Friday, September 11, 2009

Rachael Ray's Carmelized Onion Penne
Really good. Just be aware that it calls for a HALF pound (or half a bag) of penne. that would have been nice to notice as I made way too much pasta and the sauce wasn't very creamy since it was suppose to be for only half the pasta. :) But other than that - ooooo soo good! Made it with the Pork Chop Pizzaiola.


Ingredients
1/2 pound whole-wheat penne pasta
Kosher salt
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 teaspoon anchovy paste or 4 flat fillets
2 large onions, thinly sliced
1 bay leaf
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano, (a couple of handfuls)
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley


Preparation
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Salt the water and add the pasta. Cook to al dente and drain.

Heat the EVOO in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the anchovy paste and let it melt into the oil. Add the onions and bay leaf and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cook the onions until very soft and light caramel in color, about 20 minutes. Stir in the cream, and cook until heated through. Remove the bay leaf, then add the pasta and cheese and toss to coat. Transfer to a serving bowl, sprinkle with parsley and serve.
Racheal Ray's Pork Chop Pizzaiola
I made this the other night and it was OH so yummy. I used boneless pork chops, since that's what they had on sale. Turned out great. The only thing is that the "sauce" was a bit thin-- I thought that it was going to be thicker. Maybe next time, I'll cut down on the wine and chicken stock or just try to cook it down more before I throw in the chops.


Ingredients
4 bone-in pork chops (1 1/2-inch thick each)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 large clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon fennel seed
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 sprigs fresh oregano, leaves chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 cup red wine
2 cups chicken stock

Preparation
Season chops with salt and pepper. Heat the EVOO in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the crushed garlic and stir it around to flavor the oil. Add in the chops and caramelize on both sides, 2-3 minutes per side. Remove the chops to a plate and reserve. Stir in the fennel seed, onions, red pepper flakes, and oregano. Reduce the heat and cook for 7-8 minutes.
Add the tomato paste, and cook for 1 minute, then add the wine, and cook for another minute. Stir in the stock and combine well. Slide the chops back into the pan, cover and simmer to finish cooking the chops, about 5-6 minutes. Arrange the chops and sauce on a serving platter and serve.

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Rachael Ray's Spicy Thai Shrimp with Coconut Rice

Rachael Ray's "Thai it, You'll like it" Spicy Thai Shrimp with Coconut Rice
Click to watch the video on how to make it! You can also use chicken instead of shrimp.
Ingredients
1 cup sweetened, shredded coconut
2 1/2 cups chicken stock or broth
1 cup long grain white rice
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 pounds jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined (or chicken if you prefer)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 fresh red chili, seeded and thinly sliced or 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons fish sauce or 2 to 3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 cups (a couple of handfuls) basil, torn
Zest and juice of 1 lime
Yields: 4 servings

Preparation
Toast coconut in a saucepan over medium heat until it turns golden brown. Reserve 1/2 cup for garnish.

To the remaining coconut in the saucepan, add the chicken stock, rice and salt, and bring it to a boil. Once at a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, place a lid on top and cook for 15 minutes. Let the mixture stand for five minutes off the heat then fluff with a fork.
While the rice is cooking, preheat a large, nonstick skillet over high heat with the canola oil.
When the pan is hot, add the shrimp, red bell peppers, chili (or red pepper flakes) and garlic, stirring frequently for about 3-4 minutes.
Add the fish sauce (or soy sauce), basil and toss to combine. Serve the shrimp and some of the sauce over the coconut rice and squeeze some lime juice over everything. Garnish with the reserved toasted coconut and the lime zest.

Crunchy Beef Bake

This recipe is from my cousin Ali Adema who got it from Taste of Home magazine. Sounds good, easy and uses "normal" stuff that you may already have in stock.
"This isn't some fancy schmancy gormet meal or anything, but it was good! I made it for the first time for dinner tonight, and I really liked it. Lukas said he did too. I always like getting new recipies because I hate being in a "cooking rut", so I thought I'd share this with anyone who'd like another recipe. I got it from a Taste of Home magazine. Again, it's nothing special and it probably isn't the most unique meal out there (whatever), but it was easy and tasted good. =)"
Crunchy Beef Bake - yield 4-6 servings
Ingredients:
2 cups uncooked spiral or macaroni pasta (I used large macaroni)
1 pound ground beef
3/4 cup chopped green pepper
1 garlic clove, minced1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained (I had a can of diced tomatoes with green chilies already, so I used that instead. I think it added some good flavor.)
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
1 can (2.8 oz) french-fried onions
Directions:
1. Cook pasta according to directions. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, cook the beef, green pepper and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink and pepper is tender; drain.
2. Drain pasta; add to the beef mixture with the tomatoes, soup, cheese, and salt.
3. Transfer to a greased (oops, just realized I forgot that part, haha) 2 qt. baking dish. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with onions and bake for another 5 minutes.

Rachel Ray's 7 Layer Cassarole

Rachel Ray's Super-Sized 7 Layer Cassarole
To see the video and other pictures, go to the website:
**FYI this recipe is for 12 servings! I haven't made it but it looks GREAT. But it also looks like a lot of work -- or at least time consuming. So I would, at least, go to the webiste, and print out the recipe so you can have it in front of you. I also wonder if you could make it and freeze the first 3 layers. hmmmm....
Ingredients
1 package corn tortillas or any color corn chips
2 tablespoons vegetable oil or cooking spray
1 box elbow macaroni
1 tablespoon EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 pounds ground beef
1 medium onion, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, grated, divided
4 jalapeño peppers, finely chopped, divided
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon coriander
1 tablespoon cumin
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 bottle of beer
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
2 1/2 cups milk
1 14.5-ounce can chopped tomatoes with chilies, drained
3 cups shredded yellow cheddar cheese, divided
2 cans vegetarian spicy refried beans
5 to 6 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 small red onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
Salt
2 limes, zest of 1 and juice of 2
2 avocados
1 cup sour cream
Juice of 1 lemon
Hot sauce to taste
1/2 head iceberg lettuce, shredded
1/2 cup chopped olives with pimientos
1 bunch scallions, chopped
Yields: 12 servings

Preparation
Preheat oven to 400˚F.
If using corn tortillas, cut them into thin strips about 1/2 inch thick, and place them onto a baking sheet. Toss them with some vegetable oil or spray with cooking spray and season them with salt and ground pepper. Pop them into the oven and cook until crispy and golden, about 15 minutes.
Bring a large pot of water up to a boil over high heat. Salt the water then add the noodles and cook to package instructions.

Place a large skillet over medium high heat with a tablespoon EVOO. Brown the meat, then add in the onion, 4 cloves grated garlic and 2 jalapeños, and cook until tender.

Season the meat and veggies with chili powder, coriander, cumin and tomato paste. Let the meat mixture cook for a minute or two with the spices, then add the beer and let that cook down for about 4-5 minutes. Reserve.
While the meat is cooking, make the cheese sauce: In a saucepot over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and give it a stir to combine with the butter. Cook for a minute or so then whisk in the milk. Cook until thickened.
Drain the can of tomatoes with chilies and add them to the thickened milk mixture. Fold in 2 1/2 cups cheese and the reserved noodles. Season with salt and pepper, and reserve.
In another saucepot, heat up the can of refried beans with a little bit of water.

To build the casserole, spread the beef mixture out in the bottom of a casserole dish. Top with the refried beans and finish it off with the mac and cheeses and the remaining cheese. Pop the casserole into the oven and bake until golden brown, about 15-20 minutes.
While the casserole is baking, make the salsa: Mix the plum tomatoes, remaining jalapeño peppers, red onion and cilantro in a small bowl. Season with salt, lime zest and juice, and reserve.
For the guacamole sour cream, scoop the flesh of the avocados into the bowl of a food processor and add the sour cream, lemon juice, remaining 2 cloves grated garlic and hot sauce. Process until creamy.

Once the casserole comes out of the oven, top it with the crispy corn strips and shredded iceberg lettuce. Top with the salsa, then the guacamole sour cream and finally the chopped olives with pimientos and scallions.