Thanksgiving Recycled

Well, Thanksgiving is over. The kitchen is cleaned. The crowds have gone home. And here you sit with a fridge full of leftovers asking the question we ask every year...what do I do with all of it? We've come up with some of our favorite recipes that take leftovers to a whole new level.

After a morning filled with shopping and scoring awesome deals, why not take a break with a yummy Turkey Cranberry Panini. Simple and delicious this sandwich is sure to please!

Turkey Cranberry Panini

• Your favorite bread...sliced or a roll, it's up to you!
• Leftover turkey
  
• Leftover cranberry relish/sauce
• Swiss cheese
• Mayo and/or Mustard

Combine all your ingredients and make a sandwich as usual. Then butter the outside of your bread and grill in a saute pan over medium heat or in a panini press until bread is golden and crispy and the cheese is melted! Serve and enjoy!

After such a tasty lunch, who wouldn't be in the mood for something sweet? Plain old leftover pumpkin pie not doing it for you? Try this Pumpkin Pie Brulee. It's a yummy twist on one of our favorite desserts.

Leftover Pumpkin Pie Brulee (Michael Chiarello)

• Leftover pumpkin pie
• 5 tablespoons sugar

Peel crust off the outside of overturned pieces of pie and line the inside of small ramekins or coffee cups with the pie crust pieces. Spoon pumpkin pie filling equally into small ramekins or stoneware coffee cups.

Sprinkle a tablespoon of sugar over the filling in each ramekin.

Using a mini-torch, torch the top until sugar is caramelized. The ramekins can also be browned under a broiler. If using a broiler, stick the cups inside a pan filled with 1/2-inch of water and place under the broiler until just browned on top.

And now for what to do with all those mashed potatoes? How about whipping up a savory Shepard's pie for dinner?

Shepard's Pie with Mushroom Onion Gravy (Sunny Anderson)

• Leftover mashed potatoes
  
• 3 tablespoons butter
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Salt
  
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 pounds ground beef (85 percent lean)
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/2 cup low-sodium beef stock
• 1/2 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, julienned
• 2 zucchini, julienned
• 2 carrots, peeled and grated
• 1 teaspoon Hungarian hot paprika, plus more for garnish
• 4 ounces Havarti cheese, grated
• Mushroom Onion Gravy, recipe follows

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large pan on medium-high heat, combine 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil. When butter has melted, add beef, Worcestershire sauce, cayenne pepper and salt and pepper, to taste, and cook until meat is brown. Stir in tomato paste and saute for a few minutes. Add stock and bring to a simmer. Season and remove mixture to a bowl. In the same pan, add remaining butter and oil and saute onions until almost tender, then add red bell pepper, zucchini, carrots and paprika. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

To assemble, in a 9 by 12-inch baking dish layer half of beef, pressing down to pack in, then sprinkle the cheese on evenly. Pour the remaining half of the beef over the cheese and press down. Next, add the sauteed vegetables and top with the mashed potatoes, spreading out with a spatula or the back of a spoon to even out and to form decorative peaks and valleys. Sprinkle top with paprika and bake for 30 minutes or until edges on potatoes turn golden brown. Serve with Mushroom Onion Gravy.

Mushroom Onion Gravy

nocoupons

• 1/2 large onion, chopped
• 8 ounces white button mushrooms, sliced
• 3 tablespoons oil
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup red wine
• 2 cups beef broth
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, saute onions and mushrooms in oil until tender and mushrooms release their moisture, about 5 minutes. Add flour and stir to evenly coat. Slowly whisk in wine and then the broth. Simmer until thickened and season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Thank you for letting us share some of our favorite thanksgiving leftover meals with you! Now we are off to enjoy some hot cocoa and holiday movies...after all there's only 28 days left until Christmas!

Happy Cooking Everyone!

The Cooking Contessas

"O" is for Omlettes!

Yesterday was a wonderful day!! It was the first day in a very long time that we had nothing planned. We slept in, stayed in our jammies and watched cartoons with the kids…the best! Since we had slept in, it seemed that we had woken up more hungry than usual. I went and looked in the fridge to see what I could come up with. I knew we were out of breakfast meat, but then I saw the package of cubed pancetta, and I thought an omelette would be perfect! I grabbed the pancetta, a few eggs, some crimini mushrooms, lite shredded cheese, fresh flat leaf parsley and a shallot and began to get to work.


I finely chopped one shallot and set it aside. I then finely chopped some fresh flat leaf parsley for garnish and set that aside as well. I got the pancetta sautéing in a pan and then added the mushrooms and shallots to the pan so they could all cook together until the pancetta was crispy and the mushrooms and shallots were tender and golden. I preheated a saute pan over medium heat and made sure to spray it with non-stick cooking spray. (you can also add a tiny bit of butter to the pan too…but I omitted it for a lower fat option) Once the pan was heated, I poured half of my egg mixture in (2 egg yolks and 3 egg whites, beaten with low-fat milk and seasoned with Salt, Pepper and Garlic Powder) and began to swirl the pan. I have found the best method for making an omelette came from Emeril Lagasse. You stir the eggs slightly until they are just set on the bottom.  When the eggs were set, and just a tiny bit undercooked on top, I sprinkled a little bit of Trader Joes Lite Shredded Cheese mixture on half of the eggs, and then topped it with the pancetta, shallot and mushroom mixture. I then carefully folded the side with nothing on it over the top of all of the delicious fillings! I let that cook for another minute, then carefully flipped it over to continue cooking for another minute. Once it had cooked on both sides for a minute and the cheese was bubbling out the side, I knew it was ready…to be devoured!! I slid the omelette onto the plate, sprinkled it with a little bit of the parsley for some color, and began the process again. They were so yummy!! The crunch of the crispy pancetta, mixed with the smooth taste of sautéed mushrooms and shallots all enveloped in a cheesy blanket and fluffy eggs…divine! Perfect way to start out a very laid back day! So relax, enjoy and always…

Happy Cooking!!

Countdown to Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is just a few days away, and I can hardly wait! I have so much to be thankful for, and I am so blessed to be able to spend this holiday with my wonderful family. Gathering around the table, talking, laughing, and reminiscing about old times are wonderful ways to spend the day. Preparing for Thanksgiving can be a busy, stressful time but if you slow down enough to take it all in, it can truly be a wonderful experience. Shopping for just the right turkey, gathering all your yummy ingredients, the delicious scents as everything is baking! Cooking the cranberry sauce on the stove fills the house with smells of this season…bringing to mind images of cheery fires, ice skating, and hot cocoa. And bonus..it can be made a day ahead leaving more time for watching the 83rd Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade! I love the parade. The dancers, the floats, the music. Sitting around with my niece and nephew and watching their faces light up as they see Dora the Explorer or Spiderman go by! And finally…Santa! Santa marks the end of the parade, but the beginning of the Christmas season (for most people…I myself have been celebrating it for months!) Sitting here writing this I am getting more and more excited for Thanksgiving! I’d like to take a moment to remind everyone that while delicious food is of course a very enjoyable part of the day; it is more importantly a day to remember all those things that you are thankful for. Last year, we started a tradition with my niece and nephew of baking cookies for our local Police Officers. A small way for us to say thank you to the men and women who devote thier lives to keeping our cities safe. This year we will continue this tradition, with one change…my church is getting in on the action! We are having a  “Cookie Exchange”, but instead of keeping the cookies we will be bringing them to our local Police Department. Which reminds me, I still need to decide what treats to make! And speaking of food, you are probably wondering what I am making for Thanksgiving! Well, this year, we are celebrating at my sister’s house and she and I are sharing the cooking responsibilities. On my list? Green Bean Casserole, Mashed Potatoes, Cranberry Sauce, and Pumpkin Cookies. On a quest last year to find the very best side dishes, I scoured my favorite website…foodnetwork.com =-D Looking to my cooking heroes (Paula Deen, Giada De Laurentiis, Rachael Ray, Bobby Flay, and Tyler Florence) for inspiration I finally found some delicious recipes that made my Thanksgiving! All of them will be making a comeback this year (as my NEW Thanksgiving  traditions!), and my pumpkin cookies will see their very first holiday gathering! So, I’m off to gather my recipes and double check my ingredients…but not before sharing my favorite recipes with you =-D

Happy Cooking!

Green Bean Casserole (Paula Deen)

• 1/3 stick butter
• 1/2 cup diced onions
• 1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
• 2 cups sliced green beans
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 (10 3/4-ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 (2.8-ounce) can French-fried onion rings
• Pinch House Seasoning, recipe follows
• 1 cup grated Cheddar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Melt the butter in a large skillet. Saute the onions and mushrooms in the butter. Boil green beans in chicken broth for 10 minutes and drain. Add the green beans, mushroom soup, onion rings, and House Seasoning, to taste, to the onion mixture. Stir well. Pour into a greased 1 1/2-quart baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes, then top the casserole with the Cheddar and bake for 10 minutes longer, or until the casserole is hot and cheese is melted.
House Seasoning

• 1 cup salt
• 1/4 cup black pepper
• 1/4 cup garlic powder

Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

Parmesan Mashed Potatoes

• 8 Russet potatoes (more or less depending on how many people you are serving)
• Black pepper and salt to taste
• 5 garlic cloves (you can use more or less, depending on how much you like garlic!)
• Fresh grated parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups milk (Heavy cream or half and half can be substituted)
• Extra virgin olive oil

In a large pot, combine the potatoes, 2 tsp. salt, and enough cold water to cover the potatoes. Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower the heat and cook until potatoes are fork tender. In the meantime, roast the 5 garlic cloves (peeled) with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkle of salt for 10 minutes in a 400 F oven. Remove the garlic from oven, smash into a paste and set aside. When the potatoes are done, drain them and return them to the pot. Shake the pot over medium heat for about a minute to dry the potatoes. Transfer potatoes to a bowl. Put the milk and butter in a saucepan, and heat over medium-high heat until the butter melts and the milk is hot. Remove pan from heat. Mash the potatoes with a potato masher and add in the milk, butter, and garlic paste. Sprinkle in freshly grated parmesan, salt and pepper to taste.

Cranberry Sauce (Norma Jean Harden, Foodnetwork.com)

• 1 pound (4 cups) fresh cranberries
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 whole orange, unpeeled, seeds removed, and chopped fine
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 cup crushed pineapple, drained
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• Sprinkle ground cinnamon

Wash cranberries and set aside.
Bring sugar and water to a boil. Add cranberries, oranges, and cloves. Simmer over a high flame, stirring frequently, until berries pop open. Add crushed pineapple, walnuts, and cinnamon, and blend. Cool and serve.

For Pumpkin Cookie recipe see “Tis the season for…PUMPKIN COOKIES!” blog

These mashed potatoes are so creamy...

This week my Saturday started at 5:45am. Up before the sun, I got ready and headed off to work. Luckily for me, I had a very short shift and soon I was on my way home and ready for another marathon cookie baking day! As I have mentioned before, each week I bake cookies to give to visitors at my church. This week I was making my pumpkin cookies. I had already made a “test batch” earlier this week, and now it was time to bake and box about 5 dozen cookies. In between batches I curled up on the couch to watch Christmas movies (thank you Hallmark and ABC Family Channel!!!!)  After a busy afternoon of mixing and baking, I realized that I was starting to get hungry and decided to get started on an early dinner. My mom had laid out a chicken, so I set to work preparing it for the oven. My oven was already at 350 F for my cookies, so I bumped it up to 375 F and once my chicken was ready, I slid it in and set the timer for 1 hr 30 min. Then it was back to Christmas movies, and getting my cookie boxes ready. To go with my pumpkin cookies, I had orange tissue paper and ribbon to decorate my boxes. I got busy tying and curling my ribbon and getting the boxes ready for cookies. Then, once my cookies were cool I got them all frosted and into the boxes. By this time I had about 40 min. left for my chicken, and it was time to start the rest of the food. I got the potatoes peeled and boiling on the stove and my green beans cooking in some chicken broth. I drizzled my bread with olive oil and sprinkled a little fresh grated parmesan cheese on top. Like a perfectly choreographed musical number I danced around the kitchen…taking my chicken out of the oven, raising the temperature to 400 F and sliding my bread in for ten minutes. Draining my potatoes and mashing them with butter, milk, pepper, garlic salt, and parmesan cheese…everything was coming together beautifully. I took a quick taste of my green beans, they were perfect! Pulling the bread out of the oven, I glanced at the clock…it was 6:55pm. Perfect timing. I poured myself a tall glass of milk, plated my food and sat down with my parents just in time to watch “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year” on the Hallmark channel =-D I love the Holiday season.

Happy Cooking!

Mindy’s Roast Chicken

1 Whole Chicken (4-5lbs)
Pepper, Garlic Salt, Ground Sage, Crushed Rosemary and Thyme leaves.
Butter

Pre-heat oven to 375 F. Remove chicken from bag and rinse with cold water. Remove giblets. Pat dry with a paper towel and transfer to roasting pan. Rub entire outside with butter, and under skin where you can. Season with pepper, garlic salt, ground sage, crushed rosemary and thyme leaves to taste. Remember to crush the rosemary and thyme in your hand with your thumb to release the aroma and flavor. Once chicken is seasoned place in the oven. Chicken should be cooked 20 minutes per pound, and is done when it is 180 degrees F.

Mashed Potatoes

6 Russett potatoes
1/4 cup milk
1/4 – 1/2 cup butter
Garlic Salt
Pepper
1/4 cup Grated parmesan

Peel and dice all potatoes and place in large pot. Fill with enough water to cover the potatoes and place on stove over medium/high heat. Bring water to boil and allow to boil until potatoes are fork tender. Drain water and return to pot or large bowl. With a potato masher, mash in milk, butter, pepper, garlic salt, and grated parmesan cheese. (You can also use a mixer if you prefer.)

Green Beans

1 can green beans
Pepper
2 cups chicken broth

Cook green beans over medium/low heat in the chicken broth for about 20 minutes  and then season with pepper.
(You can cook them longer…it all depends on how “done” you like them!)

Parmesan Bread

Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Grated Parmesan Cheese
Bread (whatever is fine…sourdough, ciabatta, etc.)

Pre-heat oven to 400 F. Place bread on a cooking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with the grated parmesan cheese and place in oven for 10 minutes.

For Pumpkin Cookie recipe, see “Tis the season for…PUMPKIN COOKIES blog

Pizza Throwdown!

It’s Friday night and the mood is right…gunna have some fun, show you how it’s done…TGIF! Well, it’s Friday night and that means two things…it’s pizza night! and Monk is on =-D We took advantage of the afternoon break in the rain to run out to Trader Joe’s and pick up a few ingredients we needed. After which we of course popped into Starbucks to get a tasty Caramel Brule Latte! Home at last, and ready for some food, we set to work prepping our ingredients. Megan was making a delicious 4 cheese, sweet Italian chicken sausage pizza and I was making my BBQ chicken pizza. We got out our cutting boards, starting roasting our garlic, and starting rolling out our dough. Chop. Chop. Saute. Roll. Sprinkle. Dice. Soon our pizzas were sauced, cheesed, topped and ready for the oven! When the crust was nice and crispy, and the cheese a perfect golden brown we knew they were ready to eat! Out of the oven and onto the plate, we sat down to our favorite Friday night meal and dug in! Both pizzas were delicious! Now we are getting ready to relax with some hot tea, cookies, and Monk courtesy of DVR. What cookies you ask? Well, luckily we both had leftover dough so we are indulging in some Pumpkin Cookies and Chocolate Chip Cookies with Hazelnut! Yummy!


Happy Cooking!

Megan’s Four Cheese Italian Chicken Sausage Pizza

1 store bought pizza dough
1 bag (I use 3/4 of the bag for a large size pizza) Trader Joe’s Quattro Formaggio Cheese
1 roasted red bell pepper, diced (Trader Joe’s sells roasted red bell peppers in a jar, they come 3 to a jar)
1/2 cup sliced crimini mushrooms (sautéed in olive oil)
4 cloves garlic, smashed and roasted until it can be easily made into a paste
2 sweet Italian chicken sausages, diced (sold at Trader Joe’s in the meat section. Sausages are pre-cooked, and just need to be heated through)
Trader Joes pizza sauce (sold in a jar near the pasta sauces)

Set dough out for 20 minutes and pre-heat oven to 450 degrees.  Smash four cloves of garlic and place on a piece of aluminum foil. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse sea salt. Gather foil together at the top and twist tightly so no oil will leak out, and place in the preheated oven. Lightly flour your workspace as well as the dough and rolling in. Roll out dough to desired thickness. I like a nice crispy crust, so I roll the dough out thin enough to get a nice crunch to the crust. (Make sure you don’t roll it out too thin though, otherwise the dough will rip or tear, and may not be able to hold up under all the toppings. I’ve learned the hard way!) Place the dough on pizza pan and make sure it is smooth and free of tears or rips in the dough.  Spoon on the pizza sauce and spread evenly over the crust,making sure to leave a free edge of unsauced crust. After garlic has been roasting about 5-7 minutes, and becomes fragrant, take out foil package and open carefully. Dump contents onto cutting board and with the flat side of a large chefs knife, gently mash the garlic into a paste. Spread the paste all over the pizza sauce, mixing the roast garlic paste in with the pizza sauce. YUM! Next top the pizza with the 4 cheese blend. Sprinkle the crimini mushrooms and diced chicken sausage (which I sautéed in olive oil, together, until the sausage was browned and the mushrooms were tender) Lastly, for a nice pop of color, sprinkle the diced roasted red pepper on top of the pizza. Place into the 450 degree oven and bake for 15 minutes, or until the cheese is nice and golden and bubbly. Slice pizza with a pizza cutter and enjoy!!! Mangia Bene! 

Mindy’s BBQ Chicken Pizza

1 store bought pizza dough
3 -4 tbsp. BBQ sauce (you can put as much as you like…I just don’t like a ton of sauce)
2-3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
2 bell peppers, diced (red, green, yellow, or orange..whatever combo you like!)
1/2 onion, diced
5 pieces bacon, cooked and chopped
1 cup grilled chicken strips, chopped (I like Trader Joe’s Just Grillin’  Chicken Strips)
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Set dough out for 20 minutes and pre-heat oven to 450 F. Mince two cloves of garlic and place on a piece of aluminum foil. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake in oven for about 10 minutes, then set aside.  In a medium size pan cook up the bacon. When the bacon is done set it aside and toss the chicken into the pan with the bacon grease. Cook until chicken is no longer frozen and is slightly browned. Add in bell peppers and onions and cook for about 4 minutes. Turn off heat and set pan aside. Sprinkle rolling surface with flour and roll out your dough to the desired thickness. Transfer dough to pizza pan. Top with bbq sauce, roasted garlic, and cheese. Spoon on chicken mixture and add bacon, and bake in the oven for 15 minutes or until cheese is golden brown.

Breakfast at Mindy's

Today was my day off…so when I woke up I decided to go ahead and whip myself up a yummy breakfast! At my house we absolutely love breakfast potatoes, usually with bacon and bell peppers and such. I decided to take our standard and mix it up a little bit. I started off by dicing up my potatoes into bite size pieces, spraying them with a little cooking spray (to keep them from sticking to each other) and topping them off with some seasonings. Black pepper, garlic salt, and cayenne pepper =-D I LOVE cayenne pepper on my breakfast potatoes…but you can always omit this if you are not into spicy. Into the microwave they went for 3-4 minutes. While those were cooking, I heated up some olive oil in a medium pan and added in some minced garlic and a package of pre-diced pancetta. I let those hang out for a few minutes and then added in the potatoes. Over about medium heat I let this mixture finish cooking…about 7-10 minutes depending on how you like your potatoes. Once the potatoes were done and perfectly browned I added in about 3 cups of baby spinach and let it wilt down. Then it was into a serving bowl! I topped my potato mixture with some fresh grated parmesan cheese and voila! It was just starting to rain outside and get pretty windy, so into the sitting room I went for breakfast by the fireplace. A wonderful beginning, to a great day!

Happy Cooking!

Breakfast Potatoes with Pancetta and Spinach

3 medium-sized russet potatoes
Cooking Spray
Pepper, Salt, Garlic Salt, Cayenne Pepper (to taste)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cups diced pancetta
3-4 cups baby spinach
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Let's toast to roast!

Things run a little differently in my house.  With my husbands work schedule, our weekend starts a little later than most. Monday nights are when we have our big family dinner. The weather was a perfect example of a beautiful yet brisk fall day. I knew that comfort food would be just the thing to warm us up inside.  On the menu was a pot roast with porcini mushrooms and to go alongside, herb and cheese polenta…made from scratch. Italian comfort food at it’s finest! The recipe I had serves 8-10 but I knew that would be too much for us…so I cut the recipe in half and had plenty for dinner and leftovers the next day, yum!

I started out with a 2 1/2 lb boneless beef chuck roast. While the oven was preheating at 350 degrees, I patted the beef dry with a paper towel, to make sure all the extra juices were removed. I gave it a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper before I gently placed it into 1 tbsp of olive oil that had been heating over medium high heat. The beef sizzled happily as it hit the oil and for the next 10 minutes I made sure that it was nicely browned on all sides, making sure not to rush this process, since this is what gives the beef such a deep flavor in the end. Once the beef was nicely browned, I transferred it to a bowl to rest. I reduced the heat to medium and added 1 finely chopped onion to the pan to saute until tender, while scraping up all the brown bits on the bottom of the pan in the process. After the onions had become nice and tender, about 3 minutes, I added 5 cloves of coarsely chopped garlic to the onions. After about 1 minute, I added 1/2 a cup of dry red wine and let it come to a nice boil for about 1 minute. Once the wine, garlic and onions had come to a beautiful bubble, I added 3/4 cup of low sodium beef broth as well as a few dried porcini mushrooms. I gently lowered the beef back into the pot of the bubbling fragrant liquid and covered it. (this is the point where if you do not have an oven safe pot or dutch oven, you may transfer the beef and liquid to a baking dish and seal tightly with aluminum foil) I placed the covered dish into the oven  and left it to become beautifully braised and fork tender. After about 1 hour, I made sure to turn the roast over and ladle some of the liquid over the top of, just for added flavor. Once I popped it back in the oven for the last 35 minutes, I set to work on my side dish…herb and cheese polenta. Polenta is to the Italians what mashed potatoes are to us Americans. They serve it alongside any type of roast, meat or poultry. The herbs just added a little bit of class to these to make them extra “fancy”.

The recipe again said it would serve 8-10, so you can adjust it accordingly for your family’s needs.

I started by bringing the water to a boil in a large pot. After liberally salting the water, I gradually whisked in the yellow cornmeal. I then reduced the heat to low and cooked the mixture, making sure to stir often, until it was thick and the cornmeal became nice and tender. After about 12 minutes I removed it from the heat and added the freshly grated parmesan cheese, milk, butter and herbs. After a dash of pepper, I stirred until the cheese and butter and melted into the velvety polenta. By the time I was done with this, the roast had been pulled from the oven and was resting in its own juices. I transferred the succulent roast to a cutting board and sliced it against the grain into 1/2″ thick slices. I scooped a nice serving of polenta into the center of the plate, making a creamy and delicious bed for the roast to set on. I placed a few slices of the beef on the polenta and then drizzled yummy sauce right over the top of it all. My mouth was watering…it smelled and looked amazing! We all sat down and indulged in the fine art of comfort food…Italian style. A perfect end to a perfect day!

Happy Cooking

Pot Roast with Porcini Mushrooms
(adapted from Giada’s Family Dinners, page 174)

Serves 8-10 (adjust accordingly)

1 (5lb) boneless beef chuck roast
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp olive oil
2 onions chopped
6 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
1 cup dry red wine
1 3/4 cups low sodium beef broth
1/2 oz dried porcini mushrooms
1 large sprig fresh rosemary

Preheat oven to 350. Pat beef dry with paper towel and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a heavy, 6 quart pot or Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add the beef and cook until browned on all sides, 10-12 minutes. (Be careful not to rush this step, it is what creates such a deep flavor in the finished dish) Transfer the beef to a bowl.
Reduce heat to medium. Add the onions to the same pan and saute until tender, scraping up the brown bits on the bottom of the pan, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add the wine and boil for 1 minute. Stir in the broth and mushrooms. Return beef to the pan and bring the liquids to a boil. Cover the pot and transfer to the oven. Braise beef until it is fork tender, about 3 hours, turning the beef over halfway through.
Transfer the beef to a cutting board. Tent with foil and let it stand for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, spoon any excess fat off of the pan juices. Transfer the pan juices and vegetables to a blender and puree until smooth. In a medium, heavy saucepan, combine the sauce and rosemary sprig. Bring to a boil, then season the sauce to taste with salt and pepper.
Cut the beef across the grain into 1/2″ thick slices. Spoon remaining sauce over beef and serve.

Herbed Cheese Polenta
(Giada’s Family Dinners page 67)

Serves 8-10 (adjust accordingly)

9 cups water
1 tbsp salt
2 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal or polenta
1 1/2 cups freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 1/2 cups whole milk
10 tbsp (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/3 cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1 tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 tbsp finely chopped fresh thyme
3/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Bring the water to a boil in a large heavy pot. Add the salt. Gradually whisk in the cornmeal. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring often, until the mixture thickens and the cornmeal is tender, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat. Add the cheese, milk, butter, herbs and pepper. Stir until the butter and cheese melt. Transfer to bowl and serve.

Tis the season…for PUMPKIN COOKIES!

I love pumpkin! Almost as much as Buddy the Elf loves syrup =-D And this year I discovered a delicious melt in your mouth Pumpkin Cookie recipe with a tasty brown sugar frosting! As soon as the holiday magazines started hitting the shelves, I started buying them. Cookie magazines, pie magazines, home decor magazines, the list goes on and on and on! While flipping through Better Homes and Gardens cookie magazine I came across this recipe and just had to try them! They were so delicious, and a real crowd pleaser so today after work I set to work making a batch to send to our church’s interns. This was of course after I had a bowl of leftover oven stew, courtesy of my mom! (Don’t worry…I will cook and blog about that later!) I gathered up all my ingredients and my bowls and mixers and was ready to go! After my dough was mixed and ready to bake, I popped the first batch in the oven and set to work making the brown sugar frosting. I can’t even describe how yummy melting butter and brown sugar smell in a saucepan! YUM! Add in some powdered sugar and you’ve got a frosting worthy of the holiday season! I baked a little over a dozen of the cookies, then stored the rest of the dough to bake later =-D Washed all my dishes, and jetted out of the house to come to my sister’s and tonight after our church’s Thanksgiving Pie Social, I will don my apron once again and finish off my cookies with the tasty frosting and a dusting of ground cinnamon! I can hardly wait to eat one! Take my advice, and whip up a batch of these sometime during the holidays…they’re fantastic!

Happy Cooking!

Melt In Your Mouth Pumpkin Cookies
(courtesy of BHG Special Edition Cookie Magazine)

Cookie:
2 cups butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1 – 15 oz. can pumpkin
4 cups all purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350 F. Beat butter with electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Beat until combined. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until combined. Beat in pumpkin. Beat in as much flour as you can with the mixer, and using a wooden spoon, stir in any remaining flour.
Drop dough by heaping teaspoons 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until tops are set. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool.

Frosting:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla
2 3/4 cups powdered sugar
Ground cinnamon (optional)

In a small saucepan, heat butter and brown sugar until melted and smooth. Transfer to medium bowl. Stir in milk and vanilla. Beat in powdered sugar until smooth. Spread frosting on cookies, if desired top with additional cinnamon.

Makes about 60 cookies.

More Cookies please!

Yesterday I got to spend the afternoon with one of my favorite people…Elana =-D It’s been months since we’ve gotten to hang out and chat, so finally we picked a day and made a plan! Cookies and pasta were on our menu for the day.  First up…COOKIES! We decided to make Toffee Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies and I had 3 extra special helpers today, Elana’s 3 oldest children. (The baby isn’t quite ready to help bake cookies yet!) I set to work getting out all our ingredients while my helpers washed their hands and got on their aprons. Luckily there are plenty of jobs to share when making cookies, and we all took turns pouring in our ingredients and mixing them all together. Soon our dough was ready for the oven, and we could hardly wait to try our tasty treats! 10 minutes later, they were ready and with an ice cold glass of milk in hand we dug in! They were DELICIOUS! Now we were ready for some lunch. We decided to make the Farfalle Alfredo with Chicken and Spinach, a yummy dish which happens to be one of my favorites! The garlic smelled divine sauteing in the olive oil =-D Of course we had to make some bread as well, so we topped some sourdough pugleise with a little olive oil, garlic powder, and fresh grated parmasan cheese and into the oven it went to get nice and toasty. Our lunch came together in no time, and while the kids played Elana and I sat down for a nice meal and some more chatting =-D Soon it was time to say goodbye, but not before we decided that we must plan another cooking day soon since this one was so much fun! I really don’t think there is anything better than cooking and chatting with friends =-D

Happy Cooking!!

Toffee Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies
(adapted from Toll House Cookies Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe)

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 1 -1 1/2 cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
• 3/4 cup chopped Hazelnuts
• 3 chopped up Heath or Skor bars

Preheat oven to 375 F.
Combine flour, baking soda and salt together in a small bowl. In a seperate bowl beat butter, sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla together until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips, hazelnuts, and chopped heath or skor bars. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto a cookie sheet and bake for 9-11 minutes or until cookies are golden brown.
(For the Farfalle Alfredo with Chicken and Spinach recipe see blog by the same name.)

Angel Hair with Spicy Red Clam Sauce

Sunday morning came so quickly. I knew I had to be at church to teach in the kids class, and after hitting the snooze button WAY too many times, I realized I had to get up and get going. We rushed around the house trying to get ready, throwing clothes to and fro, trying to find pairs of matching socks and long sleeved shirts to wear. Finally, we were out the door...20 minutes late, but on our way! Church was great, and as I drove home, I began to think about what I could make for lunch. I won't deny, I was tempted to just run through somewhere and grab a quick bite to bring home...but I had to remind myself that it would be more cost effective and healthy if I made something at home. So, I half reluctantly, drove home thinking about what to make for lunch. When I got home, I went to my favorite cookbook...the one that has never let me down...Giada's Family Dinners. I have never once been disappointed by any of the recipes, so I knew I could trust on Giada to help me figure out a quick and easy yet flavorful lunch. My husband loves clams and I knew there was a pasta dish somewhere in the book with clams, so I thumbed through the pages until I came across the dish. It looked fantastic and my mouth was already watering just reading the ingredients. I had to get cooking!!
The recipe called for linguine, but I knew all I had was angel hair and spaghetti noodles in my pantry. I decided to opt for the angel hair and then continued down the list of ingredients. Onion, check. Garlic, check. Clams, check. And so the list goes. The onions and garlic smelled heavenly as they began  to saute in the olive oil. I followed the recipe, adding a dash of this and a dollop of that until...voila!! A tasty masterpiece I like to call Angel Hair Pasta with Spicy Red Clam Sauce (derived from Linguine with Spicy Red Clam Sauce: Giada's Family Dinners) I plated the dish, and grated some fresh parmesan on top. Perfecto!! The dish was out of this world delish! From start to finish, it was maybe 30 minutes tops. I modified the recipe to half the servings for less time and less waste. We still had tons of leftovers, and let me tell you...it was just as tasty the next day, reheated with some fresh grated parmesan on top. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did...

Happy Cooking!

Angel Hair with Spicy Red Clam Sauce
(derived from the recipe: Linguine with Spicy Red Clam Sauce; Giada's Family Dinners pg. 209)
*this recipe is 6-8 servings, but you can cut it in half like I did and it will take half the time with less waste*

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 onion finely chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp dried oregeno
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
3 (14 1/2 oz) cans diced tomatoes in juice
2 cups bottled clam juice
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
4 lbs small manila clams ( I used the boxed, frozen steamer clams from Trader Joe's...2 boxes would be equivalent to 4lbs)
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 1/2 lbs dried linguine (you can substitute with Angel Hair (Capellini)  or Spaghetti as well)
Freshly ground black pepper

Heat olive oil in a very large pt over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes. Saute until onion is tender. Add the tomatoes with their juice, clam juice and wine. Bring to boil over high heat. Decrease heat to medium and simmer uncovered until liquid reduces by one third, about 15-18 minutes. Add the clams, cover, and simmer over med-high heat, stirring occasionally, just until the clams open. (Discard any clams that do not open) Remove pot from heat. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the clams to a large bowl and cover to keep warm. Stir the parsley and butter into the pot.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the pasta to a liberally salted pot of water. Cook pasta, stirring frequently to prevent pasta from sticking together, until it is tender but still firm to the bite...al dente. Drain. Add clams back to the sauce. Add noodles to the sauce and toss until the sauce thickens and coats the pasta. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer pasta to bowls and top with fresh grated parmesan cheese. (Parmigiano Reggiano)

Farfalle Alfredo with Chicken & Spinach

As I sit here with a nice cup of hot candy cane green tea (decaf of course) and a mini iced gingerbread cookie, I am finally able to stop and reflect on my very busy and somewhat hectic Saturday. For whatever reason, this Saturday was full of too many things to do and not enough sitting and relaxing. After working all morning, I had just enough time to fix my husband and kids a quick lunch before my husband had to rush out the door to work.  My Sister arrived and we ventured out to run a few errands in Walnut Creek. I had to be home by 4:45 to leave for worship practice, so I figured we had a good two and a half hours to leisurely get a few things done. Boy was I in for a shock! Walnut Creek was bustling with half crazed lunatics, searching for holiday bargains and weekend sales.  Between fighting for a half decent parking spot at Target and weaving our way through undecided shoppers at Trader Joe’s, by the time I looked at my watch, it was now 4:30 and I needed to rush home, drop off the kids and my Sister and get back to worship practice by 5:00! I zoomed home (at the posted speed of course;) only to turn back around and zoom back to practice. When I got home, it was 7:30 and my stomach was growling, reminding me I hadn’t eaten since noon. Thankfully, my Sister was one step ahead of the game and already had started our dinner. We had decided on a semi-homemade approach to Fettuccine Alfredo. We had picked up a package of  Farfalle (bow tie) pasta and a jar of Alfredo Sauce with Romano and Parmesan at Trader Joes. We also had grabbed a loaf of Par-baked Artisan bread that only needed 7-10 minutes in the oven to finish baking. My sister had already minced some fresh garlic and thrown it in a saute pan with some extra virgin olive oil to start cooking. Once the garlic was fragrant, we threw in some of Trader Joes frozen grilled chicken strips. Since they are already cooked, all that they needed was to sizzle away in the garlic and olive oil until they were nice and tender. The sauce was easy too…just put into a saucepan and heat over low heat until heated through. At the last minute, we threw a few handfulls of fresh baby spinach in with the garlic and chicken to quickly wilt down and add some nice green color to the dish. The bread had been drizzled with olive oil, and sprinkled with garlic powder and fresh grated parmesan cheese and had been toasting away in the oven at 400 degrees becoming nice and golden and bubbly. All that was left was to drain the noodles, toss with the sauce and top with some more fresh grated parmesan. Pair it with a few slices of warm and crusty garlic bread and you have yourself a fantastic and simple “semi” home-made meal in under 20 minutes. My tummy is full…well, I do have room for maybe a few more of those mini iced gingerbread cookies. It’s off to sip on my hot tea, and enjoy some time cuddling on the couch with my kids before we head off to bed.
Happy Cooking Everyone!!

Muffins and Cookies and Steak...OH MY!

Today has been filled with baking and cooking! I started early this morning with my pumpkin muffins =-D Next up on the list...more Tuxedo Chocolate Chip Cookies! I made a "test batch" of these earlier this week, but now it was time for the real deal. I have undertaken the delicious task of baking cookies each week as a gift for visitors to my church. Last Sunday was the first week...Oatmeal White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies! (Those were tasty!) As I was bustling about the kitchen I realized that I had forgotten to pick up butter =-( So off to Lucky's I went! While I was there I decided to take a look around and see what sounded good to make for lunch. Something simple, but yummy. I perused the aisles, and finally chose some top sirloin from Harris Ranch and San Luis Sourdough Bread to be made into steak sandwiches. Once back at home I set out my butter so it could soften and started collecting all my ingredients and preheating my oven. Measure. Mix. Measure. Mix. Mix. Mix. In no time I had my cookie dough assembled and was ready to start my marathon oven session. In the midst of baking about 5 dozen cookies, I decided it was time for lunch! A little salt, pepper, and garlic salt and into the pan of almost smoking olive oil my steak went! One minute on each side to sear it, then I let it hang out and finish cooking at a slightly lower temperature. My mom was nice enough to slice up some onions and bell peppers to grill up and add to our sandwiches. A quick peek in the fridge and I found some tasty pepperjack cheese...one of my favorites! Once the steak was done and sliced I assembled my sandwiches and grilled them to give the bread that perfectly toasted texture and melt the cheese! DELICIOUS! And then it was back to the cookies! A busy morning/afternoon, but a tasty one...and there is still one meal to go! We're making pasta tonight...but I'll let my sister tell you about that one! 

Happy Cooking! 

Pumpkin Mornings

Picture this...It's chilly outside and I'm all snuggled up on the couch, enjoying a delicious pumpkin muffin and steaming cup of hot tea while a cheery fire blazes in the fireplace =-D Sounds like a perfect way to spend a Saturday morning, right?
I woke up early this morning and set to work in the kitchen baking up a little treat for my parents and I. Every fall I wait and watch for Trader Joe's to start carrying their Pumpkin Bread and Muffin mix. It's delicious, and so easy to make! Perfect for when you want a little homemade piece of the holiday season, but don't want to spend a lot of time making it. I will admit that I have been stocking up on boxes and boxes of my favorite pumpkin bread mix. It's a necessary precaution since the closer it gets to the holidays the pumpkin mixes fly off the shelves! I pulled a box from my collection, gathered the few ingredients I needed and of course my favorite Williams Sonoma spatula...it's orange for fall, a birthday gift from my amazing sister! A few minutes later my batter was ready! Into the muffin tins it went, with a brief pause to add some pecans to some of them (a special request of my mom's).  18 minutes later they were done and ready to be plated and dusted with some powdered sugar! Yummy!
Happy Cooking!
Pumpkin Muffins

• 1 Box Trader Joe's Pumpkin Bread & Muffin Mix
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup water

Preheat oven to 400 F. Combine eggs, oil, and water in a medium bowl. Add mix. Fold together with rubber spatula until batter is smooth (approximately 1 to 2 minutes). Portion batter into lightly greased standard muffin tins, 2/3 full. Bake for 18 - 20 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar and ENJOY!

Pizza My Heart

Is there anything better than Friday night? Megan is busy finishing up another marathon day of hair cuts (she's a fabulous stylist for those of you who don't know!), the children are relaxing with some cartoons and popcorn, and here I sit typing away and waiting until I can start dinner! On the menu for this evening...PIZZA! My pizza journey started one afternoon at my sister's house years ago. I had come over to her house (as I do practically every day) and when trying to decide what to make for lunch, she pulled out her latest Trader Joe's find...pizza dough! We tied our aprons, rolled up our sleeves, and began rolling out our dough for our very first semi-homemade pizza. Our dough was sauced, cheesed, and topped and ready for the oven, and fifteen minutes later a tradition was born! Once my nephew and niece were old enough they were enlisted as our helpers =-D They've gotten quite good at rolling out the dough and topping their very own pizzas, although they are still quite partial to Auntie Kiki's Mickey Mouse Pizza! (Kiki is what they call me).  This afternoon I made a special trip to our local Trader Joe's to pick up some yummy ingredients and as soon as the last hair client leaves...my sister's house will be turned into our very own Pizzaria! One pizza for the kids complete with BBQ sauce (their favorite sauce for pizzas), and a Garlic Chicken pizza for us sister's! We'll settle down, pop open the bottle of Sparkling Apple Cider I picked up today and celebrate the beginning of another fabulous weekend!


Happy Cooking! 



Basic Garlic Chicken Pizza
  (This pizza is made entirely using Trader Joe's ingredients, but you can of course substitute items from your favorite grocery store!)


1 Plain pizza dough 
2-3 cups Shredded Mozzarella cheese (I like it low moisture and part skim)
1/2-1 cup Parmesan Cheese

1 1/2 -2 cups Just Grilled Chicken Strips
2 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/2-3/4 cup Alfredo Sauce 
3-4 cloves of Garlic, minced

Flour



Preheat oven to 450 F. (this is for the Trader Joe's brand)
Let pizza dough sit on counter for 20  minutes before you start to roll it out. I use this time to preheat my oven and prep my other ingredients. 
Put the chicken strips in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 2 minutes. Once they are cool enough to handle, cut the strips up into bite size chunks. 
In a medium sized pan combine the extra virgin olive oil and chicken over medium heat. Cook until the chicken starts to get slightly browned, then add the minced garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes. Transfer mixture to a prep bowl. Once your dough has sat for twenty minutes, flour your rolling surface and roll out your dough. You can make it as thick or as thin as you like, but be sure that the dough is even all the way around other wise the center will become soggy during baking. Transfer your dough onto a pizza pan and top with sauce, cheese, and garlic chicken. Bake for 15 minutes or until cheese is golden brown. 

Cookies and Cocoa

After a long day of work, and a delicious dinner (yummy turkey tacos) nothing sounded better than cookies and a cup of cocoa to finish up the day. We each came prepared with a recipe we'd been waiting to try. The first were Tuxedo Macadamia Nut Cookies and the second Chocolate Chip Cookies with Hazelnuts. Busily we set to work laying out all our ingredients. Flour-check, sugar-check, chocolate chips-double check, and so the list goes. Mixing bowls out. Aprons on. We're ready to bake up a storm...or at least a lovely sugar coma. Carefully measuring and mixing up our batter, we started chatting and laughing about our day. There is nothing more fun and therapeutic than baking and laughing with your sister! After a marathon of stirring (and letting the kids "measure" in the chocolate chips) our cookies are finally ready for the oven! The delicious smell of soon to be golden brown cookies began to waft through the house and the wait began for our tasty, hot from the oven treats! We didn't have to wait long! Soon the cookies were done, the kitchen cleaned, the children bathed and in bed and finally we could relax. It was Wednesday (our unofficial baking/DVR night) and cookies and cocoa in hand we settled in on the couch to catch up on "The City" and laugh and talk some more. A perfect ending to a wonderful day! 

Happy Baking! 
The Cooking Contessas


Recipes: 

Tuxedo Macadamia Nut Cookies 
(adapted from Gold Medal's Extraordinary Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe)

3/4 cups butter or margarine, softened
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 1/4 cups brown sugar, packed
1 tbsp. vanilla
2 eggs
4 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips
2 cups white chocolate chips
2 cups finely chopped macadamia nuts

Heat oven to 350 F. In a large bowl, beat butter, sugars, vanilla and eggs on medium speed or with a spoon until light and fluffy. Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt (dough will be stiff). Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.  On an ungreased cookie sheet, drop dough by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart; flatten slightly. Bake 11-13 minutes or until light brown. Cool 1-2 minutes and remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack.


Chocolate Chip Cookies with Hazelnuts
(from "Giada's Family Dinners" by Giada De Laurentiis)


1/2 cup old fashioned oats
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
4 oz. english toffee candy (such as heath or skor bar, finely chopped)
1 cup hazelnuts, toasted, husked, and chopped
1 (12 oz.) bag semi sweet chocolate chips


Preheat oven to 325 F. Line 2 large heavy pans with parchment paper. In a food processor, finely chop the oats and transfer to a medium bowl. Mix in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a separate bowl beat the butter and sugars together until fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Ad the flour mixture and stir just until blended. Stir in toffee, hazelnuts, and chocolate chips. Drop dough onto prepared sheets by rounded tablespoonfuls 1 inch apart. Bake until cookies are golden, about 15 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack and cool completely.