge Italian, hearty, cheesey meal. The recipe is originally from Tyler Florence and Food 911 (a show I used to really like watching). I don’t even think I changed very much from the original recipe. Oh wait, I did use a cheese blend instead of fresh mozzarella, but just because I had the blend (mozzarella, provolone, fontina & Parmesan) and didn’t have any fresh mozzarella.
The olives were a great addition to the sauce and the two cloves of garlic in the original recipe mysteriously morphed into four cloves. I wonder how that happened?
Chicken Parmesan
This recipe is easily halved, which is what I did for jwa and I
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 3 tbsp
1 medium onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced (eh, you don’t have to halve this part!)
2 bay leaves
1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted
1/2 bunch fresh basil leaves
2 (28-ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes, drained and hand-crushed
Pinch sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 skinless, boneless, chicken breasts (about 11/2 pounds)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon water
1 cup dried bread crumbs
1 (8-ounce) ball fresh buffalo mozzarella, . . . → Read More: Old School Chicken Parmesan — ‘Cause it’s Cold Out !
By mlb, on December 8th, 2006%
So far, I have made Turkey & Cranberry Ravioli, Turkey-Tomatillo Soup and Turkey Green Curry. I have one more zip lock bag full of diced turkey in the freezer and I am looking for ideas. Help!
Below are the recipes for the soup and the curry that I came up with. They were both sort of spur of the moment dishes, so I’ve recounted them to the best of my recollection. Should be close enough.
Turkey & Tomatillo Soup
12 tomatillos, husks and cores removed
1 1/2 cups diced, cooked turkey
1 tbsp canola oil
1 1/2 – 2 cups turkey stock (or chicken stock)
1 white onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed into bite-sized pieces
1 jalapeno, diced
1 can of black beans, drained
1/2 tbsp of your favorite Mexican spice blend (ideas — a mix of cumin, Mexican oregano, red pepper flakes & dried cilantro flakes)
2-3 tomatoes, diced
cilantro leaves and lime wedges for garnish
Heat the oil in a large soup pot. Add the onion, tomatillo, garlic and jalapeno. Let cook about 10 minutes until onions are nice and soft and the tomatillos start to break down. Add the stock and bring to a simmer.
Next, add in the turkey, . . . → Read More: So…What Did You Do With Your Leftover Turkey?
By mlb, on December 5th, 2006%
This recipe is based on a mix of recipes by Alton Brown and Michael Chiarello. You know, a little from column A and a little from column B. I’d never made gnocchi before when I tried these and it was pretty easy. A bit tedious but very much worth it.
As it was pre-Thanksgiving, my first impulse was to make pumpkin gnocchi but jwa has a low tolerance for pumpkin even during the holidays. Strangely, though, he has no problem with butternut squash. He’s weird.
Butternut Squash & Potato Gnocchi
1 pound russet potatoes (about 2 medium potatoes)
1 pound butternut squash
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 to 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting board and dough
Peel and quarter the potatoes. Boil until very fork tender, 15-20 minute. Here’s a good trick I saw Emeril do and I use it whenever I make mashed potatoes — return the cooked potatoes to the hot pan. Let them dry out over medium heat for about 30 seconds. Then continue. Yay! No water logged potatoes.
Let cool a bit and then pass . . . → Read More: Butternut Squash & Potato Gnocchi (with a Rosemary-Sage Parmesan Sauce)
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