church & yummy eggplant parmesan

i was reminded on sunday why it's not a good idea to take a 17 month old to church. the story, however, is worth sharing... it's that entertaining. see, i'm a first-time mom and have all of these stories so you're just going to have to listen to them.
brian had plans to go to the packer game which left me pondering what to do with my baby girl all day. and then it came to me! pancakes at the cafe down the street and church. does it get any more angelic than that? after snuggling in bed watching sprout for an hour, we ventured to the daymaker cafe just a few blocks away. it was perfect. reagan said hi to everybody who opened the door and bopped away to the tunes. we gobbled up our pancakes, blew kisses to the waitress and drove to church. now mind you, the last time i went to church was 3 months ago only to find out it's not a good idea to take a 14 month old to church. you would have thought i learned my lesson. unfortunately for me, and all at church, i did not.
upon entering i carefully assessed the best spot to sit deciding the last row wasn't necessary but maybe 6 rows up from the back? it was, however, necessary to sit on the end of the pew for quick toddler removal access. reagan sat in the pew, looked around and was enthralled with the music and all of the people. she bopped her head to "crown him with many crowns" and even clapped and yelled "yay!!" when the hymn was over. i thought to myself- this isn't so bad... i pulled out her tea party set and a book. she played away and even found a two year-old pretzel on the floor that almost made it in to her mouth. she of course stood on the pew and made her traditional ham faces to our friends behind us. then it happened. she saw the aisle and wanted out. i guarded her with my shoe and pulled out the cheerios in desperation of distraction. nope, didn't work. she wanted out. i scooped her up and went to the back of the church leaving her ample room to run around without anybody noticing. problem was she didn't want to run around in the back of the church... she wanted to run down the aisle. yep, she did it. i literally ran for dear life chasing after her. she made it about a third of the way down before i scooped her up and put her again in the back of the room. this time she headed straight for the far left aisle of the church. yep, i found myself chasing her yet again. out of the corner of my eye i saw my friend monica mouthing "it's okay", trying to make me not feel so embarrassed. truth of it was i wanted to drown myself in the wine meant for communion. i scooped her up again with no intention of putting her down, however, she wasn't having it. she ran down the center aisle. i picked her up and shuffled into our pew (trying to act as if that was the plan all along). i sat her on the pew and my darling angel threw every toy she had on the ground leaving the cute kiddos in front of us to pick up and return. of course it was offering time. i dug through my purse, sweating profusely, looking for that god forsaken envelope. meanwhile my daughter is crying and throwing a full blow tantrum. found it! it was evident reagan was no longer able to be saved. she was done. church was not her cup of tea. i made the immediate decision to run the heck out of there hoping everybody would forget what they just saw. as i put reagan's coat on she insisted on blowing kisses to the congregation excited to leave and embark on another adventure outside of the church door. lesson learned.
well, this recipe is much more enjoyable then any of the above. but let's be honest, cheese is always enjoyable. brian requests my eggplant parmesan all of the time. i finally succumbed to the pressure and gave him the deliciousness.
just a tip- when frying anything in olive oil over a saute pan be sure the pan is hot, but not too hot. if the pan is too hot, the breading will slide right off. but if the pan is not hot enough, the oil will soak into the breading and gives off that icky greasy taste. because of working in batches, this can get timely. i could see maybe one of those griddle pans that you plug in making it a quicker process?

eggplant parmesan

1 large eggplant
3 c marinara sauce
10 oz fresh mozzarella cheese (buy the big "ball" and slice into 1/2 in slices)
6 oz shredded parmesan cheese
2 c breadcrumbs
2 eggs, beaten
1 c flour
3 tbs olive oil

1. slice eggplant into 1/2 in pieces keeping the skin on.
2. prepare your "dredging" bowls using 3 shallow bowls: one with the breadcrumbs, one with the beaten eggs and one with the flour.
3. salt and pepper your eggplant slices. dredge the eggplant starting with flour, then egg, the breadcrumbs, shaking off the excess breading.
4. heat olive oil in a saute pan on medium heat. place 3 eggplant slices in pan. Cook for 5 minutes on both sides or until eggplant is golden brown. Repeat process with all eggplant.
5. lay several eggplant slices on bottom of a 9 x 11 glass pan. top with a few mozzarella slices and a sprinkling of parmesan cheese followed by a cup of the marinara sauce. repeat the process with remaining ingredients. (i had three layers, but yours may be different depending on how "fat" your eggplant was). be sure the last layer is: eggplant, marinara, then cheese so you can have a golden, cheesy top.
6. bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

penne rosa

as you can see by the overwhelming amount of recipes i'm a sucker for pasta. i could live on it day and night. i'm an even bigger sucker for penne rosa at noodles and company. i putzed around for a long time to master a copy cat recipe and this is probably the closest i've gotten to the real thing. the spinach is an absolute must!! i like my dishes to have heat so i add at least a 1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes. if you are unsure, start out with a 1/4 tsp and taste when sauce is near done simmering. you can always add more if it isn't to your liking.

penne rosa

3 c penne pasta
1 c marinara sauce
1/2 c heavy cream
1 c fresh spinach
1 c mushrooms, sliced
1 c cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (or to your taste)

1. heat 2 tbl olive oil in saute pan. add mushrooms and tomatoes. heat until mushrooms are cooked thru and tomatoes begin to blister. add marinara, salt and pepper, and red pepper flakes (to your taste). simmer on low for 10 minutes.
2. cook pasta according to package.
3. add cream to sauce and simmer for another 5 minutes. add spinach and pasta. stir to combine.

chicken picatta

i f-ed up mashed potatoes. yes i did. how is this even possible? i consider myself a fairly decent cook and i f up mashed potatoes? my mother-in-law is going to be so disappointed in me. (my in-laws are potato farmers. yes, you read that correctly). so i have to confess that i have not quite mastered the "smooth" mashed potato. lumps seem to be a common occurrence in my mashed potato making. however, this time was a different story. we had a gluey/sticky disaster! they had the consistency of paste. i googled away to find out how to fix. after 2 short minutes of reading the potato nonsense, i threw them in the garbage irritated and disappointed in myself. linguine as a side? sure. someday when i muster up the patience i will learn how to make perfect mashed potatoes.

chicken picatta

4 chicken breasts
2 tbl olive oil
3/4 c chicken broth
1-2 tbl capers, drained
2 tbl unsalted butter
1/4 c dry white wine
1 tbl garlic, minced
2 tbl lemon juice

1. pound the chicken with one of those kitchen mallet/hammer thingys until they are about 1/4 inch thick. pat dry and season with salt & pepper. dust each side with flour.
2. heat a saute pan with 2 tbl of olive oil. place chicken in pan and cook each side for 3 minutes or until brown. transfer chicken to a plate.
3. deglaze pan with wine and add garlic. cook for 2 minutes on low heat scraping brown bits off of the bottom of the pan.
4. add broth, lemon juice and capers. return chicken to pan and cook on medium-low heat for 2-5 minutes allowing chicken to cook thru.
5. transfer chicken again to a plate. add butter to sauce and stir until melted. pour sauce over chicken.
6. serve with un-gooey mashed potatoes or linguine with butter and parmesan cheese.

pesto

is there anything better than fresh pesto? i think not. it's such a complex and fresh flavor, you would think it's difficult to make. my friends, it doesn't get any simpler than this. it's literally basil, garlic, walnuts (sometimes you'll see a pine nut variation), parmesan cheese, lemon juice and olive oil. you can toss it with pasta, throw it on top of a grilled chicken breast. spread it on a sandwich or put in a soup. and you can freeze it to use later.
love, love, love.

pesto
3 c fresh basil, (2 oz)
3 tbl walnuts
3 tbl grated parmesan
2 garlic cloves
1 tbl lemon juice
salt & pepper
1/4 c olive oil

1. combine first seven ingredients in food processor streaming olive oil in slowly.
2. that's seriously it... seriously.

grilled pizza

had no idea there was a process to grilling pizza. well, there is. it's simple once you get the hang of it and beyond delicious. the one eye opener for me was letting the dough sit out for a couple hours prior to stretching it into your crust. it makes a world of a difference as far as work-ability.
i've followed my coworkers advice in having "pizza fridays". we're coming up on week 4 and i have to say i truly look forward to it every week! every week presents a new opportunity for different toppings. the recipe is for simple margherita pizza, but below are some great ideas on how to "switch it up".

1. barbecue chicken & gouda cheese
2. parmesan cheese & proscuitto
3. hummus & roasted veggies
4. carmelized onions, mushrooms, spinach & fontina cheese
5. shrimp sauce, mozzarella cheese & shrimp (this is completely strange to me, but my husband and his family love it)
6. tomato sauce, provolone cheese, crumbled italian sausage & roasted tomatoes
7. pesto, asiago cheese & shrimp
8. gorgonzola cheese, pineapple & balsamic vinegar
9. tomato sauce, goat cheese & proscuitto
10. tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, black olives & artichokes

grilled margherita pizza

store bought pizza dough (we use sciortino's bakery dough sold at sendik's)
log of fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced
2-3 roma tomatoes, sliced
fresh torn basil leaves
salt & pepper
olive oil

1. let dough sit on your kitchen counter for 2 hours prior to using.
2. put small amount of olive oil on a cookie sheet. stretch out dough to your liking and place on cookie sheet. brush the top with olive oil.
3. place dough olive oil side down on grill. close the grill and cook on low for 5-10 minutes or until bottom is lightly brown and crispy.
4. brush the top with olive oil and flip over. top with sliced tomatoes, sliced mozzarella, salt & pepper and basil leaves. close the grill and cook for 7-15 minutes or until lightly brown and crispy. turn off grill and let pizza sit for 3 minutes allowing cheese to set.

 

adapted from james olejniczak

birthday dinner party

it was my best friend's birthday recently and she asked for risotto. every time i make this recipe, it turns out fabulous. i'm going to give jamie oliver all of the credit here. isn't he also known as the naked chef? i realized while writing this that i had no idea why! so... i googled it. apparently it's the name of a show he does in the uk. the idea behind the naked chef is stripping food down to it's bare essentials proving you don't need a lot of ingredients for a tasty fare. funny because i don't believe his risotto recipe would fit into that category. i add white truffle oil at the end- but that's totally up to you. i served the risotto with a roasted salmon wrapped in swiss chard. it was a hit.
on another note, jamie oliver has done some pretty impressive things lately. check out his website on the food revolution. 

risotto bianco with asparagus

2 pints stock (vegetable, chicken or fish)
2 tbl olive oil
dollop of butter
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 head celery, finely chopped
2 c risotto (arborio rice)
2 wineglasses of dry white wine
asparagus, cut in 1-2 in pieces
5 tbl butter
2 tbl white truffle oil
4 oz. parmesan cheese

1. heat the stock and set aside. put olive oil and butter in a sauce pan, add onion, garlic and celery. cook for 15 min slowly on low-medium heat.
2. once veggies are softened, add the rice and turn up the heat. fry rice for a minute. add wine and keep stirring allowing alcohol to cook off.
3. add a ladle of stock and a pinch of salt. turn heat down to a simmer stirring occasionally. keep adding ladlefuls of stock and stirring until rice is cooked. this should take between 15-30 minutes. add asparagus in last 5 minutes of cooking.
4. remove from heat and add 5 tbl butter, 2 tbl white truffle oil and parmesan.

adapted from jamie oliver

roasted salmon wrapped in swiss chard

2 tbl unsalted butter, room temperature
2 tbl fresh tarragon, finely chopped
2 tsp grated lemon zest, plus 1 tbl lemon juice
4 leaves swiss chard
4 (6-8 oz each) salmon fillets

1. bring a saucepan of salted water to boil. cook swiss chard in water until tender (about 4 minutes). use tongs to remove and lay flat on a foil lined baking sheet.
2. combine butter, tarragon, lemon zest and salt and pepper in a small bowl.
3. place one fillet on top of a leaf, near tip; repeat with remaining fillets. sprinkle fish with lemon juice. spread butter mixture over each fillet and wrap leaf around tucking the stalk underneath. roast in oven at 400 degrees for 12 minutes.

adapted from martha stewart

chicken marsala

bon appétito!

chicken marsala

4 skinless, boneless, chicken breasts

flour, for dredging

salt and pepper

1/4 c olive oil

8 oz mushrooms, sliced

1/3 c marsala wine

1/2 c chicken broth

2 tbl butter

1/4 c chopped flat leaf parsley

1. put flour and a reasonable amount of salt and pepper in a shallow bowl.

2. heat olive oil over medium heat in a skillet.

3. dredge chicken in flour mixture and pan fry in skillet for 5 minutes on each side until golden brown. remove to a plate and cover keeping warm.

4. add mushrooms and saute until moisture has evaporated. add marsala wine and boil down for 3 minutes cooking out alcohol. add chicken stock and simmer for 1 minute.

5. stir in butter and add chicken heating through.

6. garnish with parsley.

my first ever post...

i feel like it's gotta be good, right?
a lot of my friends cook and cook well. and then i have those few (who will remain nameless) that refuse to do it and claim they can't. my husband would fit into this category. i find this completely odd knowing all recipes have step by step instructions from start to finish. i think it comes down to the fear of the unfamiliar. let's dedicate a few posts to those few near and dear... the easiest, most simple and delicious recipes ever. (you'll notice i will post others' recipes but will give them the credit they deserve.)

fusilli alla caprese

1 lb. fusilli pasta
2 pints cherry tomatoes
handful of basil, torn
8 oz. fresh mozzarella, cubed
3 tbl olive oil
black pepper and salt to taste

1. heat the olive oil in a saute pan. add the tomatoes and let them go at it for a good 10-15 minutes at a low temp. about half way thru, simply mash with a fork or potato masher. the idea here is to get a tomatoe-y ragu. add a generous amount of salt and pepper to your liking. keep in mind this is the only seasoning in the dish, so you'll need quite a bit.

2. cook pasta to al dente (mushy pasta is the worst). drain, reserving a cup of the pasta water.

3. pour the pasta into the ragu. add reserved pasta water a half a cup at a time if needed to loosen up the ragu. turn off the heat and add the basil and mozzarella and stir until the mozzerella oozes a tiny bit.

adapted from giada de laurentis