They always say the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach and, well, it finally worked, making me the proud new owner of a shiny sparkly glittery diamond ring!  That said, I have cooked for many a man without the reward of a platinum set symbol of lifetime commitment, but perhaps I had just not yet reached my full potential as a culinary temptress.  On a recent occasion I was lucky enough to be in possession of young hungry fiancé’s favorite childhood recipe courtesy of future mother-in-law.  Thank you!  Even with my new heightened powers of palate persuasion it helps to have the aid of a good recipe…  Such is the history of the following Garlic Shrimp & Rice, which served as a yummy surprise for my plus one after a long day at work and school.  I do have to start practicing my homemaking skills now don’t I!

Garlic-y Shrimp & Rice

• 1 cup rice (I used short grain brown rice)
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 2 T butter
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 bunch scallions, chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lb shrimp, peeled with tails
• 3 T lemon juice
• ¼ t black pepper
• ½ c Parmesan cheese, grated
• Parsley or spinach

 

Bring broth to a boil, add rice, lower heat, and simmer covered for 25-50 minutes according to package instructions.

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In a sauté pan, melt butter and olive oil over medium heat.  Add scallions and garlic and cook for 3 minutes until soft.  Add shrimp and cook for 4 minutes, flipping mid-way.  Add lemon juice and pepper and continue to cook for 4 minutes.  Stir in cheese and parsley or spinach until wilted. 

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Top rice with shrimp to steal his heart!

I read an article in my newest Bon Appétit about Puglia, Italy, coined “the new Tuscany” because their lack of resources have resulted in a very simple culinary style. Simple, however, does not equal plain or boring. Upon turning the page to find a multitude of Donatella Arpaia’s recipes, my mouth watered as it would for any lavish Italian feast. The idea of using fava beans in pasta and perfectly pairing oils with their proper counterpart does not sound at all disappointing to me! All too often fancy amalgamations are only as impressive as the words themselves – they are still but a combination that is only as good as the sum of its parts.

               

Here’s a quick and easy tomato sauce, again from Smitten Kitchen. I jazzed it up a bit with my tried and true ricotta topping that can be adapted to almost any Mediterranean meal simply by substituting the Parmesan for, say, feta and the basil with parsley or other herb of your choice! So with summer knocking at our doors, simplify your menu and spend a few extra minutes by the pool.

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Butter and Onion Sauce:

Serves 4.

• 28 ounces whole peeled tomatoes from a can (preferably San Marzano)
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 medium-sized yellow onion, peeled and halved
• Salt, to taste
• Pasta

 

Bring the tomatoes, onion and butter in a saucepan to a simmer over medium heat,  lower, and cook for 45 minutes stirring occasionally and pressing the whole tomatoes against the side of the pot. In the meantime prepare your pasta and topping.  Remove from heat, discard the onion, add salt to taste.

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Ricotta Topping:

• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• ¼ cup shaved Parmesan cheese
• Fresh basil, chopped
• Salt & pepper, to taste

 

Serve with a light fresh pasta and top with sauce and ricotta mixture!  I used whole wheat pappardelle, but found it a bit too overpowering for the light sauce.  I’d go with something with less flavor next time.

 I told you guys I heart Asian food in the springtime!  Might as well stick with the theme now…  This dish is just as quick, easy, and healthy as the others and is brought to life by Trader Joe’s Curry Simmer Sauce, not to be confused with the ever popular coconut based Thai curry.  TJ’s sells an Indian version that’s spicier than your average curry, but not so much that you can’t taste the cumin and clove-r flavors at play behind the scenes.  I decided to go vegetarian this time around, but you could compliment or, dare I say, substitute the eggplant for a multitude of things including paneer cheese, tofu, or the chicken that’s recommended on the bottle.  For garnish, I used some cashews that I found in our pantry and that were probably too…umm…old for my own good.  That said, I think that cashews go well with peas and carrots and I’m still here to write the tale.  The second time around I went the extra mile (to the grocery store) and got an avocado to brighten up the plate.  Avocado and cashews are the garnish of choice for my all-time favorite Massaman curry.  You could also chop some cilantro per TJ’s recommendation. 

Veggie Curry Simmer

Serves 3-4.

                                     

• 1 c brown rice
• 1 T vegetable oil
• ½ onion, sliced
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 1 eggplant, diced
• 1 cup frozen green peas
• 1 jar Trader Joe’s Curry Simmer Sauce
• Cashews, opt
• Avocado, opt
• Cilantro, opt

 

In a saucepan, cook rice according to directions.

Heat oil in a large dutch oven or sauté pan over medium heat.  Add onions and carrots and sauté for 5 minutes.  Mix in eggplant and peas and cook for another 5 minutes.  Stir in sauce and 1 cup of water, cover, and simmer over medium low heat for 15 minutes. 

Top rice with curry eggplant and garnish with cashews, avocados, and cilantro!

Finding motivation in Katy’s soba noodle recipe and the half eaten bag of rice noodles sitting bored in my fridge, I decided to come up with a noodle bowl all my own!  To begin I consulted my BFF Google.  Google had lots of ideas including, but not limited to fried noodles, Singapore noodles, pho, and even drunken noodles?!  Seeing as how I was staying in and trying to do chores, I decided to forego the latter.  Wanting to also put use to the squash and carrots leftover from last week’s trip to the market made my Iron Chef challenge even more taxing.  Dear Google forgot about the ever faithful and delicious Vietnamese noodle bowls!  Alas, I did not.  After entering my new and improved search criteria I was happy to find that I had all the makings of a…I won’t say traditional, but noodle bowl nonetheless!  I’m a Google Girl in a Google World, but perhaps I’ll have to make friends with Bing next time I hit the kitchen.

Ad Hoc Noodle Bowl

Serves 4.

                  

• 1 package firm tofu
• 1 cup Ginger People  sesame marinade

 

• 2 “servings” rice noodles, cooked according to the package

 

• 1 T sesame oil
• 1 yellow squash, julienne
• 2 carrotts, julienne
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/2 t Chinese 5 Spice Powder
• Minced ginger, to taste
• Chili sauce, to taste

 

• 1 T white sugar
• 1 T fish sauce
• ¼ cup rice vinegar
• ¼ cup lime juice

 

• Cucumber, opt
• Cilantro, chopped, opt
• Peanuts, chopped, opt

 

Slice tofu in half, to make two rectangles.  Slice again to form four triangles.  Cover in marinade and let sit for 15 minutes to 1 hour. 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Transfer tofu to a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes.

Heat sesame oil.  Sauté chopped carrots & squash in a wok or frying pan for 5 minutes, add garlic & spices.  Continue to cook until soft.

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For the sauce, combine white sugar, fish sauce, rice vinegar, and lime juice in a bowl.  Set aside.

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Fill bowl with rice noodles and top with stir fried veggies, tofu, and cucumber, cilantro, & peanuts to garnish.  Serve with the sauce on the side!

I think Atlanta forgot about Spring and went straight to summer, but, hey, this girl is NOT complaining.  I’m perfectly content to skip cardigans and capris and jump right in to sundresses and shorts!  This dish is a nice alternative to your classic roast chicken (and roasting in the sun if you’re not there yet) .   Thyme is substituted for rosemary, fingerling potatoes for the usual Idaho, and grapes just for fun!  Personally, I loved the addition of the grapes and thought they kept everything nice and moist through what can be a long baking process.  I also found that the leftovers, mixed with a touch of vinaigrette, made for a delicious chicken salad sandwich.  You could even throw in some chopped walnuts for extra crunch!  So if it’s not quite 80 and sunny where you live, but you’re tiring of winter roasts just the same, try this one dish wonder on for size while you anxiously await pool season. 

 

Spring Chicken & Grapes

Serves 4 courtesy of Bon Appetit.

                  

• 1/4 pounds assorted seedless grapes, cut into small clusters
• 6 large shallots, peeled, halved through root end
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme plus 6 large sprigs
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 1 package fingerling potatoes (opt)
• 1 4- to 4 1/2-pound chicken

 

Preheat oven to 400°F. Gently toss grape clusters, shallots, chopped thyme, potatoes and 2 tablespoon olive oil in large bowl to coat. Rub chicken with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil; sprinkle inside and out with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place thyme sprigs in cavity. Place chicken in large roasting pan; arrange grape mixture around chicken. Roast until grapes are shriveled, about 1 hour 10 minutes.

Transfer chicken to platter; let rest 10 minutes. Using slotted spoon, arrange grapes and shallots around chicken. Drizzle with remaining juices and serve.

Strata.  The savory sibling of sweet bread pudding.  A breakfast casserole or stuffing of sorts.  I do love a good strata. 

There are so many fabulous things about stratas I barely know where to begin.  How about with the fact that you can make them a day ahead and sleep in the morning of consumption?  Or what about the flexibility of knowing that you can use almost anything you have around as long as you have a few key ingredients that are standard pantry staples(see strata take 2)?  My new favorite thing about the strata is that I can bake it in the standard casserole dish, individual ramekins, OR I can bake it in one large pan and then use ramekins or cookie cutters to divide it into pretty little individual portions and then top with a poached egg.  As with bread pudding that can now be found in every variation from sweet potato to s’more, the sky’s the limit! 

 

I am very very excited because this weekend, possibly as you read this, I am staying at a Bed & Breakfast in St. Petersburg, Florida.  I found the Larelle House online (obviously) and have read nothing but rave reviews.  They have a wine & cheese happy hour on the porch each evening, a fridge full of goodies for a midnight snack, and, of course, the customary breakfast (with mimosas on Sunday).   All of the rooms have a different theme, the Hemingway room for example, and there’s even a hot tub out back since even Florida can’t be warm all the time.  There’s something so much more personal about Bed & Breakfasts.  Perhaps it’s the sole fact that it is in a house and not a massive corporate construct.  Or it could just be that you’re not staying in one of 300 rooms all manufactured to the exact same specifications, containing the exact same Tropical Breeze comforters, and not so functional desk with a Bible in the top drawer.  Either way, I.  Can’t.  Wait.  And think I might start a B&B log to note various ideas, recipes, and special touches so that one day I too might be able to host you at my own House. 

 

Spinach Strata

• 1 (10-oz) package frozen spinach, thawed
• 1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion (1 large)
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 8 cups cubed (1 inch) French or Italian bread (1/2 lb)
• 6 oz coarsely grated Gruyère (2 cups)
• 2 oz finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (1 cup)
• 2 3/4 cups milk
• 9 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

 

Strata Take 2

• 1 (10-oz) package frozen spinach, thawed
• 1 ½ cups finely chopped onion (1 large)
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 T fresh thyme, chopped
• 8 cups cubed (1 inch) French or Italian bread (1/2 lb)
• 1 cup coarsely grated Gruyère
• ¼ lb ricotta cheese
• 2 cups buttermilk
• ½ cup white wine
• 6 large eggs

 

Squeeze handfuls of spinach to remove as much liquid as possible, then finely chop.

Cook onion in butter in a large heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring, until soft, 4 to 5 minutes. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and nutmeg and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in spinach, then remove from heat.

Spread one third of bread cubes in a buttered 3-quart gratin dish or other shallow ceramic baking dish and top evenly with one third of spinach mixture. Sprinkle with one third of each cheese. Repeat layering twice (ending with cheeses).

Whisk together milk, eggs, mustard, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl and pour evenly over strata. Chill strata, covered with plastic wrap, at least 8 hours (for bread to absorb custard).

Preheat oven to 350°F. Let strata stand at room temperature 30 minutes.

Bake strata, uncovered, in middle of oven until puffed, golden brown, and cooked through, 45 to 55 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

**For my version I cooked onions for about 5 minutes, added the spinach, garlic, thyme, and wine, and cooked another 5 minutes.

Here’s my take on Katy’s Love Muffins.  They’re just as delicious, but have a sweet flair.  I don’t know when exactly the whole sweet & salty trend came to be, but I do know that I love it and that a breakfast that is salty alone will never satisfy me!  My inspiration came first from J Christopher’s where I spent my time between college and the real world waitressing.  They served an egg Mc Muffin of sorts except theirs had turkey, bacon, and was on a raisin English muffin.  Upon further investigation I don’t actually see this delicious combo on their menu, but it may just be that I made it up myself!  Next up, was Einstein’s with their Einstein Grill – a turkey sandwich with  French toast like bread and raspberry sauce.  Yikes!  This too does not contain raisin bread…  Well I know that my egg sandwich does, in fact, rest between 2 slices of raisin filled bread so despite whether you can get it in your nearest Atlanta restaurant or not, you can get it here:

• 2 slices raisin bread, raisin walnut bread, cranberry pecan bread, or English Muffin
• 1 slice of provolone cheese, brie, or cream cheese
• 2 eggs

 

Top bread of your choice (mine’s from the Dekalb Farmers Market)  with cheese and toast.  In a bowl or egg poacher, slightly beat eggs and microwave for 1 minute until light, fluffy, and cooked through!  Sandwich eggs between your favorite raisin bread and enjoy! 

Who wants to get up early to slave over the stove, rising hours before your guests arrive to make brunch?  Not I.  This Italian variation on the Mexican Huevos Rancheros (soon to follow) can be made from leftover spaghetti sauce or store bought if slaving in general just isn’t your thing!  The remainder of the ingredients can be kept on hand so a big breakfast or brunch are never out of your reach.  Serve with prosecco juiced up with some peach nectar or Orangina.

 

 

Huevos Italiano

Serves 4.

 

• 2 cups of your favorite spaghetti sauce
• 8 eggs, fried or poached
• 4 large slices Ciabatta bread (or other Italian bread)
• ½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
• ¼ cup Italian parsley, chopped

 

Sleep in, toast bread and top with one quarter each: sauce, eggs, cheese & parsley! 

This soup has A LOT OF VEGETABLES!  Please don’t feel obligated to buy the entire market like I did…and if you’re not up to dumping your entire produce drawer into a pot I understand.  If you did neglect your “5 a day” this weekend, however, this will more than make up for it.  It works that way right?  I’m pretty sure my veggies consisted of fried green tomatoes and Bloody Mary’s, so I’m taking every…umm…real vegetable I can get!

 

I originally found this recipe on the Cooking Light website and modified to the point of minimal recognition.  Feel free to substitute parsnips for the more common Mirepoix or sweet potato for Mr. Idaho.  Those two ingredients were the largest flavor enhancers, but who am I to make you experiment.  I’m pretty sure the original recipe also neglects the cruciferous joys of Brussels Sprouts and cauliflower, but I suppose they do tend to be the outcasts of the veggie kingdom. 

 

Rosemary Roasted Veggie Soup

Serves 6.

 

• 2 T olive oil
• 3 T Dried rosemary
• 1 onion
• 1 red pepper
• 1 sweet potato
• 2 parsnips
• 2 zucchini
• 1 package mushrooms
• 1 head cauliflower, chopped
• Brussels sprouts, halved
• 1 lb chicken breasts, cut into ½ in pieces
• 56 oz Chicken stock
• 1 cup water
• 1 cups whole wheat rotini pasta

 

Toss the veggies in olive oil, rosemary, salt & pepper and roast on a baking sheet for 50 minutes at 375 degrees until soft.  In the meantime, combine chicken, stock, and water in a large saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes.  Add roasted veggies and simmer another 30 minutes.  Bring the soup to a boil, add pasta, and cook for 10 minutes until done.

It seems like every time I turn around there’s a new taqueria opening.  And, upon further thought, I can’t think of a single one that’s ever closed!  America, or Atlanta anyway, is taco crazy!  I don’t blame them, you, or me.  Tacos are fresh fun fare that can be jazzed up as many ways as there are restaurants trying…  Lately I’ve seen everything from tongue & goat tacos to tacos made of mashed potatoes and always the usual pulled pork and brisket in between.  There are varying salsas, veggies, slaws, aioli, cheese, and other toppings yes, but all a taco make.  Here’s my take on the taco that I believe started the craze, the fish taco.  I jazzed it up with a chipotle mango twist on your usual salsa and slaw.  Sorry taquerias, this one’s on the house! 

Fish Tacos

Serves 4. 

Marinade  

• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons honey
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon Ancho chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 pound tilapia fillets, cut into chunks

 

Combine first 8 ingredignts and marinate tilapia for 30 minutes.  Cook in grill pan 2-3 minutes/side on high heat.

 

Broccoli Slaw

• 1 bag broccoli slaw
• 1 c radish, chopped
• ½ c sour cream
• 2 T mayo
• Juice of ½ a lime
• Adobo sauce to taste

 

Mix sour cream, mayo, lime juice, and adobe sauce, add broccoli slaw & radish, mix until combined.

 

Mango Salsa

• ¼ c white balsamic vinegar
• ¼ c mango nectar
• ½ c radish (daikon), chopped
• 2 mangos, chopped
• 2 tomatillos, chopped
• 2 jalapenos, chopped
• Cilantro, chopped

 

Combine all ingredients and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Other

• 8 corn tortillas
• Cilantro, chopped
• Diced jalapeño
• Queso fresco, crumbled

 

Pile tortillas high with fish, slaw, salsa, and “other” toppings!