Monthly Archives: June 2012

Spinach and Mushroom Cream Sauce

29 Friday Jun 2012

Posted by in Cheese, Cooking, Dairy, Recipe, Vegetarian

≈ 1 Comment

Oh Yum! This delicious, rich and cheesy Spinach and Mushroom Cream Sauce served as a landing pad for the Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli with Three Cheeses and Basil I posted earlier this week.  I’m not going to argue against the calories contributed by the half and half, but I will point out that spinach is high in fiber, and you get plenty of calcium in each serving of the sauce, so go ahead and make a batch!


Spinach and Mushroom Cream Sauce


Ingredients


2 teaspoons olive oil

1/2 large onion, finely diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 container sliced mushrooms

9 ounces fresh spinach leaves

1 cup half and half

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup chopped basil

2-3 teaspoons lemon juice


salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1.  Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add onion, garlic, and mushrooms.  Saute, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables become tender and golden brown.

2.  Stir in spinach, in batches, if necessary.  Cook until spinach wilts completely, about 3 minutes.

3.  Pour in half and half, lower the heat, and simmer the sauce until it thickens, 10-15 minutes.

4.  Add Parmesan cheese and basil and season with lemon juice, salt and pepper.

5.  Ladle the sauce on the bottom of the plate and serve with Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli or your favorite pasta.

Can you think of another use for the sauce?  Do share!

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Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli with Three Cheeses and Basil

26 Tuesday Jun 2012

Posted by in Cooking, Dinner, Gifts, Lunch, Recipe, Vegetables, Vegetarian

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To celebrate my friend’s birthday, I offered three choices – a gift, dinner/drinks out, or a homemade meal.  Priya, the birthday girl, picked the homemade meal.  Once we agreed on the date and time, I asked Priya to send me a few options for a recipe to prepare. 

The night before I got her answer, I was staring at a butternut squash, thinking how delicious it would be turned into ravioli.  I kid you not, but I almost fell off my chair when the next morning I read Priya’s message, requesting butternut squash ravioli for dinner.  I guess it was meant to be!

On the night of the dinner, Priya came over and we assembled these delicious Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli with Three Cheeses and Basil along with the Spinach and Mushroom Cream Sauce.

How do you make the ravioli at home?  Originally, I was considering using fresh pasta for the ravioli, but unfortunately my grocery store did not carry this item.  Rather than using won ton wrappers and boiling ravioli, I chose the thicker and larger version of the won ton wrappers – egg roll wrappers.  After we stuffed and formed the ravioli, we baken them in the oven, skipping the mess of boiling altogether.


Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli with Three Cheeses and Basil

Ingredients

4 cups roasted butternut squash

1 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/4 cup basil, chopped

2 garlic cloves, grated

salt and coarsely ground pepper to taste

16 egg roll wrappers

1 egg, beaten

olive oil

coarsely ground sea salt

Directions

1.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2.  Combine the squash together with the cheese, basil, garlic, salt and pepper.  Stir well, taste, and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.


3.  Arrange egg roll wrappers on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.




4.  Scoop the filling in the middle of each wrapper and brush the exposed wrapper with a beaten egg.


5.  Cover each ravioli with a second piece of wrapper and form into a shape, being careful to remove air bubbles.  Press the two layers of wrapper together – here is where the egg becomes in handy and acts as glue.

6.  Cut out the shape of each ravioli, brush with olive oil and sprinkle with coarsely ground sea salt.

Priya and I played with different shape for the ravioli and made three varieties!


7.  Bake the ravioli in the preheated oven for about 15-20 minutes, or until they are golden brown.  I preferred mine slightly crispy on the outside, while Priya loved the soft ravioli.


We arranged the ravioli on top of a puddle of Spinach and Mushroom Cream Sauce and cheered to Priya’s birthday with a glass of red wine.


Feel free to garnish with fresh basil and an extra sprinkle of grated Parmesan cheese.  The ravioli will keep in the refrigerator for several days and can be pan sauted to reheat.  Enjoy!



I’m looking forward to celebrating more birthdays with this sunshine.  Thanks for your friendship, smiles, hugs, chocolate, and a candle. xoxo

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Jasmine Rice Pilaf with Dried Apricots, Prunes and Toasted Walnuts

22 Friday Jun 2012

Posted by in Cooking, Fruit, Gluten Free, GlutenFree, Recipe, Rice, Vegetarian

≈ 1 Comment

Last Saturday night, as I was marinating the lamb for the Pomegranate Molasses Roasted Leg of Lamb, I decided to be a great daughter, and for once, do what my mom suggested – make rice!

You see, when bribing my mom with a home cooked lamb dinner, to get a few stems of her gorgeous peonies from the front yard, I asked her what she wanted as a side.  She asked for rice.
Since “plain” is not a word in my vocabulary, nor is it in hers, I decided to make a spectacular side rice dish that could shine along what proved to be a fantastic lamb recipe.  This one is it – Jasmine Rice Pilaf with Dried Apricots, Prunes, and Toasted Walnuts. 
Good thing for all your vegetarian and gluten-free family and friends – this recipe is delicious and filling on its own.  Just yesterday, I enjoyed the pilaf leftovers, jazzed up with soy sauce and sesame oil as a base for sauteed eggplant and vegetables. 
Enjoy!


Jasmine Rice Pilaf with Dried Apricots, Prunes, and Toasted Walnuts

Ingredients

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 large shallot, finely diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 cups Jasmine rice

salt and pepper to taste

4 cups water

1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped

1/2 cup dried prunes, chopped

1 cup toasted walnuts, chopped

Directions

1.  Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat.  Add shallot and garlic and saute for 3 minutes, stirring often.

2.  Add the rice to the shallot and garlic and stir to coat each granule of rice with oil.  Saute for 3 more minutes.  Season with salt and pepper.

3.  Cover the rice with water and bring it up to a boil.  Lower the heat to low, cover the saucepan with a lid, and simmer the rice for 15 minutes, or until the water has absorbed completely and the rice is tender.

4.  Let the rice sit for 5 minutes.

5.  Stir in apricots, prunes, and walnuts right before serving.  Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.

Here it is!  The pilaf is served in a gorgeous bowl that was a gift from Priya – thanks sunshine, I love it!

And just in case you were wondering how the rice pilaf looked along the Pomegranate Molasses Roasted Leg of Lamb – not too shabby!

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Pomegranate Molasses Roasted Leg of Lamb

18 Monday Jun 2012

Posted by in Cooking, Dinner, Lamb, Meat, Recipe

≈ 3 Comments

It’s not every day you arrive home to a box of lamb.  Ground lamb, rib roast,  and boneless leg, the three cuts were nicely packed and kept cold by bags of ice inside the styrofoam box.  I stacked the ground lam and rib roast in the freezer and stared at the boneless leg of lamb.  The gift arrived from Superior Farms to promote their Supper Club facebook group. Have you liked it yet?

I decided to skip the traditional rosemary that so often adorns the lamb, and instead, opened a bottle of pomegranate molasses – the fantastic, dark ruby-red liquid with both sweet and sour tones.  I married the molasses with olive oil and garlic and appropriately called the recipe Pomegranate Molasses Roasted Leg of Lamb.  Do you think it’s worth $500 photo contest prize? … I hope so!

Are you curious about the colorful rice dish pictured along the lamb?  I will be posting the recipe for the Jasmine Rice Pilaf with Dried Apricots, Prunes and Toasted Walnuts later this week, so be sure to come back!

And now we are ready to roast some lamb!  Let me just say that this recipe got rave reviews from both my mom and the Artist.  I would like to thank both of them for their patience while I cooked, photographed, stressed, and then served.  And many thanks to Superior Farms for the lamb, I look forward to cooking more delicious lamb-y meals in the future.


Pomegranate Molasses Roasted Leg of Lamb

Ingredients


1 boneless leg of lamb

1/4 cup pomegranate molasses

1/4 cup olive oil

6-8 garlic cloves, chopped

salt

coarsely ground black pepper

Directions

1.  Marinate the leg of lamb in pomegranate molasses, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.  If you have time, marinate over night, in a large ziploc bag, in the refrigerator.  Be sure to massage and flip the bag from time to time to allow the lamb to marinate evenly.  If short on time, marinate the lamb for at least one hour.

2.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees and heat a cast iron skillet over medium high heat.

3.  Remove the lamb from the marinade and sear fat side down in the cast iron skillet for 5 minutes.

4.  Flip the lamb and roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes until it is cooked to your desired doneness.

5.  Remove the lamb from the oven and rest on the cutting board for at least 15 minutes to allow the juices inside the lamb to redistribute.

6.  Slice the lamb against the grain into slices.

7.  Serve the lamb with your side of choice, or check back this week for a  Jasmine Rice Pilaf with Dried Apricots, Prunes and Toasted Walnuts recipe.  And don’t forget a glass of red wine.

One of the best parts of this lamb was the crisp skin, coated in the sweet and sour pomegranate molasses.  The lamb itself was buttery and tender.  I’m excited to have it as leftovers for lunch.

Hope you try this recipe along with many products from Superior Farms.

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Brunch at the Fat Hen in Seattle – Will it Make You Fat?

15 Friday Jun 2012

Posted by in Breakfast, Brunch, Eggs, Restaurant Review, Seattle

≈ 1 Comment

One of the best things about the weekend is brunch!  Alcoholic beverages in the morning, hanging out with friends, crisp fried potatoes, and bright oozing egg yolks.  As much as I cook brunch at home, I love going out for brunch and have someone else wash the dishes.  Last week, my dear friend Lera took my sister and me to her local neighborhood brunch place – The Fat Hen.  Two words – charming and delicious!

We started with drinks – 1 grapefruit with sparkling wine, and 2 rhubarb fizz with a piece of candied rhubarb inside.  A few of us …. I’m not going to name any names, had a second round of drinks before the end of brunch.

While waiting for our main course to arrive, we nibbled on a bowl of delicious cured olives, bathed in olive oil and dressed with orange zest.

I snapped a photo of my Eggs Benedict served on a house-made English muffin with a thin slice of Canadian bacon, hollandaise and roasted new potatoes.  To make it just a bit healthier I requested an addition of spinach to the eggs. 

These tasted as good, or better, as they looked!  The hollandaise was light and creamy, with just enough acidity.  The potatoes were lovely and tender.  And the running yolk ran around the plate, bringing all the flavors together.

Thank you!

Next time you are in the mood for brunch, stop by at The Fat Hen.

1418 NW 70th st. Seattle, WA 98117
hours:W-F 7:30 – 2:30, F 5-9, S & S 8 – 3

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Individual "Cupcake" Frittatas with Smoked Salmon and Roasted Poblano Peppers

12 Tuesday Jun 2012

Posted by in Breakfast, Brunch, Cooking, Eggs, Fish, Recipe

≈ 3 Comments

Imitation is the greatest form of flattery, but what happens when you imitate yourself?  In my case, you come up with yet another combination of ingredients for the Muffin/Cupcake Individual Breakfast Frittatas.  This time around, I build these mini-in-size but colossal-in-flavor breakfast delights around smoked salmon and a roasted poblano pepper.

Along with the salmon and the pepper, I threw in a few other refrigerator hermits for color, texture, and flavor.

Just in case you might be curios about the origins of this recipe, previous versions include Broccoli and Italian Sausage Egg Muffins and Roasted Vegetable Frittatas.


Individual Frittatas with Smoked Salmon and Roasted Poblano



Ingredients

nonstick spray

1 cup smoked salmon, broken into pieces

1 roasted poblano pepper, seeded and chopped

1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

6 spears blanched asparagus, sliced

10 large eggs

1/2 cup half and half

1/4 cup chopped dill

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

dash of cayenne pepper

salt and pepper to taste

4 ounces grated Mozzarella cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Liberally spray a 12-cup muffin tin with non-stick olive oil spray or grease with butter.

2. Combine smoked salmon, poblano and bell peppers, and asparagus in a bowl.  Evenly divide the ingredients among the 12 muffin cups.

3.  Whisk together eggs, half and half, dill, oil, baking powder, cayenne, salt and pepper.

4. Pour the egg mixture over the salmon and the vegetables.  Use a ladle or a liquid measuring cup with a spout to make pouring mess-free.

5. Sprinkle frittatas with Mozzarella cheese.

6.  Bake for 20 minutes or until the eggs are set and the cheese has melted.  

7.  Cool frittatas slightly and remove out of the muffin tin; serve immediately.  Try using a paring or a butter knife to run along the edges of the frittatas to help releasing them from the pan.  

If you happen to have a few frittatas leftover, wrap them well in plastic wrap and freeze them for last-minute brunch guests or for daily breakfast-on-the-go.


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