Panini with Prosciutto, Fontina, Spinach and Slow-Roasted Tomatoes
February 5, 2009 by Andrea
Filed under Grow Your Own, Sandwiches
One of my quick weeknight meal inspiration sites is Panini Happy, run by my friend Kathy. We met at BlogHer last summer and I have been impressed with her and her site from the beginning. Kathy is in love with her panini grill and it shows in her creative sandwiches. Even if your average weeknight is too busy for a fancy dinner, everyone has time for a healthy sandwich in the evenings, and Kathy’s site provides plenty to choose from.
She inspired me to spiff up our weekly panini night, and I came up with this one after I found a tub of grated fontina in the back of refrigerator and couldn’t remember why I bought it. Obviously I need to keep better track of my groceries. The slow-roasted tomatoes came from our summer garden, and we are looking forward to growing even more tomatoes this summer. Read more
Jalapeno Jack Fondue and a Giveaway
January 14, 2009 by Andrea
Filed under Appetizers, Salsas & Dips
We’re on Day 3 of our entertaining theme for this week and the next party recipe comes from Great Party Fondues, a new cookbook from Peggy Fallon. This very adult dip is made with jalapeno jack cheese, beer, and tequila, and is a mouthful of flavor. Serve it in a fondue pot or a miniature Crock Pot, and offer tortilla chips, pita chips, celery, and pepper strips as dunkers.
Making a good cheese fondue requires some attention to detail. The cheese should be at room temperature before adding to the hot liquid, and stirring should be kept to a minimum, otherwise the sauce will be stringy. In addition, cheese sauces have a tendency to separate, leaving you with lumpy cheese in a soupy liquid. In her book Cookwise, Shirley Corriher gives a few tips on working with a cheese sauce. Read more
Butternut Squash Pizza with Pancetta, Goat Cheese, and Sage
December 15, 2008 by Andrea
Filed under Breads, Grow Your Own, Vegetables
How embarrassing that I’m almost late for my own event! This month has been busy with cookies, cookies, and more cookies, and somehow along the way I forgot that I needed to post for Grow Your Own. It would have been doubly embarrassing since I’m hosting this round. The deadline for posting is December 15, and as long as I get an email from you with all the appropriate information you can still join us.
My inspiration for this pizza comes from my adopted blogger Jennifer at Palate to Pen. She made a butternut squash pizza with prosciutto and white sauce, and the very thought of it had me drooling and dreaming up what else to do with a butternut squash pizza topping. For this pizza I cut the squash into small chunks, thinly sliced a few shallots, tossed it with fresh from the garden sage chiffonade and some olive oil, then roasted it for about 15 minutes in the convection oven until the squash was soft and the shallots glistened. While that was roasting I cooked up some Pancetta and drained it on a paper towel. I cooked it about one minute too long, and I suggest watching it carefully. You want it to render a good amount of fat so it doesn’t linger on the pizza, but not get it too crispy before it goes into the oven. About any pizza dough will do, though I like to use either Peter Reinhart’s dough or a quick whole wheat dough, and we prefer our pizza cooked on a baking stone or on the grill for a nice crispy crust.
Grilled Eggplant Lasagna
September 25, 2008 by Andrea
Filed under Italian foods, Main Course, Vegetables
When I started the South Beach Diet a few weeks ago, I had to rethink some of our meals, and less pasta was high on the list. It’s easy to get good fresh vegetables at this time of year, and we’ve kept the refrigerator stocked. I’ve had eggplant lasagna on many occasions, but always with the noodles, so this time I decided to use the eggplant in place of the noodles, thus keeping the hearty comfort food a little healthier.
Grilling the eggplant lends a nice smoky flavor to the lasagna, and I left the skin on to help hold the slices together on the grill. The sauce is our favorite spaghetti sauce from Michael’s mom, and the rest is just easy layering and baking. I made this on a weeknight after simmering the sauce all morning and afternoon, but you could also make this a weekend family meal or even for company in individual portions.
Equipment
grill
9×13 baking pan
medium mixing bowl
Ingredients
1 recipe spaghetti sauce
1 eggplant, 16 ounces (~454 g) or larger
olive oil
15 ounces (425 g) part-skim ricotta cheese
1 egg
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan + more for sprinkling on top
2 teaspoons dried basil or 3/4 cup (~30 g) fresh basil leaves, torn
8 ounces (227 g) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
Preparation
1. Prepare the sauce according to the directions. You can make this ahead and store in the refrigerator or freezer. If frozen, thaw before using.
2. Preheat the grill to medium, about 350° F/175° C.
3. Slice the eggplant into 1/4-inch (0.5 cm) rounds with the skin still on. Brush with olive oil. Grill for about 3 to 4 minutes per side.
4. Preheat the oven to 350° F/175° C.
5. In the medium mixing bowl, stir together the ricotta, egg, grated Parmesan, and dried basil. If using fresh basil, leave it out for now.
6. Spread a ladle or two of the prepared sauce in the bottom of the baking dish. Lay down a row of the grilled eggplant, then spread about 1/3 of the ricotta cheese mixture. It doesn’t have to look pretty, just make sure that it is evenly distributed, even if it’s in clumps. If using fresh basil, add 1/2 of the leaves in a layer.
7. Add about 2 more cups of sauce, then half the remaining grilled eggplant, 1/2 of the remaining cheese mixture, and the rest of the fresh basil (if using).
8. Add another 2 cups of the sauce, the rest of the grilled eggplant, and the rest of the ricotta cheese mixture. Spread the remaining sauce on top then top with the shredded mozzarella and some more Parmesan.
9. Bake uncovered in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until the lasagna is cooked all the way through and the top is bubbly and golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to sit for about 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
More Italian Recipes
More Lasagna Recipes From Around the Blogs
101 Cookbooks – Thousand Layer Lasagne
Ms. Adventures in Italy – 3 Cheese Pesto Vegetable Lasagna
Kalyn’s Kitchen – Grilled Zucchini Lasagna with Italian, Sausage, Tomato, and Basil Sauce
One Hot Stove – Roasted Squash Onion Lasagna
Roasted Eggplant with Gruyere
September 10, 2008 by Andrea
Filed under Vegetables
When Michael goes on travel I find myself craving comfort food. I’m sure the phenomenon is related to my energy levels, which take a dip during the weeks he is gone and are in direct correlation to the high energy my boys possess. Top that off with being awake way into the night trying to take care of all the chores that don’t get done during the day, and I start each morning with a sleep deficit and a craving for foods that taste good and give me a warm, fuzzy feeling on the inside.
Last week while he was on his latest trip, I found myself craving roasted eggplant, so I pulled out a comfort food recipe. This is another one of those dishes that doesn’t look like much when you prepare it, but the good, simple ingredients promise something more. The garlic slivers roast right along with the eggplant and infuse it with flavor, and the texture is smooth and creamy. Preparation is pretty easy and you can even do it in stages if you need to. You can roast the eggplant and process it the night before, keep it in the refrigerator overnight, warm it the next day while sauteing the mushrooms, then assemble and bake just before serving.
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Creamy Macaroni and Cheese
Growing up Catholic, Michael had baked macaroni and cheese and other no-meat dishes on Fridays. My family had no such tradition and frankly for years I never had anything more than stove top macaroni and cheese out of the familiar blue box. I don’t remember exactly how old I was, but I do clearly remember that I was of elementary school age when I had my first experience with baked macaroni and cheese…in the school cafeteria. A yellowish-brown gelatinous blob was dropped onto my tray and I just stared, convinced that no one could possibly eat it. I took a taste but never finished the serving. And that experience is proof in my book that it is possible to screw up something as simple and wonderful as baked macaroni and cheese. In fact I didn’t even try it again until I was in college and had some in the university’s cafeteria, but this time it didn’t seem so bad as my prior experience. Read more
