Dear me!  Forgive me for leaving you without a new recipe for so long.  I’m finding myself a bit overwhelmed with getting all my gardening done, managing business stuff, and tackling a few other major tasks.  I guess spring really does have a way of flinging you forward.  This year we’re having a particularly sunny and warm one here in Philadelphia.  Normally I wouldn’t have anything ready in the garden for harvesting yet, but the first glorious greens were ready for picking last week!   I have lemony sorrel and fresh earthy oregano a-plenty.   Aren’t they beautiful with their fresh green color after a long snowy winter? 

Speaking of green things, my onions in storage have started sprouting little green shoots out their papery skins.  I find this growth fascinating because somehow even though they have been kept in a dark basement where the temperature hasn’t changed at all, they somehow still know that it’s springtime and can still grow without any of the usual accoutrements of soil, sun, and water.   Now, if you have some sprouting onions that are still firm when you squeeze them, don’t toss them.  Just cut out the green shoots from the core and use the rest.

The potatoes had not fared quite so well in storage, getting shriveled and wrinkly.  But these small fingerlings were the last of my stash, lasting more than six months since they were harvested, so I wanted to do justice by them, putting together a tasty dish that would use them up rather than tossing them in the compost bin.   A classic tortilla with the punch of the new sorrel and oregano seemed ideal since the potatoes needn’t be perfect when blanketed with farm fresh egg. 

Now  I didn’t try this myself because I was too lazy to go to the grocery store the other day when I was making it, but I am pretty sure a few crumbles of blue cheese or gouda would really elevate this dish from “very good” to “OMG”.   While the recipe below makes a fairly modest sized tortilla, you could serve a lovely brunch {perhaps for Easter tomorrow?} for several diners by doubling it.  Makes tasty leftovers too!

Spring Greens Tortilla
A Straight from the Farm Original

1/3 C. extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1 large potato, cubed
4 eggs
1 bunch of young sorrel, minced
2 T. fresh oregano, minced
salt and pepper

In a small skillet (6-8 inches), heat the oil over medium heat while you chop the vegetables.  Add the onions to the skillet and cook for 2-3 minutes until the soften just a bit.  Add the potatoes, season with salt and pepper, stir well, and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes.  Lower the heat a notch to medium-low and allow to cook for another 15 minutes until golden brown and soft.   Scoop the onions and potatoes out of the skillet and allow to drain on a paper towel.

Whisk together the eggs in a large bowl.  Add the sorrel,  oregano, and a generous pinch of salt and of pepper.  Stir in the cooked potato and onion. 

In the same skillet you used before, make sure there’s about a tablespoon of oil in it and set it over medium heat.    Add the egg and vegetable mixture and stir the center with a wooden spoon or spatula until you start to see the egg scramble a bit.  Run a spatula around the edges to make sure they are loosened and tidy.  Allow the tortilla to continue to cook until it is fairly set up.  Run the spatula around the edges again to make sure they are loose.  Using a plate inverted over the skillet, flip the tortilla out onto the plate and then slide it back into the skillet to finish cooking for another 2-3 minutes.  Loosen the edges again and slide it out onto a serving plate.  

Serve warm, room temperature or chilled.  Keeps well in the fridge for a few days.  Great served with a salad or a few wedges of good cheese. 

(serves 4)

There are many benefits to being a food blogger.  You meet a lot of awesome people for starters.  You also occasionally get asked to review a cookbook that you’d already been anxious to get your hands on because it’s written by a fellow food blogger whose work you adore.   Bou-YA! 

I’ve been a fan of The Pioneer Woman blog just about since Ree Drummond started it in 2007 to document her zany life as the “accidental country girl” wife of a cattle rancher.  When I heard tell she was working on a cookbook, I was thrilled to see yet another food blogger join the ranks of “real” (i.e., the kind that make money at it) food writers.  I especially love Ree’s honest and sometimes unexpected viewpoint on life and food and how she ties it all together.  Her photos of her ranch always take my breath away and make me dream of meeting my own steely-eyed cowboy and saddling up a mustang.  Or something like that.  It’s escapism at its best, folks.  Trust me.  Or, better yet, visit her blog and find out for yourself.

Now, to get back to business.  I got her cookbook, appropriately titled The Pioneer Woman Cooks,  the other day and I promptly sat down to read it from cover to cover.  I’ve never seen a cookbook so stuffed full of photos.  There are glorious photos of Ree’s ranch, family, and food. It’s evident that Ree, who shot all her own photos, has a serious artist’s eye for nature.  In addition, each recipe has a photo for every single step!!   That’s right, every single step!   And there’s a parade of cute country sketches of butterflies and roosters and such across the pages.   Cover to cover, it’s a stunner.

After gobbling it up as a “light read”, I took the book into the kitchen.  Here’s where I unfortunately started to lose my love for it.  While having a photo inserted with every single step in every single recipe is probably great for new cooks that need lots of visual aids, it makes it rather tricky to use efficiently if you’re an experienced cook who just wants an easy-to-read recipe that you can bang out in a hurry.  

The next hurdle for me, and again, this is specific to my own personal style and taste buds, was the lack of vegetable-centric or vegetarian-adaptable recipes.  Of course, Ree’s a rancher’s wife so one can’t really expect anything but a meat-heavy book from her.  It just meant that it was hard for me to find recipes to test.   

In addition…or maybe in conjunction… it was also tricky to find a handful of solid recipes for seasonal use.  I had loads of autumn’s glorious produce on my counter, but each one I went to look up in the cookbook index turned up nothing, until I went with the potatoes I’d just bought at the farmers market.    There are plenty of recipes for potatoes in the book , of which I decided to make the PW’s Potato Skins to see if they had a unique twist that made them all Ree’s very own.  Plus I could easily substitute the meat in this recipe (bacon) with a soy product to make it vegetarian without really compromising the final dish.

The potato skins were really tasty, though maybe a little heavy on the oil.  Definitely an indulgence and good party food or game-day fare.  It’s a solid basic recipe, one that’s good to have in your repertoire, but not anything very different from what I’ve had many times before. 

The Pioneer Woman Cooks is a book you’ll likely either love or not really use.  I happen to fall into the latter category because I want cookbooks with imaginative recipes that push me to try something new; recipes in a more traditional format that let me “tick” things off in my head; and fresh seasonal produce as the main subject of the majority of dishes.  I also wish, in this particular case, that Ree had developed the memoir portion of her book more.  That’s why I love her blog — that glimpse into her unique life and perspective is charming and inspiring. The photos in the book serve to whet the appetite for more “ranch life”, and I found that I really wanted some longer stories mixed into the pages. 

All that being said, if you are a relatively new cook who loves a diet of wholesome “meat and potatoes” (or have someone to feed that does) and want lots of step-by-step photos in your recipes and quirky comments and photos of ranch life in between, this is the perfect book for you.  If you’re more interested in a more traditional cookbook featuring vegetarian or seasonal fare, The Pioneer Woman Cooks probably isn’t going to ring your dinner bell.

PW’s Potato Skins
Taken from The Pioneer Woman Cooks

8 slices of bacon (the soy variety works too)
8 russet potatoes, scrubbed clean
canola oil
kosher salt
1 1/2 C. grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 C. sour cream
4 green onions, sliced

Preheat the oven to 400 F (I actually increased my oven to 450 as the skins weren’t crisping up).

Rub the outside of the scrubbed potatoes with canola oil.  Place on foil lined baking sheet and bake for 45 minutes to an hour or until the potatoes are fork tender.   Let potatoes cool so they are easy to handle.*  Slice in half lengthwise. 

With a spoon or small scoop, scrape out the inner flesh of the potatoes, leaving a small margin of potato in the skins.*  Brush both sides of the potato skins with canola oil and salt liberally.  Place the skins cut side down on the pan and return to the oven.  Bake for 7 minutes  and then flip the skins over to the other side.  Bake for 7 minutes more or until the skins are crispy (mine too nearly 30 minutes, thus I raised the temperature). 

Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a skillet and chop into small bits.  Set aside.  Grate the cheese if you haven’t already. 

When the skins are crisp,  remove them from the oven and sprinkle each with cheese and bacon pieces.  Return to the oven just until the cheese melts (2 minutes).  Just before serving, spoon sour cream onto each skin and sprinkle with sliced green onion.   Serve piping hot.

*I stopped the process at both of these points, leaving the whole baked potatoes sit from early morning to late afternoon before slicing them.   I also then left the scooped out skins, unbaked, sit overnight because I ran out of daylight for shooting the photos and wanted to wait until the next day.   Stopping the recipe half way through didn’t seem to hurt the final skins at all. 

**While the original recipe doesn’t mention this, I have tried freezing a few of the skins at the stage where they have the melted cheese and bacon in them.  I plan to bring them out and pop them straight into a hot 450F oven until they are piping hot again and then serve with the sour cream and onions.  Will let you know if this worked by updating the post next week. 

(makes 16 )

There are many perks to being a food blogger.  Good food, great readers, and a comfy space in which to share my passions, among other things.  One of those “other things” is occasionally being asked to review a hot-off-the-presses cookbook.   I’m repeatedly blown away by how beautiful and savvy cookbooks have become in recent years, and The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook is certainly a stand-out among a worthy field of competitors.  Any time I crack a new cookbook, I always flip the pages to look at the photos first.  Big Sur’s certainly got stunning captures of both the recipes and the natural landscapes surrounding the restaurant’s tiny town that clings to the edge of California’s coast. 

Once I finished my visual indulgence, I got down to business reading the text and choosing a recipe to test.  After all, the prettiest of cookbooks is just a glorified paperweight if it’s recipe collection is a dud, isn’t it?  I really loved reading the producer profiles that are peppered throughout the book – beekeeper, butcher, poke pole fisherman, hunter/forager, even porch farmers (a young couple that produces microgreens from their deck).  All of these folks sell directly to Big Sur Bakery, and their products are featured in the book’s wholesome recipes.  Reading these profiles reminds me of how different life is out on the west coast.  I’m really rather certain there aren’t too many people here on the east coast making a living spearing fish in the surf to sell to local restaurants.  If you know of someone doing this, please let me know as I’d love to tag along with them for a day! 

Usually when I crack the cover of a new cookbook, I have a hard time deciding where to start with the actual cooking from its pages. Like a kid in a candy shop, everything I see is so tantalizing.  Not that the recipes in Big Sur didn’t all read like the chalkboard menu of my dreams, but picking the first dish out of this book turned out to be very easy.  I was immediately captivated by the photo of Breakfast Pizza and found myself brooding on the ingredient list (eggs and bacon on a pizza crust?!?) until I was able to find time to make the pizza for myself last weekend. 

The concoction of a hungry and hurried chef right before a Saturday brunch service, this pizza proved incredibly tasty and satisfying.  I have to admit that I’ve had my fair share of cold pizza for breakfast (mostly back in college, but once or twice since) and always felt a tad ashamed for eating this doughy dish so early in the day.  Not so with Breakfast Pizza.  It seems perfectly natural to chow down on this – morning, noon and night.   In fact, after having it for dinner Sunday night, I happily had the (cold) leftovers for breakfast while driving to work on Monday. 

This one is a definite repeat and earns The Big Sur Bakery Cookbook a spot on the top of the stack.   I’m already thumbing through it, looking for the next recipe to try.  I have to say, I’m very tempted to hop on a plane bound for California to visit the Big Sur Bakery in person.  These folks seem like kindred spirits for sure, and I’d love to sit down at their long family-style table and chat about the food.  

Do you have a cookbook from a restaurant that makes you want to go eat there, even if it’s on the other side of the country? 

Big Sur Bakery Breakfast Pizza

1/2  batch of prepared pizza dough
6 strips of bacon
1/2 C. grated Parmesan
2 C. grated mozzarella
6 eggs
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 T. minced parsley
2 T. minced chives
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1 shallot, minced

Adjust the oven rack to the lowest position and put in the baking stone or tray you’ll be using.  Preheat oven at highest temperature possible while you prepare the pizza. 

In a skillet, cook the bacon just until golden brown.  Set aside on a paper towel.

Generously dust the surface of a pizza peel or heat-proof cutting board (or, if you have neither, try a sturdy piece of cardboard) with flour.  On a floured surface, roll out the dough as thinly as possible and place on the pizza peel/board. 

Sprinkle dough with cheeses and crumbled bacon bits.   Make six little wells in the cheese  (this helps keep the eggs from running off the sides) and crack an egg into each. 

Carefully slide the pizza directly onto the baking stone or tray in the hot oven.  Turn heat down to 450 F.  Bake for 8-10 minutes, checking after a few minutes to rotate if one side is browning faster than the other. 

When the crust is golden and the egg yolks set, remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before sprinkling with herbs and shallot.  Slice and serve immediately. 

(serves 6-8 )

I’m sure you’ve all had some version of a chicken and broccoli casserole in your day.  Usually it’s a tad ho-hum, isn’t it?  Comfort food though, I’d venture to say in its defense.  Well, today’s recipe – a spin on this homemaker’s favorite weeknight go-to meal – is anything but ho-hum, thanks to an infusion of warm Moroccan flavors.

Awhile ago, one of my roommates made this casserole, sharing with me that it was a long-standing treat in her house growing up.  I could certainly see why just from the aroma alone that flooded the house as it baked.  I had a few nibbles of it and asked for the recipe, but alas never did get the specifics in the end.   The flavors stuck in my mind though.  Hints of curry, lemon, thyme and lots of broccoli goodness!

I had one of those moments the other night where I stood with a glazed-over stare, holding the freezer door open in a horrifyingly energy inefficient way, wondering what the heck to have for dinner.  There were some vegetarian chicken strips in there which are definitely a staple in our house’s dinners, but I didn’t want to do the same ol’ thing, ya know?  

Then I shook my head, closed the freezer door, and opened the fridge door, prepared to impart upon it the same zombie stare.   I was jolted out of my haze when I saw the heads of fresh broccoli I’d just picked from my garden and remembered this delicious Curried Broccoli Chicken Casserole.

Curried Broccoli Chicken Casserole
Adapted from several sources, including my roommate

1 large head of fresh broccoli or 1 package of frozen florets
1 package of Morning Star chicken strips
OR 2 C. uncooked chicken breast cut into cubes
1 small can of cream of broccoli soup
1 T. curry powder
1 T. lemon juice
2 T. mayonnaise
pinch of salt and pepper
1 T. butter, melted
2 C. stale bread cubes*
1 T. dried herb mix (marjoram, oregano, basil, etc)
1 C. shredded sharp cheddar

*I used a baggett that I cut into 1 inch cubes and left sit out on the counter for the afternoon so they got a little stale. 

Preheat the oven to 375 F and grease a 9” x 13” baking dish with nonstick spray.

If using frozen broccoli, thaw it on medium power in the microwave.    Cut broccoli florets into small pieces (about the size of your thumb) and lay in the bottom of the baking dish.

In a skillet over medium-high heat, cook the chicken just until it begins to brown.  If using Morning Star strips, try to break them into slightly smaller pieces while they’re cooking.  Remove from heat and spread over the broccoli in the baking dish.
 
In a mixing bowl, combine the soup, curry powder, lemon juice, mayonnaise, salt and pepper.  Pour mixture over the chicken and broccoli, spreading it out as evenly as possible.
 
Toss the bread cubes with the melted butter and then with the dried herbs (if in a pinch, I think you could use premade seasoned stuffing cubes here).  Spread the seasoned bread cubes over the baking dish, pressing down on them lightly.  Top with shredded cheese.

Bake covered for 15 minutes and then uncover the dish and bake for another 15 minutes until the dish is bubbly and golden.  Serve immediately.

(serves 8 )

Finally!  The first edible greens of spring have arrived.  My withering culinary palette couldn’t be happier.  Outside my kitchen door on the deck that will be jammed full of containerized vegetables this summer, a lone container is holding down the fort here in springtime.  It’s the container I had a yellow pear tomato, swiss chard and sorrel in last summer.  After cleaning up the containers last fall, including pulling out the tomato from this one, I kept it for the swiss chard, figuring there was a chance I could keep it going a little longer into the winter with the container sheltered up against the south side of the house.  Wouldn’t you know it; the swiss chard petered out rather quickly but the container stayed put nonetheless since I had no interest in going outside in January.  

Over the past three weeks, I’ve watched in delight as the sorrel, awesome zesty green that it is, began poking up green shoots between last year’s dead “stumps”.  I could barely restrain myself from snipping them off and munching them right away, but I knew the plants needed to get a little growth on those baby leaves so they could capture the sun’s energy and fuel their resurrection.  Good things come to those that wait. 

And indeed my patience was rewarded more than I thought.  While I waited for the sorrel, a dear friend gifted me with a big bag of mache, or lamb’s lettuce, that she received through her fabulous winter CSA via Jack’s Farm in Pottstown, PA.  Mache is still rather uncommon in the States, but it’s a favorite in France due to its nutty flavor and more robust texture than traditional lettuce.  It’s tender enough for fresh salad, but it also withstands light cooking, much like arugala.  I’ve become such a fan, I plan on growing it in my garden this summer. 

So now I had two wonderful spring greens on hand as well as some garlic and a dozen beautiful brown eggs that were also part of my friend’s CSA box from Jack’s (see why she’s the best friend ever?).  I remembered seeing an episode on the Food Network some time ago where Giada (I think) made a pasta and egg dish that looked so rustically old-world, it stuck in my head over the years.  Looking at all the fresh local goodies on my counter, I decided this was the perfect opportunity to give such a dish a try. 

Hearty and filling, Scrambled Pasta & Spring Greens is all that I hoped it would be.  The mache really handled the cooking process well and the flavors were incredibly fresh thanks to the sorrel and basil.  If you are worried about the cholesteral of the eggs, I’m sure using just the whites would work too.  And if you don’t have these exact local greens on hand, try experimenting with others that are available in your area.  I’m sure when asparagus season begins, this dish will make its rounds again in my kitchen. 

 ~

Scrambled Pasta & Spring Greens
A Straight from the Farm Original 

½ lb (half the box) spaghetti or linguini, cooked
3 T. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, sliced thinly
¼ t. crushed red pepper flakes
5 large eggs (or 7 egg whites)
½ C. grated Parmesan, plus more for serving
1 t. kosher salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
2 C. (packed) mache, washed and trimmed
1 C. chopped sorrel
½ C. finely chopped basil leaves*

*I used the frozen basil puree I make each fall and freeze into cubes.  One cube, thawed, worked perfectly. 

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat and sauté the garlic, green pepper and red pepper flakes until the vegetables are tender and just barely starting to brown at the edges.  Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, parmesan, salt and pepper.  If using thawed basil puree, add it to the eggs and whisk well to combine.

Place the cooked pasta, mache and sorrel in the skillet and toss with tongs to get everything combined.  Pour over the egg mixture and toss until eggs begin to set up.  You may need to scrape the bottom of the skillet with the spatula to lift the eggs up a bit.  If using fresh basil, add it soon after the eggs and continue to toss to combine. 

When eggs are set to your liking (about 4-5 minutes), remove skillet from heat and serve pasta with extra Parmesan.  I also put some goat cheese on it when I had it again the next day.  Good reheated gently in the microwave. 

(serves 6)

Have you ever noticed how trying a recipe for the first time is strikingly similar to going on a blind date?  You might be a little nervous beforehand, worried about prepping just right so everything goes smoothly.  Let’s not lie to ourselves: looks are important too so hopefully this new interest will be easy on the eyes.  Then there’s always the big question mark about will you like it even enough to tolerate one meal together or will you just have to get up after a few bites and find something else.  Maybe this one will be too exotic for your long-term tastes but it could be fun to live in the moment…a fling of sorts.  But, as we all no doubt secretly hope, there’s always the chance this one will be the one and stick with you through thick and thin for the rest of your life, come lumpy gravy or runny fudge.

I admit I’m being a bit snarky in writing the above, but there’s also a note of seriousness in it since I do often take up a new recipe with the same nervous energy as I would for a date.  When I saw this particular recipe in Eat Feed Autumn Winter, I was a little concerned because it would use up the last of my turnips for the season – a gorgeous bunch of baby white Hakureis that are so tender and sweet I even ate a few out of hand (which is saying a lot if you remember my semi-aversion to turnips). 

I was also a bit bashful about trying a recipe called “tatties and neeps”.  Funny how a name can put you off a little sometimes, and this Scottish designation for what we’ll just call Potatoes and Turnips with Bacon and Cream was not so appealing (though perhaps more colorful) to me for some unexplained reason.  When I read the list of ingredients though, I knew I needed to overcome my unfounded prejudice because starchy potatoes, silky cream and salty bacon (soy in my case) could not, no matter what their title, be a bad combo.  The fact that the turnips were in there just added to the interest and made me feel less guilty somehow about consuming the other three in large quantity. 

Guess what?  This recipe is a keeper!  We’ll be seeing a lot of each other in the spring when turnips come back into season.  If I had the supply in the root cellar right now, we probably would have been meeting over the dinner table at least five more times this past week.  Ah, be still my bonny heart!  

Potatoes and Turnips with Bacon and Cream
Taken from Eat Feed Autumn Winter

1 lb. red potatoes (about 5-6 small ones)
½ lb. turnips (2 large or several small ones)
5-6 pieces of bacon (soy works fine)
½ C. vegetable broth
¼ C. heavy cream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Scrub the potatoes and the turnips, trimming out ends and any bad spots.  Cut everything into a ¼ inch dice.  Set aside.

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat (if using soy bacon, generously spray the skillet with non-stick spray).  Cut bacon into ¼ inch pieces and cook in the skillet until nearly crisp, about 3 minutes.  Drain off any fat.  Add the potatoes and turnips and sauté for another 3 minutes, stirring regularly. 

Add the broth, bring to a boil, cover and cooking for 5-8 minutes over low heat or until the vegetables are tender.  Remove the lid.  Add the cream and cook over medium-high heat for 5-8, stirring regularly, until the liquid is almost evaporated and vegetables are very tender.  Season generously with salt and pepper. 

(serves 2-4)

Brunch is by far my favorite time to sit down at the table.  It always feels so much like a luxury and like you’re somehow sneaking around the conventional dusty rules of three meals a day by combining two of them.  Plus, I do love to sleep in when time affords, and brunch is usually the result of a long lazy stretch in bed that morning.

I also like how brunch bends the rules by putting sweet pastries, warmly spiced French toast, savory quiches, and even heartier fare like meaty sandwiches all on one table.  There’s this place near me, Valley Green Inn, which serves an amazing (and generous) basket of homemade mini muffins, breads, and pastries to every table at brunch.  It makes my heart sing.  Somehow the sight of a slice of pumpkin bread nestled beside a blueberry muffin snuggled up with a hunk of sourdough truly tickles my fancy. 

This recipe for Baked Eggs with Creamy Leeks is a quintessential brunch dish.  It’s rich to the point of being just a little bit self-indulgent (just like sleeping in) and best eaten when you’ve got time to linger as the flavors demand being savored.  The onion hints of the leeks and their bright color offset the eggs as only leeks can.  The eggs, by the way, were some of those wonderful country brown eggs from chickens running around out in a pasture.  It’s always amazing to me (although it probably shouldn’t be) that you can taste the difference between a caged-up hen’s white eggs and a free range hen’s brown eggs – you really can! 

The news is a-buzz with the upcoming switch in Commander-in-Chiefs, and I got to thinking while I was making this about all the fancy affairs going on with the inauguration this coming week.  If you look up the list of events, you’ll see a number of high society brunches in D.C. and across the country.  The menu for the official inaugural luncheon looks quite tasty and rather suspiciously like brunch.   Once I got to thinking about all the celebratory inauguration brunches, I started wondering, what will Obama eat for breakfast the day he becomes president?   If I were him, I’d be too nervous to eat, but this tasty dish would be worthy of consideration for such a momentous breakfast.

Be it an important dignitary or Joe the Plumber, everyone will enjoy Baked Eggs with Creamy Leeks.  And while the presentation is lovely enough for a brunch event, the preparation is so simple you can make it for your family any time you can all manage to gather around the table.  No matter what the time of day. 

Baked Eggs with Creamy Leeks
Adapted from Four Ingredient Cooking

1 T. butter
2 t. minced garlic
2 C. leeks, thinly sliced and rinsed
8 T. light cream
1 t. freshly grated nutmeg
1 t. dried majoram or rubbed sage
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 large eggs

Preheat the oven to 375 F.  Generously spray the base and sides of the ramekins and set aside. 

Melt the butter in a skillet and cook the garlic and leeks over medium heat, stirring frequently, until softened and translucent, about 4 minutes.  Reduce heat to low for a minute before adding half of the cream.  Stir in nutmeg and a pinch each of salt and pepper.  Continue cooking and stirring until mixture has thickened and leeks are soft, about another 4 minutes. 

Place the ramekins in a small roasting pan and divide the leek mixture evenly among them.  Carefully break an egg in each and spoon over a tablespoon of the remaining cream.  Sprinkle with dried herbs, salt and pepper.

Put roasting pan on oven rack and then pour boiling water into the pan to come up about halfway on the sides of the ramekins.  Carefully push pan into the center of the oven and bake for about 15 minutes, just until the eggs are set. 

Serve straight from the oven with a crusty roll. 

(serves 4)

I’m really not a fan of Emeril Lagasse and his “bam!” tactics on the Food Network.  Generally I’ve found him to be a bit too much of a showman and not enough of a food professional.  But I may just have to eat my own words after this recipe, one of his from his show Emeril Live. 

I wasn’t planning on using an Emeril recipe.  However, I had the notion of stuffing some pasta shells with eggplant and, as usual, when I come up with a concept I’m not quite sure about, I goggled the idea.  Up popped this recipe, which wasn’t all that exciting until I started reading the ingredients for the sauce.  Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce is phenomenal, folks.  Can I get a “Bam!” up in here?   And the Eggplant Stuffed Shells were pretty darn good too.

Now, I have to be honest about one thing with you.  This recipe has a long list of ingredients and is pretty time consuming.  But it’s so worth it!   Or, just make the sauce and pour it over any ol’ pasta for a heavenly shortcut.  It’s really the sauce that makes this dish spectacular.   Unfortunately tomato season is fast dwindling so this should go right to the top of your bookmarks!

~

Eggplant-Stuffed Shells with Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce
Adapted from Emeril Live

Stuffed Shells

1 T. olive oil
1 package of meatless “crumbles” or sausage with casing removed
1 C. minced onion
5 C. diced eggplant, skins left on (about 1 large or several small eggplants)
1 1/2 t. salt
3/4 t. cayenne pepper
1 T. minced garlic
12 oz. part skim ricotta cheese 
1/4 t. sugar

1/2 of a 12-ounce package jumbo pasta shells (about 20 shells)

Tomato-Basil Cream Sauce

3 lb. fresh heirloom tomatoes
2 t. salt
1 t. sugar
1 T. olive oil
1 C. minced onion
1 T. minced garlic
3 C. heavy cream
dash of cayenne pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil leaves

½ C. shredded mozzarella or cheddar cheese
½ C. parmesan cheese

To make the stuffing:
In a large skillet, heat a tablespoon oil over medium-high heat and sauté the meatless crumbles (or sausage) until golden browns, about 5 minutes. Add the onions and the eggplant, season with salt and cayenne pepper, and cook for another 5 minutes, or until the vegetables are lightly caramelized and very soft. Add the minced garlic and stir for another minute.

Remove from the heat and transfer to a bowl to cool.  When the mixture has stopped steaming, stir in the ricotta and sugar. Stir to combine well.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta shells until just al dente, 10 to 12 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold running water and drain again. Stuff the pasta shells with the eggplant mixture and arrange stuffed side up in a lightly greased 9 x 13 inch casserole dish.    If prepping a day ahead, you would stop here and store covered tightly in the refrigerator. 

To make the sauce: 
Begin by bringing a large kettle of water up to a boil.  Turn off the heat and put the whole fresh tomatoes into the hot water and let stand for 2 minutes.  Drain off hot water and cover tomatoes with cold water.  When the tomatoes are cool enough to handle, use a paring knife to remove the cores and then slip off the skins.  Roughly chop the parboiled tomatoes and return to the kettle.  Smash with a potato masher and bring to a rapid boil for five minutes.  Reduce heat to let the tomatoes simmer until they begin to thicken, about 20 minutes.

In a skillet, heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat and sauté the remaining chopped onions until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add to the reduced tomatoes.  Stir in the salt, sugar and cayenne pepper and cook for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and slowly stir in the heavy cream. Cook until the sauce is reduced in volume by about a thrid, about 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Add the chopped basil to the sauce and pour the sauce over the stuffed shells.  Sprinkle with the remaining cheeses. Cover the casserole tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking until the sauce is lightly browned in spots and bubbly around the edges, about 15-20 minutes longer. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

(serves 6-8 )

Life here has not exactly been “peachy” this past week.  A little run-in with a deer tick left me flat on my back, shivering and sweating buckets at the same time, for several days.  I’m on the mend now and am on a new crusade to raise awareness about Lyme Disease.  Seeing as how this is a food blog, I’ll spare you all the gross images and descriptions and just summarize:  if you live in an area that’s known to have Lyme Disease and you start getting a very high fever with tremendous joint and muscle pain, get thee to a doctor immediately!!  Do not, like your truly, keep putting it off until you literally can’t move.  That’s very dangerous!   According to my doctor, he’s never seen so many cases as he has already this year so those nasty ticks are on the move! 

Not-so-fun health topics aside, I thought I’d throw this stir-fry recipe at you as one last idea for what to do with your edible chrysanthemum, should you still be finding it at the farmer’s market.  Obviously, you can mix and match the vegetables according to what you have on hand.   I know the recipe and combination is not overly creative, but the creative juices haven’t been flowing much lately.  I personally enjoyed the “bite” or acidity the mum leaves added to the stir-fry.  However, I’ll warn you that D did not like it.  So it’s probably wise to taste test as you add the leaves, starting with just a small handful.  They cook so quickly, you can adjust to individual tastes quite easily. 

Basic Stir-Fry Sauce
Adapted from cdkitchen.com

1 1/2 t. sesame oil
1/2 t. minced garlic
1/2 t. minced ginger
1/2 C. vegetable broth
1 T. soy sauce
1 T. brown sugar
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 1/2 t. lemon or orange juice
1 1/2 t. cornstarch
1 T. rice wine or sherry

Heat the sesame oil in a small saucepan. Add the ginger and garlic and stir-fry 15-30 second over medium heat to bring out the flavor. Add the broth, soy sauce, brown sugar, salt, pepper, and citrus juice.

Bring just to a boil, stirring. Dissolve the cornstarch in the wine and whisk into the sauce. Heat until sauce thickens and reaches a full boil.

Simmer for 30 seconds. Remove from the heat and set aside.

(makes about 1 cup)

Vegetable Stir-Fry

1 T. vegetable or canola oil
2 C. sugar snap peas, washed
1 C. oyster mushrooms, cleaned and roughly chopped
1 small bunch of edible chrysamthemum, washed, stems removed,and chopped
1 C. corn (thawed if frozen)
1 C. cooked shredded chicken or soy chicken

Heat a large skillet or wok over high heat.  Add oil and heat until shimmering.  Stirring constantly, add the peas and cook until beginning to soften.  Add the mushrooms and cook until noticebly reduced.  Add the corn and chopped mum leaves and stir until wilted.

Toss in the shredded chicken and add the sauce (see recipe above).  Reduce heat and simmer for 3-4 minutes.  Serve immediately over warm rice. 

(serves 4)

This past weekend I had the distinct pleasure of cooking all the food for my dear friend Christine’s 30th birthday bash.  It was a “distinct pleasure” because it was the best of both worlds for me.  I love cooking for parties.  I love it so much that I’d probably throw a party every weekend if it weren’t for one little eensy problem…

I hate cleaning.  Man, do I hate cleaning the house!  And I especially hate the stress of trying to get the kitchen cleaned up before the guests start arriving.  I’m not the type of cook that cleans as she goes.

With this particular party being held several miles away, I was free to cook right up to the last minute and then gleefully leave the kitchen in shambles as I strolled out the door in my blue toile party dress.  I had five dishes on the menu, some tried-and-true and some a little more risky.  All, if I am to believe the feedback, were very much a hit.  When planning a party menu though, I always like to have a fail safe; a dish that’s virtually guaranteed to appease the masses and fill their bellies before the alcohol soaks in beyond repair. 

My grown-up version of macaroni and cheese is about as sure fire as they come.   Those of you who’ve been around this site for awhile might remember that I have a problem with making mac and cheese since my mom makes such fabulous dishes of it that I’m never really happy when I make it for myself.  Herein lies the irony: it’s one of my favorite dishes to serve to other people.  See, they don’t know how good my mom’s is so they’re more then happy to settle for mine.  Plus, my mom’s is pure mac and cheese goodness while mine’s become something more like an odd stepchild as I cram more and more ingredients into it. 

But at the heart of this ooey-gooey, drool-inducing mac daddy of a dish is the cheese.  I could write sonnets about the nutty savory flavors of this particular crumbly smooth textured local cheese from Hillacres Pride that I fell in love with last summer at the Headhouse Market.  I’ll spare you though as I’m not much of a poet.  Suffice to say that getting a high-quality and distinctive local cheese really ups the ante for this dish. 

From there, it’s equally important to consider pairing the soft chewy creamy qualities of the macaroni and cheese with a crunchy salty topping.   Don’t settle for breadcrumbs in a can on this one, my friends.  Get yourself a few slices of good bread (I personally like a nice oatmeal or seven grain loaf), toast them up until just golden, and cut them yourself into quarter inch cubes.  Then it’s on to the bacon and grated parmesan cheese.  I used soy bacon on mine since the crowd was largely vegetarian.  However, I’m sure real bacon would make it even better flavor-wise.  

I haven’t abandoned my mom’s formula entirely though.  As my undisclosed ingredient, I tuck in a few chunks of Velveeta (a cheese “product” for those of you who don’t know it), which is what makes the cheese sauce so smooth that it wraps itself around every single piece of pasta.  Mmmm-Mm! 

Grown-Up Mac & Cheese
Loosely adapted from the back of the box

14-16 oz. package of macaroni or spiral pasta
3 T. butter
3 T. all-purpose flour
2 ½ C. milk (fat free works fine)
5 oz. high quality cheddar, chunked
4 oz. Velveeta (or additional cheddar)
½ C. shredded mozzarella
¼ C. chopped fresh or dried herbs (such as chives, dill, oregano and marjoram)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 slices of fresh bread, toasted and cubed into ¼ inch
5 slices of bacon (soy or real), cooked slightly underdone
¼ C. freshly grated parmesan

Cook the pasta according to package directions until just al dente.  Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large heavy saucepan.  Add the flour and stir to cook for about a minute to get out the raw flavor of the four.  Slowly stir in the milk and whisk regularly until sauce begins to thicken, about three minutes. 

Add the cheddar, Velveeta and mozzarella and stir until melted and fully incorporated. Add the salt, pepper and freshly chopped herbs.  Stir and remove from heat.  Drain pasta of its cooking water.  Stir pasta into the cheese sauce and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375 F.  Butter a casserole or baking dish and carefully fill with macaroni and cheese.  Top with evenly with bacon, bread cubes and parmesan.  Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes or until golden and bubbly. 

(serves 6)