nywff part 2....swiss chard ragu with white beans and tiny shell pasta

i learned to make this fantastic vegetarian dish at the new york wine and food festival, courtesy of chef mark ladner.  if i had seen this recipe in a cookbook  i honestly never would have tried it....i have had a tiny bit of chard on a lovely plate in a restaurant but never as the main attraction of a meal.  chard is so wonderful for you and is available now...so give this recipe a try...it is so hearty and yummy...i have made it at least 6 or 7 times .....it is seriously delicious!!! chef ladner served this with home made orchiette pasta. which we also had to try and make... needless to say i am still a novice with the orchiette.....homemade orchiette is an art and unfortunately i am not an artist....i had a hard time finding boxed orchiette locally and have substituted mini shells.

rustic ragu

recipe after the jump

ina's italian wedding soup

chase away the "winter" blues with some hot soup

it is cold and stark outside....grey....the winter that wasn't still isn't spring.  i feel the need to make something warm and comforting....soup!  not just your basic soup but ina garten's italian wedding soup.  i did not grow up with this...not by a long shot....no real italians in the family....tilly did produce some yummy soups but nothing with meatballs...what could  possibly be yummier for dinner than meatballs made with sausage, tiny little pasta with veggies in steaming chicken broth?  enough said ...try this....this one is online at the link above and also in  my favorite ina cookbook back to basics.
recipe after the jump

easy peasy pasta with ham and peas

christmas is over...the kids have gone back to jobs and school...the house is pretty much trashed with christmas clutter and bailey is depressed.  i needed a quick dinner to use up some of the mad surplus in the fridge and soothe the soul.  i made this with left over ham. it is warm, creamy and satisfying.  it takes about 15-20 minutes....it was the perfect recipe for the day!

yummy creamy and screaming hot

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zucchini blossoms stuffed with cheese and fried in olive oil

we visited the food market in florence.....taking in the beautiful sights...fruits, veggies, cheeses, meat, fish, fresh pasta  all of it insanely gorgeous with no yucky smells.  we went into the city for the day by bus...so we were limited to what we could carry around.  yes like idiots we bought a melon...but damn it was worth it....one awesome melon.  we saw the zucchini blossoms and knew we had to try to get them back to the village to stuff and fry.  the lovely older woman that ran the fruit shop spoke quickly in italian...we knew enough not to touch anything...we pointed and gestured with our hands how many we wanted.  she carefully selected them and wrapped them safely for us......lots of grazie, grazie

beautiful blossoms

recipe after the jump

tuscan lemon chicken

in italy they create things on the grill with steak, chicken and pork that are just fantastic.  i have tried to replicate it, lots of different ways.....researching different cook books and online resources.   relatively few ingredients, put together simply ....(olive oil, salt, pepper, sometimes lemon or garlic) the results are mind boggling.  how can it taste so good?  some of it has to be the quality of the meat and the way the olives are grown and pressed,  the dirt...all of it!  when i go to italy i feel good....i was born to eat simple italian food.  (duh, i feel good because i am on vacation!!!! i know)   i saw ina garten make the tuscan lemon chicken on tv......it looked really delicious.......it had that italian simplicity...bumped up a bit. ( also this recipe is in the barefoot contessa back to basics cookbook)

it's ok to make extra you will want the leftovers for lunch the next day

 i have made this recipe lots of times...mostly i use it as a guideline....and mess with the ingredients...as usual.  the most troubling aspects of the recipe are finding a chicken the right size and doing that cutting to make the whole chicken flat...but after several disasters that included some pretty raw chicken that had to go back on the grill, i have totally given up on the whole chicken thing.  (these disasters were mostly trying to use a supermarket chicken...which are too big because they are really for roasting...the worst disaster was the time i bought an over stuffer roaster...what was i thinking?? my  attempts to split the chicken were so ridiculous, that brit and i laughed so hard we cried) now i ask the butcher to split the whole breasts in half and buy as many as i need.  this works very well as long as they are not huge.

recipe after the jump

grilled barbecue chicken with caramelized onion

lots of leftovers in the fridge after the 4th of july spread.......i didn't want to just serve up cold or reheated straight up leftovers....so i decided to dig around in the fridge and  to see what was in there.....hmm  there was some pizza dough, home made barbecue sauce leftover and leftover grilled chicken breast that was marinated in 16 spices and i had some nice looking vidalia onions and a block of cheddar.  i have made foccaccia on  the grill so why not use the same technique and make a full blown pizza.  grilling dough on the gas grill can be either awesome or total failure.  the key is getting just the right amount of olive oil on the dough after it is rolled out but before it goes on the hot grill.  and the next critical point is having the grill hot enough and not turning the dough over the first time until it is nicely brown.

mine is a crazy shape but who cares

recipe after the jump

bucatini with spinach and chicken in lemon butter sauce

thursday night....just the two of us eating at 9 pm because we both had after work stuff to do.  its late we are starving.  i take 5 minutes and look for something to do with pasta, lemon, left over chicken and some fresh spinach.  mario batali has a recipe for  lemon sauce over pasta....i have made giada's lemon chicken penne with cream many times but that has a lot of steps and is a bit spicy...i decide to wing it.  i have some bucatini which is some crazy pasta .....looks like regular spaghetti but it has a hole in the middle.....when you slurp it up it makes noise like sucking through a straw......it cooks up almost like udon noodles.  it came out really nice...creamy light and lemony good.  you can tell by now i love lemon! and best of all we were eating in 15 minutes...and it wasn't take out.

my first plate...yes there were two! yummmmmmm

recipe follows the jump

ny strip steak with spring risotto and tomato blue cheese salad

ok so it is week two with no oven.......have to be creative with what to make for saturday dinner (this works for dinner on the weekend or during the week)....gotta get to a menu that works all on the stove top or gas grill.....so what to do, what to do?  brit and kelsey are both home for easter weekend...so lots of cooking and easter egg crafts are on the agenda.  first a trip to the butcher....picked up some beautiful ny strip steaks (among other things) then on to the grocery store to check out the choices.  brit and i had done some research with the ina cookbooks and decided on some dishes that would work together and be oven free.  brit picked out some nice leeks, a variety of herbs, blue cheese, fennel.....a nice wheat ciabatta bread....back home and start prepping.

oven free blue plate special

we took the steaks out and seasoned with salt and pepper and left at room temp while we got to the risotto. the spring green risotto is from ina garten's back to basics cookbook (this one is my favorites of all of her cookbook ......i have made many of these recipes multiple times. ) i have made this recipe about 5 times...i always leave out the white wine and add the parmesan on the individual plates.

recipes after the jump

chicken pot pie with puff pastry crust

sometimes i like to stretch myself and try somthing crazy...like thomas keller's beef stroganoff from the ad hoc at home cookbook ( it took me 2 days) and other nights it is just about putting something satisfying on the table that your family is pretty excited about eating.  what to do with left over baked chicken breast?.....i tried a rachel ray recipe for chicken pot pie and it was not only easy it was very tasty.  i made some changes and as usual i used up what i had in fridge.  this is a delicious and satisfying meal on the table in 40 minutes when made with left over baked chicken.

my recipe after the jump

penne with sausage and peas

two years ago kelsey had a friend, lindsay come to stay the nite....on new years eve.  we decided to make this quick pasta dish for a cozy evening with the girls.... it was such a hit, lindsay decided she wanted  to reheat the leftover pasta for her breakfast.  needless to say i packed up what was left after breakfast for her to take home. 
so if it's late afternoon or early evening and  you have some sausage hanging around....a box of penne a few other basics, you can whip up an awesome dinner in a few short minutes.  it tastes wonderful and it is super easy.  tyler florence calls it "penne with spicy italian sausage, cream, tomatoes, and peas" in his dinner at my place cookbook.  (a great cook book by the way!!!!)  rachel ray calls her version peasant pasta .  here is my twist on it.

you'll need
3-6 links of italian sausage...i like to use Perri's sweet italian sausage ( if you like spicy use hot sausage)
1 pound of dried penne rigate
extra virgin olive oil
1 whole onion chopped (red, yellow, or vidalia will do)
2 garlic cloves chopped
1/2 cup of chicken stock
1 28 oz. can of san marzano tomatoes (hand crushed)
1 sprig of fresh thyme pulled off the stem.
large handful of fresh parsley chopped
1/4 cup of heavy cream or half and half
1 cup of frozen peas (thawed in a cup of warm water then drained)
parmigiano-reggiano to taste

recipe continues after the jump

family style chili

chili is something tilly made often......and it was damn good.  she didn't have a recipe....she knew what she was doing.....it wasn't a fancy meal just warm and hearty.  my dad  ronnie was also a pretty good everyday cook....i say every day because he was the cook in our home...my mom...not so much.  dad made a very good version of tilly's chili....but she would never tell him exactly what she put in hers.....she was his mother in law....and there was a fair amount of cooking competition between them.....and not a lot of secret sharing.  this picture was taken one summer when the shipyard unions were on strike....both dad and grandpa were on picket duty....you can see the sign behind my dad.  this is the kind of day that tilly would make a batch of chili for all of us.  this picture  looks just like the goofy 60's photos on greeting cards at the drug store....and this is my family....it makes me smile!!!! this is my recipe which i suppose is a compilation of how i remember their chili tasting with some twists of my own.

1 1/2 pounds ground beef (really good hamburger from the butcher)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 onions diced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (add more if you like spicy)
1/3 cup mild chunky salsa
1/2 large can of san marzano whole tomatoes hand crushed
2 small cans of b&m baked red kidney beans
kosher salt and black pepper

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creamy corn chowder

this is a great dinner for a damp and stormy evening.  i modified this recipe from ina garten's recipe where she adds a lot of cheddar cheese....i don't like cheese in my chowder so i made some changes and reduced the amounts because ina's would feed a crowd.  this batch would feed four hungry people.    it is hearty and delicious.

4 ounces bacon chopped
1/8 cup good olive oil
2 large yellow onions chopped
1/4 stick of butter
1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon of black pepper
1/8 teaspoon of turmeric
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups of diced white potatoes
2 bags frozen corn (i use trader joe's white corn)
1 cup half and half (add more if you want it creamier)
handfull of fresh parsley chopped

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grilled pork loin with rosemary and olive oil

i have ordered pork chops and pork loin at restaurants in italy while traveling on vacation.  the flavor is so wonderful.....some of it has to be the quality of the meat and the flavor of the olive oil not to mention what ever kind of wood or charcoal they are using to grill.  i set out to try and replicate this at home.  this recipe is so simple you would really not expect it to taste so delicious......give it a try.

i put 2 medium pork loin roasts in a gallon zip lock bag with enough olive oil to coat the whole thing...add a few teaspoons of kosher salt, some fresh ground pepper and a few springs of rosemary.  throw it in the fridge for a few hours.  take it out half hour before you are ready to put it on the grill and get it to room temperature.

i use a weber gas grill.  i sear it on all sides and test it for doneness w a meat thermometer stuck in the end of the roast the long way......take if off just before it gets to medium....i take if off the grill when i get a reading around 155 degrees.  put it on a plate and let it rest for a few minutes.  then slice it at angle like you would a london broil....very yummy....sorry no pictures of this one.

thick cut pork chops with spiced apples and raisins

i saw tyler florence make this a few times on his food network show.  it looked really good and who doesn't love apple sauce with pork? so i tried it.  it tasted really good and it was fairly easy to make.  kelsey and my friend karen were both so impressed they each made this recipe for a different audience   kelsey was visiting a friend's family home and offered to cook dinner if they did the shopping.  needless to say this family has invited her back anytime!!! karen made it for her family on a home visit to ireland.  the irish adored it as well.   essentially the depth of flavor of this is such that you appear to be an actual chef.  the first time i made pork chops with spiced apples i found that the volume of the marinade was a bit much...so here is the recipe with my variations.  thank you tyler!

pork chops with spiced apples and raisins served here with vegetable risotto and citrus fennel salad

recipe after the jump

bucatini all'amatriciana with mario sauce

this classic italian pasta dish is my daughter britany's favorite. we tried it at lupa, mario batali's roman trattoria around the corner from her manhattan apartment. it was so delicious that we ate every last noodle and had to stop ourselves from licking the bowl.  so i set out to re-create the recipe at home.

it sounds more complicated than it is. once you've made it a few times you can step away from the recipe and just estimate as you go. the richness of the pork fat in the sauce, coating the chewy bucatini, combined with the kick from the red onion and red pepper flake - very yummy! it's quite addictive.

you'll need:
- guanciale (cured pork jowls. if you can't find it, use pancetta which is more readily available. the recipe calls for 3/4 pound, i think you need a bit less, 1/4 - 1/2 a pound for this)
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 red onion, halved then sliced 1/2 inch thick
- 1 1/2 tsp of red pepper flake (i reduced this to 1/2 tsp at my husband's request, it was still pretty spicy)
- kosher salt and pepper
- basic tomato sauce (you can really use any basic homemade sauce, the mario recipe included below is now one of my favorites. this recipe uses half of the sauce. i put the rest in the freezer to use for other pasta dishes! i always buzz it with an immersion blender to get rid of any big tomato chunks)
- 1 pound bucatini (i bought mine at chelsea market)
- flat leaf parsley and pecorino romano for garnish

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