Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Waffle and Dinges Throwdown
Wild Mushroom Soup And Parmesan Chicken
Ingredients
- 5 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms
- 5 ounces fresh portobello mushrooms
- 5 ounces fresh cremini (or porcini) mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon good olive oil
- 1/4 pound (1 stick) plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, divided
- 1 cup chopped yellow onion
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 1 sprig fresh thyme plus 1 teaspoon minced thyme leaves, divided
- Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 cups chopped leeks, white and light green parts (2 leeks)
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup dry white wine(I used chicken stock)
- 1 cup half-and-half
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
Directions
Clean the mushrooms by wiping them with a dry paper towel. Don't wash them! Separate the stems, trim off any bad parts, and coarsely chop the stems. Slice the mushroom caps 1/4-inch thick and, if there are big, cut them into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
To make the stock, heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large pot. Add the chopped mushroom stems, the onion, carrot, the sprig of thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook over medium-low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until the vegetables are soft. Add 6 cups water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Strain, reserving the liquid. You should have about 4 1/2 cups of stock. If not, add some water.
Meanwhile, in another large pot, heat the remaining 1/4 pound of butter and add the leeks. Cook over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until the leeks begin to brown. Add the sliced mushroom caps and cook for 10 minutes, or until they are browned and tender. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the white wine and stir for another minute, scraping the bottom of the pot. Add the mushroom stock, minced thyme leaves, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the half-and-half, cream, and parsley, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and heat through but do not boil. Serve hot.
Parmesan Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 to 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 extra-large eggs
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 1/4 cups seasoned dry bread crumbs
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
- Unsalted butter
- Good olive oil
- Salad greens for 6, washed and spun dry
- 1 recipe Lemon Vinaigrette, recipe follows
Directions
Pound the chicken breasts until they are 1/4-inch thick. You can use either a meat mallet or a rolling pin.
Combine the flour, salt, and pepper on a dinner plate. On a second plate, beat the eggs with 1 tablespoon of water. On a third plate, combine the bread crumbs and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan. Coat the chicken breasts on both sides with the flour mixture, then dip both sides into the egg mixture and dredge both sides in the bread-crumb mixture, pressing lightly.
Heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large saute pan and cook 2 or 3 chicken breasts on medium-low heat for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until cooked through. Add more butter and oil and cook the rest of the chicken breasts. Toss the salad greens with lemon vinaigrette. Place a mound of salad on each hot chicken breast. Serve with extra grated Parmesan.
Lemon Vinaigrette:
- 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
- 1/2 cup good olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper.
Yield: 6 servings
Pumpkin Soup with Chili cran-apple relish
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 fresh bay leaf
- 2 ribs celery with greens, finely chopped (save time and purchase celery already washed, trimmed and cut into sticks, this makes chopping fast work)
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
- Salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons poultry seasoning or 2 teaspoons ground thyme
- 2 teaspoons hot sauce, or to taste
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 1 (28-ounce) can cooked pumpkin puree
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 crisp apple, such as McIntosh or Granny Smith, finely chopped
- 1/4 red onion, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/2 cup dried sweetened cranberries, chopped
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Relish:
Directions
Heat a medium soup pot over medium to medium high heat. Add the oil and melt the butter. Add bay, celery, and onion. Season the veggies with salt and pepper. Cook 6 or 7 minutes, until tender. Add flour, poultry seasoning and hot sauce, to taste, then cook flour a minute. Whisk in chicken stock and bring liquid to a bubble. Whisk in pumpkin in large spoonfuls to incorporate it into the broth. Simmer soup 10 minutes to thicken a bit then add in cream and nutmeg. Reduce heat to low and keep warm until ready to serve.
While soup cooks, assemble the relish: combine apple, onion, lemon juice, cranberries, chili powder, honey and cinnamon.
Adjust seasonings in soup and relish and serve soup in shallow bowls with a few spoonfuls of relish.
My healthified version of pumpkin chocolate chip!
I love pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. So I had some extra pumpkin I needed to use up so I thought I'd make it. Unfortunately, I had no eggs. Well, I put together this recipe that uses no eggs, has less sugar, and has half the amount of butter or crisco. I like the real thing, butter, in recipes...hehehe. I think it makes recipes tastes better. Anyway, it tastes pretty darn delicious for being "healthier"!
My Italian Dinner
The other night I was feeling like something Italian. So I found a great Fettucini Alfredo Recipe. So easy, but not so light in the ingredient category. Hey, It's Fettucini Alfredo. If you want the real thing, you need to use the real ingredients. This time around I didn't add the peas and prosciutto but, if you wanted to add a more authentic flair, that's the way to do it. I saw many similar cream pasta dishes with peas and prociutto when we were in Italy.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 shallots, minced
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 cup heavy cream
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1/4 pound prosciutto, julienned
- 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for garnish
- 1 pound fresh fettuccini
Directions
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic and saute for a couple minutes or until tender. Add cream and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add prosciutto and peas and toss gently to combine. Sprinkle cheese over top and stir to melt and combine. Cook until heated through.
In a large pot of boiling salted water, add fettuccini and cook until al dente, just a couple minutes for fresh pasta. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup pasta water. Add the reserved pasta water and drained fettucini to skillet. Toss to combine pasta with sauce and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Serve, garnished with extra cheese
As a little side I made a tomato and basil bruschetta. It's so easy to make. I simply cut up some Roma tomatoes, fresh basil, and added some olive oil. A dash of salt and pepper to taste, and voila, you're done.
With the little toasts, I drizzled a little bit of olive oil on sliced baguette and toasted it in oven. Then I rubbed a halved piece of garlic over the little toasts to add some flavor of garlic.
Corn on the Cob with Parmesan Cheese
I bought some corn at the farmers market and wanted to do something different with it. This is so good and easy! Makes your corn more rich and hearty!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 6 ears yellow corn, husked, halved crosswise
Directions
Heat the oil in a heavy small skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute until tender and fragrant, about 1 minute. Remove the skillet from the heat and cool. Set aside 2 tablespoons of the Parmesan cheese and stir the rest into the garlic mixture, along with the parsley and salt.
Cook the corn in a large saucepan of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Using tongs, transfer the corn to a platter. Brush the cheese mixture over the hot corn and serve. Sprinkle the remaining 2 tablespoons of cheese on top of the corn.