Comfort Food

The Fall has me craving comfort food.  What makes you feel better than a good ole family recipe on a cool Fall night?  I have been steadily cooking since I went away to college.  Last week I found my old recipe box my Mom helped me start as a freshman in college.  In there I found this gem:
  

Sausage, Red Beans, and Rice  

I love that this is a family recipe.  What I love the about it most of all: It is written in her handwriting on a scrap piece of paper.  :)  I can honestly say that I haven't made this in years, but it tastes just as good I remember!  This is quickly going in our regular rotation of one pot meals.  I promise you it is better than anything you will find in the box!  

Here's what you need to make it:
1 pound sausage (I used Jimmy Dean reduced fat, but any kind will do)
1 package Polksa Keilbasa sausage
1 onion, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 cup beef broth
1/2 cup uncooked white rice
1 T olive oil
1 can (14 oz) red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp dried oregano (I used Italian seasoning since I didn't have oregano)
1/4 tsp black pepper

Cook the sausage until brown and drain the fat.  Cook the kielbasa until cooked through.  In a large dutch heat the olive oil and then  cook the bell pepper and onion for 2-3 minutes.  Add the minced garlic and cook for a minute.  Throw in the uncooked rice and cook for 2-3 minutes (until it looks "toasty").   Next add the beef broth, sausage, kielbasa, and seasonings to the rice mixture.  Bring this mixture to a boil.  Once boiling turn down the heat to simmer and cook for about 20 minutes (or until the rice is cooked through).  Add the kidney beans during the last 5 minutes.  Allow it to rest for 5 minutes before serving. 

Thanks Mom!
Love, 
Mamby

Grilling is for Pizza

Matt and I found out last night that your grill is not just for burgers and dogs.  This idea came from Bobby Flay's grilling show on Food Network.  The pizza we made is a white pizza called "Pizza Bianca".  We switched up the recipe a bit but as it is with most pizzas...you really can't go wrong.  The grill gives the pizza a crisp crust with a rich, smokey flavor.  Try your own version by adding different toppings.  It will be delicious any way you slice it!

Ingredients:

Sundried Tomato Pesto

Fresh mozzarella 

Ricotta

Parmasen

EVOO

S&P

Fresh spinach or arugula

Goat cheese

Directions:

Baste pizza crust with EVOO and sprinkle with S&P.  Place crust on a hot grill (wipe grill grate down with EVOO or spray).  Grill both sides of crust for about 2 minutes on each side to infuse the olive oil flavor into the crust.  You can use homemade crust, or store bought.  (We actually used a store bought wheat and soy bean crust that turned out to be very tasty, and easy to work with on the grill when trying this for the first time).  Take the crust off of the grill and add the pesto base and cheeses.  We used sundried tomato pesto as a base.  (I think a true Bianca only uses the cheeses and EVOO...but we couldn't resist and I do highly recommend it!)  Dollop the crust with ricotta and fresh slices of mozzarella and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.  Return pizza to the grill on a medium high heat.  Grill pizza with the top of the grill shut until the cheese is melted and golden brown.  (Matt says he put the pizza on the side of the grill away from the direct heat).  Watch pizza and turn the crust to make sure the bottom is not getting too much heat in one section.  Depending on your grill timing on this step can vary, but it should be around 10 minutes.  Once pizza is cooked, remove from grill and add the spinach or arugula greens, dollop with goat cheese, and sprinkle with EVOO.  Slice and enjoy with a cold beer or white wine!

Pizza just before putting on grill

Pizza getting its grill on!

Finished product

Brennan's Eggs Hussarde

~ Bringing a little Nawlins to the Farm on Easter ~  www.brennansneworleans.com

Saveur magazine had a special issue this month about New Orleans cuisine and places to eat while visiting NOLA.  Brennan's restaurant in the French Quarter has been around since the 40's and is famous for their multicourse breakfasts.  We decided to kick Easter morning breakfast up a notch with their twist on the traditional Eggs Benedict, called "Eggs Hussarde".  This edition includes the typical ingredients for Eggs Benedict, but incorporates a rich red wine sauce with mushrooms and onions, and is served with broiled Parmesan tomatoes.  Cook and prep time took about 45 minutes with four cooks in the kitchen, so it's not fast food, but well worth the effort in the end!

Ingredients for wine sauce:

3 T. butter

1 clove garlic

1 scallion

1/4 yellow onion

1/4 c. chopped bacon

1/4 c. minced mushrooms

1 T. flour

3/4 c. beef stock

1/4 c. dry red wine

2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp dried thyme

2 T. finely chopped parsley

S & P to taste  

Cooking directions:

Heat butter in sauce pan over medium-high heat.  Add garlic, scallions, and pinions; cook until soft about 2-3 minutes.  Add bacon and mushrooms; cook about 4 minutes.  Add flour; cook, stirring for about 1 minute.  Add stock, wine, Worcestershire, and thyme and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium and cook down until slightly thick.  Stir in 2 T. parsley and season with salt and pepper as needed.

What sauce looks like when thickened

Broiled Parmesan tomatoes:

Slice beefsteak tomatoes about a 1/4 inch thick and place on baking sheet.  Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with fresh grated Parmesan cheese.  Heat oven to broil and broil tomatoes until cheese is slightly browned, about 2-3 minutes.

Tomatoes before broiling

Assembly:

Ladle red wind sauce onto a toasted English muffin half.  Add a slice of canadian bacon and then the poached egg.  Top with a smooth homemade hollandaise sauce and serve with broiled tomato on the side.

Mangia!

*It's always nice when the cooks can rest and someone else does the dishes!

40 years!!!!!

Last night the Skilling & Ewanowski families celebrated Mom &Dad's 40th wedding anniversary in Clayton!!!  To be truthful, we were celebrating a lot of family happenings, but this was the catalyst for our dinner. We enjoyed a delicious dinner at the Farmhouse at Persimmon Creek (located about 2 miles from their house).  Chef Vincent and his wife Donna did not disappoint with their "farm to farmhouse" entrees of filet mignon, salmon, scallops, and chicken. The dinner was topped off with tiramisu and chocolate ganache brownies! If you head to Clayton you have to check them out! Dinner is reservation only and the menu changes weekly based on farm availability of fresh ingredients.  Cheers!

Here is their website: http://www.thefarmhouseatpersimmoncreek.com/

Eggplant Parmesan

A few weeks ago we went on a "stay-cation" to the Farm for 3 days.  I spent my time mostly in my pj's, but did manage to have a cooking class in the Farm kitchen from my Dad on Friday morning!  I hope this blog post inspires you to get in the kitchen with your family and make some memories!  I love you, Dad!   

He taught me how to make his Mom's eggplant Parmesan from scratch.  My grandmother (his mother) arrived in the USA from Italy as a small child and was an excellent cook.  I grew up eating a lot of her cooking via my mom.  Dad doesn't get in the kitchen much, but when he does it is to make this!  Those of you that know me know that I am a typical "type A" person...I never realized where I get it from until this day!  My Dad was so methodical when cooking, making sure that each piece was placed in the pan in a certain way, that they were equally browned, and careful not to rush this process.  Start to finish this takes about an hour.  To make your own eggplant parmesan you will need:

3 ripe eggplant, sliced about 1 inch thick
1-2 large jars of marinara (64 oz each)
1 container of Italian breadcrumbs
4 cups of mozzarealla cheese
2 cups of Parmesan & Romano cheese
2 cups of Parmesan cheese, grated
3 eggs

We started by slicing the eggplant into 1 inch disks and  heated a cast iron griddle to medium.  We grilled them for a few minutes per side until lightly browned. 

Next you will place the eggs in a bowl and lightly beat them.  Place the breadcrumbs in a different bowl.  Heat some vegetable oil in your largest frying pan (you want the oil to be about an inch deep) on medium.  Carefully coat the eggplant in the egg, then the breadcrumbs, and fry in batches until golden brown. 

Take them out and place them on a paper towel to drain.  Repeat this process until all slices are fried.

Once all of the eggplant is fried get out a 9 x 13 Pyrex.  Place a light coating of marinara on the bottom and layer the eggplant on top. 

Next cover with a mix of mozzarella and parmesan cheese.  Cover that layer with marinara and then repeat this process until the pan full. 

Top with more marinara and lots of cheese!  Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, or until bubbly.  *At this point you can eat it right away or allow it to cool.  Once cooled place it in the frig and reheat when you are ready to eat it.*  This makes about one 9 x 13 and another small loaf pan of eggplant parm.  It freezes well!  We served it with some hot and mild Italian sausages and quick salad.  Then it was time to Mangia!!!!! 

Croque Madame?  Oui! Oui!

As most people know I try to stay away from Roux's if at all possible!  The traditional form of this recipe calls for a Béchamel sauce, but what caught my eye about this recipe is that it uses a "faux" version of the sauce by using sour cream.  Not only is it quick and easy, but has a great flavor and is healthier than using butter and cream, which you would use for a typical Béchamel sauce.  I have to give Melissa d'Arabian from the Food Network credit on this one!  The things I added or changed to this recipe were: nutmeg, canadian bacon and arugula.    -Rachel

Ingredients

• 4 large slices country-style bread
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Swiss
• 2 tablespoons white wine
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 4 pieces of Canadian bacon
• Fresh arugula
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 4 eggs

Directions

Preheat the broiler on low.  Toast the bread just until a light crisp forms.  In a small bowl, toss the cheese with the white wine and allow to sit.

Swiss cheese soaking in wine!

In another small bowl mix together the sour cream, garlic, mustard, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. On a baking sheet, lay out the bread slices. Take less than one-quarter of the sour cream mixture and divide evenly among the bread slices, spreading thinly to coat 1 side of each slice. Next, evenly distribute the ham on top of the bread. Divide the rest of the sour cream mixture over the ham. Spoon the cheese on top of the sour cream mixture, blotting lightly before adding to remove any excess wine.

Preheat a large, nonstick saute pan over medium heat and melt the butter. Crack the eggs into the pan and fry, either over-easy or sunny-side up, according to your preference.

While the eggs are cooking, place the open-faced sandwiches under the broiler until very bubbly and lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Watch closely and don't let the topping burn. Place each sandwich on a plate. Top each sandwich with arugula and then place 1 egg on each sandwich.  Salt and pepper to taste.  (Note: If you use Canadian bacon instead of deli ham it has a tendency to be pretty salty, so watch your salt seasoning!)  Garnish top with arugula sprigs and serve with a side of soup.  

After broiling

We served with Tomato Soup

Mission Possible: Operation Freezer

Last weekend we were forced to unplug and clean out our big freezer in the garage.  This left us with the "oh so fun" task of pulling out all of the frozen food we had in there.  I regularly buy things that are on sale at the grocery and stick them in the freezer with the good intentions of using them up quickly....or in this case, not so quickly!  Since the kitchen is my domain Frank has no idea what I have in there.  This was kind of like a game of "lost and found"!  I got a few looks from him that were hilarious!  Here's a quick list of some of the things we discovered frozen:  lobster tails from the Keys, a pork tenderloin, mahi-mahi, ground buffalo, Brunswick stew, ground pork, pork chops, bacon, a whole chicken, frog legs (ewwwww!), crab cakes, a lasagna, homemade chicken and ham stock, a brisket,  ham bones, pheasant, and deer jerky.  *Note: the pheasant, deer jerky, and frog legs were gifts from my Dad to Frank*

So I gave myself a challenge:  buy only the necessities and the grocery store to accompany my freezer finds.  Thus far I have managed to only spend ~$70 on food for 2 weeks!  We have used up the lasagna, Brunswick stew, and pork chops.  This week I am trying out a roasted chicken recipe, the pork tenderloin, and we may even squeeze in a buffalo burger.  I found this roasted chicken recipe that looked very easy: 

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/lemon-and-herb-roasted-chicken-with-baby-potatoes-recipe/index.html


I hope that this post inspires you to look inside your frig, freezer, and pantry and go through all of the things that you have stored up!  And if any of you want some pheasant, frog legs, or deer jerky I am happy to share!  :-D

College Friends Reunited!

On 1/6/13 Faith, Ali, and I gathered at Katie's house to meet the newest addition, baby Frank!  Coincidentally it was Frank's one month birthday!  My Mom always brought people food whenever she visited them for life events so that they wouldn't have to worry about cooking.  I thought this visit was a perfect opportunity to pamper Katie a little bit and bring her lunch!  Ali also brought a casserole and salad for Katie to reheat at a later time.  My Mom swears by this recipe and I have made it once at home.  It is quick, easy, and delicious!  She found it in a magazine and I have had a copy of it in my recipe binder for quite some time.  While I don't have a picture of the soup I do have a couple of cute pics of Frank with us!

Tortellini Florentine Soup

9 oz package of refrigerated tortellini
2 cans chicken broth (14 oz each)
3 cups of baby spinach
10 oz alfredo sauce
2 cups of roasted chicken
1/2 cup sundried tomato strips packed in oil
1 oz Parmesan cheese

In 4-quart Dutch oven cook tortellini according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

In the same Dutch oven combine broth and Alfredo sauce. Stir in chicken and tomato strips. Heat just to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes.

Add cooked tortellini and spinach to chicken mixture. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes to heat through and wilt spinach. To serve, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Makes 6 servings.

*If you like to look at recipes online rather than copy them down here is the link:  http://www.bhg.com/recipe/soups/tortellini-florentine-soup/

Emeril's Braised Pork Chops with Apples and Onions

One of my Christmas gifts was a new crock-pot so I wanted to try it out.  The prep for this meal does take about 20-30 minutes, but is well worth it.  Definitely is a perfect meal for a cold winter's day!  The only thing I did differently was that I used a pork tenderloin cut into 2" steaks, and I used Crown Royal whiskey instead of brandy.  I also used the Spanish "smoked Paprika" as I love the deep flavor of this spice...and omitted the marjoram and caraway seeds.  The pork was so tender you could cut it with a fork so I highly recommend using a tenderloin.  Enjoy!

Ingredients

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon cayenne

6 center-cut pork chops, 1/2 inch thick (about 2 1/2 pounds)

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all- purpose flour

1/4 cup plus 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

2 medium onions cut into 1/4- inch slices

1/3 cup Calvados or other brandy

1 1/2 cups chicken stock or canned low- sodium chicken broth

1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds

2 bay leaves

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

1 teaspoon chopped fresh marjoram

2 Granny Smith apples, cored and cut into 1/4- inch slices, sprinkled with lemon juice to prevent browning if sliced ahead.

Cooking Directions

Combine the kosher salt, paprika, and cayenne and mix well. Using paper towels, lightly pat the pork chops dry, then season the chops on both sides with the salt mixture. Lightly dredge the pork chops in 1/4 cup of the flour.

Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a 12-inch sauté pan over medium- high heat. Add the pork chops, 2 at a time, and cook until lightly browned, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer the pork chops to the crock of a 6- quart slow cooker. Repeat with the remaining pork chops, adding a tablespoon of the olive oil to the pan with each batch.

Add 1 tablespoon of the remaining oil to the pan along with the onions and season with a pinch of salt. Sauté, stirring, for 30 seconds, then add the Calvados, scraping to remove any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook until most of the alcohol has evaporated, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Turn the heat down to medium. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and 2 tablespoons flour. Cook, stirring constantly, until the flour is lightly browned and smells nutty. Whisk in the stock, bring to a boil, and cook until the mixture has thickened, about 1 minute. Pour over the pork chops and add the caraway seeds, bay leaves, 2 teaspoons salt, pepper, and half of the herbs. Top with the onions, then cover the slow cooker.

Set the temperature to high and cook until the pork chops are very tender, about 4 hours. Check the pork chops once or twice during cooking, gently shifting them around in the crock so that they are evenly submerged in the cooking liquid to promote even cooking. During the last 45 minutes, push the onions aside and layer with the apples. Cover the apples with the onions and finish cooking. Remove the bay leaves. Sprinkle with the remaining herbs and serve hot with a side of your choice.

We served with green beans and "smashed potatoes".
A wild rice would be a nice compliment to the dish as well.