Gnocchi with Bacon & Spinach

This was a relatively simple meal to make on a week night and tast too! There wasn't much prep time either which is nice on a busy day. I used yellow grape tomatoes versus the red, they are so much sweeter. I also harvested the parsley from my garden-yum!

Gnocchi with Bacon & Spinach

Serves 4

ingredients

• 3 Tbsp EVOO

• 4 slices bacon, chopped into bite size pieces

• 1/2 onion, chopped

• 1 bunch/bag of spinach, roughly chopped

• 17.5 oz whole wheat gnocchi with sweet potato

• 1 1/2 pints yellow grape tomatoes

• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

• 2 Tbsp fresh chopped parsley

• Kosher Salt & Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

directions

1. Heat the EVOO in a large dutch oven over medium high heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally until crisp, 7 minutes give or take a lil bit. Add the onion and cook until softened, another 2 minutes or so. Stir in the spinach, 1/2 tsp salt and a pinch of pepper. Cook until spinach is wilted, 3 minutes or so.

2. Meanwhile, cook the gnocchi in salted water as the package directs. Reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking water before you drain the gnocchi. Add the gnocchi to the dutch oven with the spinach, the reserved water, stir to coat then add the tomatoes, Parm, Parsley, S&P to taste.

Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from Food Network Magazine.

Italian Potato Cake with Sausage & Crispy Kale

I thought the potato cake would be more challenging than it actually was - Bonus! It must be because I've gotten used to using a mandolin so slicing the potatoes was a cinch. The flavor of the oil really brings the tastiest bits to the cake as well... spicy and garlicky! Nom Nom Nom. We love Kale chips so those were really good as well - the nutmeg gives them a nice nutty flavor as well. And, onto the star of the show: smoked sausage on our charcoal grill - need I say anymore? Aw man, this dinner was high up there in flavor-town.......

Italian Potato Cake with Sausage and Crispy Kale

Serves 4

Italian Potato Cake with Sausage & Crispy Kale

ingredients

• 1/3 cup EVOO

• 2 cloves garlic, smashed

• 1 Fresno Chile, halved (leave seeds and membranes intact unless you are too wimpy for that!)

• 2 1/2 lbs gold potatoes, cut into 1/8" slices (use a mandolin if you have it)

• 3 Tbsp chopped fresh rosemary

• 2 tsp fennel seeds

• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

• 1 lb Hot & Spicy Smoked Sausage

• 1 bunch Kale, rinsed, stemmed & leaves torn

• Sea Salt & Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425º. In a small saucepan, heat the EVOO, garlic & Fresno over medium heat for 3 minutes to infuse the oil. (toss the garlic around a few times to avoid burning it).

2. Place the potatoes in a bowl and season with sea salt. Add the infused oil (discarding the garlic and Chile), rosemary, fennel and Parm and toss to coat. Arrange the potatoes in a layered patter from the center of a 10" cast iron skillet outward and slightly up the sides; gently pile in the remaining potatoes and press down. (Note: the ones I put on the sides burnt up and weren't edible so I probably would only layer them on the bottom on the skillet).

3. Place the skillet over medium high heat and cook for 10 mins to get the potatoes on the bottom layer as well as the pan nice and hot. Cover with parchment paper, set a pie plate on top or another skillet transfer to the oven and bake for 20 minutes.

4. Remove the skillet/beans/plate, parchment and return to the oven to bake until deeply golden on top, this will take about another 20 minutes give or take. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool to room temp. Keep the oven on to cook the kale.

5. Grill the sausages over medium heat, 6 minutes per side. Remove from grill, let rest and slice to serve.

6. Toss the kale with a weeee bit of EVOO, salt and pepper and a hint of freshly grated nutmeg. Place the kale in the oven for 12-14 minutes until crispy.

Place a plate on the bottom of the pan of the potato cake and flip the pan over, transfer to a cutting board and slice like you would with a pie.

Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from My Year in Meals by Rachael Ray.

Carbonara Milenese

I do love pasta right - well Carbonara is yet another one of my favorite ways to eat pasta! Yum! Eggs, bacon and noodles, it's almost like breakfast pasta - yes please! This was a very delicious version especially because I used farm fresh eggs. I recently joined a local co-op in Kennesaw and I have to say that I am hooked! Yep - it is all it's cracked up to be. This past week I really stocked up in addition to my regular basket - I got the biggest, tastiest radishes for $1!!!
So back to the eggs - the yolks were bright yellow and large - so they made the creamiest sauce in combination with the saffron stock. I doubt the leftovers will stay long in our fridge for this one. I used bacon versus using pancetta - what?!, we always have bacon in our freezer so why would I go out and buy pancetta! LOL. Alright alright here is how I made it, thanks Rachael for another amazing meal!

Carbonara Milenese

Serves 4

Carbonara Milenese

ingredients

• 1 large yellow onion, minced

• 4 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 Fresno chile, seeded & minced

• 3 Tbsp EVOO

• 6 slices bacon, diced into 1" pieces

• 1/2 cup white wine

• 1 cup warm saffron stock (simmer a pinch of saffron threads in 1 cup water)

• 3 egg yolks

• 1 lb fettuccine

• 1 cup pecorino Romano cheese, grated
• 1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley

• Kosher Salt & Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

directions

1. Cook the bacon until almost crisp, drain all but 2 Tbsp of the grease. Add the onion, garlic & Fresno and cook in EVOO for 2-3 minutes until tender. Add some pepper, and stir then add the wine, keep warm.

2. Temper the egg yolks with a bit of the warm saffron stock (to keep the eggs from scrambling.) Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package directions. Toss the egg mixture, bacon sauce and noodles vigorously until well combined. Add the cheese and toss again. 

I had some green beans from the market so I quickly blanched them in the hot pasta water, before cooking the pasta. Then I tossed them with some homemade Dijon vinaigrette dressing I had in the fridge and served at room temperature. It's the simple things really - delish!

Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from My Year In Meals by Rachael Ray.

Smoky Huevos Rancheros

We had these delicious Huevos Rancheros over the weekend and they were so tasty! I have a hard time finding fresh chorizo at our local stores but I found a recipe online to make it yourself. It was actually super easy peasy and you can whip it up in a jiffy. The key is to use plain sausage, not Italian or anything similar. I used regular Jimmy Dean Hot sausage. For every pound combine the following once the meat is almost cooked through:  2 Tbsp cider vinegar, 2 cloves garlic (minced), 2 tsp fresh cilantro & 2 tsp chili powder.

Another great idea I'll use again from this recipe is crisping up corn tortillas in the oven versus frying them -they were crunchy and just as delicious.  So here's how we made this tasty breakfast...

Smoky Huevos Rancheros

Serves 4

Smoky Huevos Rancheros

ingredients

• 4 corn tortillas

• EVOO for brushing & grilling

• 1/2 small onion, finely chopped

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 tbsp pureed chipotle in adobo

• 14 oz diced tomatoes

• 8 oz can tomato sauce

• 2 green chiles, seeded and minced (roasted)

• 1 bay leaf

• 1 small cinnamon stick
• 1/3 lb fresh chorizo
• 15 oz black beans, rinsed & drained
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 4 extra large eggs
• juice of 1 lime
• 1 avocado, sliced
• 1 cup shredded Monterrey jack cheese
• 1 cup feta, crumbled
• small handful of cilantro leaves

• Kosher Salt & Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400º. Brush the tortillas with EVOO and season with salt. Arrange the tortillas on a rack on top of a baking sheet. Bake to crispy and golden - 10 minutes or so.

2. Meanwhile in a food processor, combine the onion, garlic, chipotle, tomatoes & sauce, process until smooth. Pour the sauce into a medium saucepan and add the bay leaf, Cinnamon, s&p and cook for 20 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and cinnamon stick.

3. Add some EVOO to a medium skillet and heat over medium-high heat Add the chorizo and brown, add the beans and cumin and reduce heat to low. Add a drizzle of EVOO to a nonstick skillet and cook the eggs how you like them.

4. Squeeze the lime juice over the sliced avocado. When serving, place a tortillas on a plate and top with some Monterrey jack cheese and black beans. Pour the red sauce over the beans in an thin even layer and top with some cheddar or feta. Top that with an egg, arrange the avocado around the dish and sprinkle with cilantro and more cheese.

Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from My Year in Meals by Rachael Ray.

Italian Style Pulled Pork

Mmmmm... I love finding new pulled pork recipes and this one is now probably in our top 5... the flavors are so different and it's got just enough spicy flavor! I halved the amount of the ingredients because I had a smaller piece of pork on hand already and it was still enough to feed 8 people (or more?) Most of Rachael Ray's recipes end up being more than enough for just the 2 of us. The sandwiches were huge so you really don't need to eat anything else with these but I did make Creamy Garlic Mashed Cauliflower as a side and that was divine as well. NOM NOM NOM.

I found some really yummy, spicy sharp shredded provolone cheese (to top the sammies) that left me wondering why I had never picked it up before - so good! I guess if you are not that into spicy food you can adjust this dish any way you like it - just don't use spicy peppers/cheese and you are good to go. I will say this one does have a bunch of prep - roasting the peppers, peeling them, making the sauce and prepping the meat, but it's so worth it.

Italian Style Pulled Pork

Serve 8

Italian Style Pulled Pork

ingredients

• 2 each of cubanelles, red bell peppers, green bell peppers, Fresno Chile & poblanos

• 3 lbs boneless pork shoulder

• Juice of 1/2 lemon

• 1/8 cup EVOO

• 1/2 head garlic, cloves cracked from skins

• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves stripped

• 1 tbsp thyme leaves

• 1/4 cup fresh parsley

• 1 onion, very thinly sliced

• 1/2 cup white wine (I used Marsala)

• Kosher Salt & Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

• 1 cup chicken stock
• 28 oz can whole tomatoes
• 8 Italian style sub rolls
• 2 cups shredded sharp provolone cheese

directions

1. Preheat the broiler and arrange the peppers (except 1 Fresno) on a baking sheet, char evenly on all sides. Place the charred peppers in a large bowl, seal with saran wrap and let steam until cool enough to handle. Remove the skins, seeds and slice thinly. Set aside.

2. Preheat the oven to 325º. Butterfly the pork shoulder open and flatten out. (I omitted this step because my pork was already somewhat butterflied open and flat enough to roll). Place the lemon juice, 1/16 cup EVOO in a food processor. Coarsely chop the Fresno and add to the processor with garlic, rosemary, thyme and parsley. Pulse until a pesto like consistency forms. Rub this sauce all over the meat then drizzle EVOO all over  to coat and season with S&P on all sides.  Using twine roll up the meat and tie together. Heat a large dutch oven over medium-high heat and brown the meat on all sides. Remove from dutch oven.

3. Add the onion and wine to the pot to deglaze. Add the stock and set the meat back into the pan. Pour the tomatoes and their juice over top the meat, breaking up the tomatoes with your fingers. Cover the pan and roast for 2 hours undisturbed.

4. Turn on the broiler, uncover the pan and broil to let the tomatoes brown. Remove from oven and let rest, covered, for 30 minutes. Shred the pork, place it in a dish, then strain the braising liquid (I used a mesh strainer) over top of the meat.

5. When ready to make the sandwiches, split the rolls and cover with cheese. Broil to melt. Top the cheese with peppers and meat, some more cheese and broil for another minute or two to melt the cheese. 

Enjoy! I'm sure the ideas are endless of what you could make with the leftovers! The meat definitely reheats well and we've been enjoying it all week.

This recipe was adapted from Rachael Ray's My Year in Meals.

Steaks with French Onions, Sour Cream Onion Rings & Creamed Spinach

Man oh man, when I found this bundle of recipes in RR's Cookbook I was like, that is like something we would get at a good restaurant. Well, I dove in right after that thought because it just sounded so good. All in all it wasn't that hard to make, well let me back up... when you deep fry anything it's kind of annoying and a lot of work/cleanup. But we do do it from time to time, because it's well freaking delicious right. Who doesn't like fried food!

So let's start off with the beef...

Steaks with French Onions

Serves 2

ingredients

• 2 Tbsp butter

• 1 large onion, very thinly sliced

• 1 bay leaf

• 1/16 tsp ground thyme

• 1 Tbsp flour

• 1/8 cup dry sherry

• 5.25 oz can beef consomme

• 2 steaks (We had rib eye)

• EVOO

• Kosher Salt & Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

directions

1.  In a cast iron skillet, heat the butter over medium-low heat, add the onions, bay, thyme, S&P to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are  caramel in color and are very soft for 40 minutes.

2. Sprinkle the caramelized onions with flour and cook for 1 minute, stirring. Stir in the sherry & deglaze the pan. Add the consomme and simmer for 5 minutes until very thick. Set aside and keep warm.

3. Heat a charcoal grill to medium high and prepare for grilling steaks.  Pat the meat very dry and season with S&P. Grill until desired doneness. Tent the steaks with foil on a plate to keep warm and let rest until ready to slice and serve. Top each serving with some of the onion gravy.

Now onto the onion rings... I don't know if I am doing something wrong but every time I have to dredge something I always run out of flour. So I made a note about that below - maybe I just use too much or something but I needed way more than what the original recipe called for. Oh well!

Sour Cream Onion Rings 

Serves 2

ingredients

• Canola oil, enough to deep fry 2" deep in a dutch oven
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 1/8 cup chopped fresh chives
• 1 cup flour, or more for dredging
• 1 medium yellow onion, cut into 1" thick rings

• Kosher Salt & Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

directions

1. Fill a large dutch oven with 2" canola oil. Set a thermometer in to monitor the heat. Bring the temp up to 350º. 

2. Whisk together the sour cream, buttermilk, chives & some S&P. Pour the flour in a shallow dish and season with S&P. Double-coat the onion rings: first in buttermilk, then flour, then repeat.

3. Fry only a few rings at a time to keep the oil at the correct temperature. Drain on paper towels and put on a wire rack over a baking sheet in a low temp oven to keep warm until ready to eat.

And finally onto the Creamed Spinach - holy flavor-town this stuff is good!

Creamed Spinach 

Serves 2

ingredients

• 1 tbsp butter
• 1/2 tbsp EVOO
• 1 small shallot or 1/4 red onion, minced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 scallion, minced
• 1/8 cup dry sherry
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 (6.5 oz) package Boursin cheese (I used garlic and herb), at room temp
• 1 bag spinach, roughly chopped (not too fine)

• Kosher Salt & Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

directions

1. In a large skillet, melt the butter & EVOO. Add the shallot, garlic and scallions and stir for 2 minutes. Add the sherry and stir for 2 more minutes. Add the cream and the nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste. Cook at a low bubble until reduced, about 5 minutes.

 

2. Stir in the cheese until melted. Add the spinach and wilt. Cover and let cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from Rachael Ray My Year in Meals.

Creamy Bow-ties with Sausage, Shrimp, Peas & Mint

This pasta dish was really flavorful!!! Loved the combination of sausage & shrimp and the yogurt creates a light, tangy sauce once you mix everything together. I cooked the sausage in a cast iron skillet over high heat and they key is not to disturb the meat while it sears. That way you end up with crusty bits on the sausage and shrimp too! I'm tellin' ya it adds a lot of flavor that way.

The leftovers were also very yummy - most pasta dishes do reheat well. I would definitely make this again... it has a sort of Greek feel to it. YUM!

Creamy Bow-ties with Sausage, Shrimp, Peas & Mint

Serves 4-6

Creamy Bow-ties with Sausage, Shrimp, Peas & Mint

ingredients

• 3/4 lb bow tie pasta

• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt

• 2 cloves garlic, minced or 1 tsp garlic powder

• 1 pinch cayenne pepper (or more)

• 3/4 lb mild Italian sausage, casings removed, meat torn into bite size pieces

• 2 cups thawed frozen peas

• 1/4 lb chopped raw shrimp

• 1 Tbsp fresh mint, chopped

• Kosher Salt & Freshly Cracked Black Pepper

directions

1. Cook the noodles until al dente according to package directions, drain but reserve about 1 cup of the cooking water. Set aside.

2. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, mix the yogurt and garlic, season with salt & cayenne.

3. In a large skillet, cook the sausage over medium-high heat (get a good sear on it for extra flavor), stir occasionally for 8 minutes. Add the shrimp during the last 4 minutes of cooking, season with S&P. Add the peas and cook for another minute or two. Add the pasta and 1/2 cup of the pasta water, toss adding any extra water to thin the sauce. Taste and season again with S&P if needed.

4. Top each serving with some of the yogurt mixture and mint.

Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from Everyday with Rachael Ray Magazine.

Yakitori Salmon with Cabbage, Noodle Salad

Hands Down this was some of the best grilled salmon we have eaten at home... Not sure if it was the sauce, grilling it on cast iron or the quality of salmon we had this time 'round but it was dang tasty! Don't like fish??? Well I bet this sauce would be great on chicken or pork - maybe even steak! Anyway, I couldn't find baby bok choy and since I needed to use the Napa cabbage for the noodle salad I just slathered some pieces of that with the sauce and tossed em on the grill - tasty!

The noodle salad was tasty but I have definitely made better versions of this type of salad before... you can find the recipe for the noodle salad online here:  Soba Noodles with Sesame Lime Dressing. Don't get me wrong, it was a good side dish but it lacked the flavor I was really anticipating. Oh well!

Yakitori Salmon

Serves 2

ingredients

• 1/6 cup soy sauce

• 1 tsp brown sugar

• 1 tsp grated fresh ginger

• 1 tsp dijon mustard

• 1/2 lb salmon fillet, cut into 1 1/2" cubes

• cabbage sliced or baby bok choy, halved

directions

1. Heat a cast iron grill pan over medium-high heat.

2. In a small saucepan, bring soy sauce, ginger & sugar to a boil, stirring...remove from heat. Stir in mustard until well combined. Set aside and let cool.

3.  Thread salmon onto metal skewers and brush with sauce - don't spare any! Brush the cabbage with some sauce too! Place skewers on one side of the grill and toss the cabbage onto the other. Cook on each side for a few minutes until the salmon is cooked through.

Serve with the noodle salad - NOM NOM NOM!!!

Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from Everyday with Rachael Ray Magazine.

Corkscrews 'n Broccoli, Peppers & Turkey

I was sifting through several of my April issues of the Everyday magazines and came across this one, it was cheap and easy to make. The flavor turned out pretty good considering the base is just pasta water! The original recipe called for broccolini but that is bitter and hard to come by - I threw in regular old broccoli and it was on sale so that was a plus. I had some feta in the fridge, so I said why not! Here is how I made it...

Corkscrews 'n Broccoli, Peppers & Turkey

Serves 4-6

ingredients

• 3/4 lb corkscrew pasta

• 1/4 cup EVOO

• 2 heads broccoli, trimmed into florets
• S&P
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 jarred roasted red peppers, rinsed and thinly sliced
• 1 lb ground turkey, patted dry
• feta cheese for topping

directions

1. Cook the pasta according to the package instructions, reserve 1 cup of the cooking water and drain the rest. Set aside.

2. Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp EVOO over medium-high heat and add the broccoli, season with S&P. Add 2 Tbsp water, cover and cook for 3 minutes until crisp but tender. The broccoli should be bright green. Remove and transfer to a bowl. Lower the heat to medium, add the remaining EVOO and the onion and cook for 8 minutes until onion is translucent. Season with S&P and add the crushed red pepper & garlic and cook for 1 minute. Push the onion to one side of the pan and increase the heat back up to medium-high and add the turkey, season. Cook the turkey until no longer pink and cooked through- you want it to get a tad bit of color on it for extra flavor so don't stir it around too much.

3. Combine the pasta, broccoli and the meat mixture in one pan and add the cooking water until it is the right consistency. Taste and add any additional seasonings you might like. Serve with bread and salad.

Enjoy!

This recipe was adapted from Everyday With Rachael Ray.