No-Cream Mushroom Sauce for Pasta and Engagement Pics!!

11. January 2012 · 48 comments · Categories: cooking, Dinner, food, life, recipes, Savory, Side dishes, vegetarian · Tags: , , , ,

Ok, ok, I know I just posted a pasta recipe, but I promise this one is way different. Maybe as opposite as can be.

The other pasta was creamy but this one is buttery.

The other pasta had ham but this one is vegetarian!

The other one had a little escarole but this one is chock full of tasty mushrooms.

I used some crazy long spiral noodles for the other one, but this one uses rotini. Yum.

See, I told you, they’re completely different.

I’m always trying to stay semi-healthy around here. I’m also always looking for recipes that I can make and get on the table at a reasonable hour after I get home from work. This recipe fits the bill on both accounts!

And because I’m sure you all just got finished gorging yourselves on holiday foods, and have all made your new years resolutions, I’m hoping this recipe will be much appreciated.

The flour in the recipe is what thickens it, and there is enough butter to give it a richness without adding tons of calories.

Also, just to continue with the wedding updates that some of you enjoy…Nate and I had engagement pictures taken back in November and the photographer Jodi Miller did an AMAZING job. If you guys wanna check them out, head on over to her blog! After seeing how great these turned out, I am SO excited to see the shots she gets of the wedding :)


Pasta with No-Cream Mushroom Sauce
From TheKitchn

You can print this recipe from the original link

Makes enough sauce for almost one 1-lb box pasta, depending on how saucy you like it

1 1/2 ounce package wild mushrooms
1 cup chicken, vegetable or beef broth, boiling
1 cup white wine
2 tablespoons butter, divided
3 8-ounce packages of white button or portobello mushrooms, washed and chopped
4 large shallots, minced
4 large cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chopped sage
3 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
Salt and fresh ground black pepper

1 lb pasta, cooked according to package directions

Crumble the dried mushrooms into a glass bowl or measuring cup and pour the boiling broth over them. Let steep for at least 20 minutes. Drain and reserve the drained liquid. Mix the drained liquid with the white wine.

Heat a tablespoon of butter in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chopped button or portobello mushrooms and let sit, without stirring, for about four minutes or until they have thoroughly browned on one side. Stir and let them cook on the other side – again, without stirring – for about four minutes. Add the shallots, garlic, sage and steeped wild mushrooms. Turn the heat to low, and cook until they are all fragrant and soft.

Add the second tablespoon of butter and, when melted, add the flour. Stir rapidly, letting the flour thicken with the butter into a paste. Have a whisk ready! Slowly pour in the mushroom broth and white wine, whisking rapidly. Cook over medium-low heat, whisking, until the mixture thickens. It should thicken to the consistency of a thick gravy.

Add the chopped parsley, stirring until wilted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately over pasta with plenty of fresh Parmesan.

#citruslove!: Creamy Lemon Pasta with Ham and Escarole

07. January 2012 · 104 comments · Categories: cooking, Dinner, food, recipes, Side dishes · Tags: , , , ,

It’s January and I finally had a moment free so I joined up with my favorite bloghop group for a new ingredient/flavor of the month…January is #citruslove month!

This month’s recipe comes with a nice little story attached…let’s just say Thursday was not my day:

I woke up with vertigo. As soon as I rolled over to get out of bed, the room was spinning. It happens to me now and then so I wasnt too concerned, but there was no way I could get out of bed and to work so I called in sick. I tried to go back to sleep to get the spinning to subside. By midafternoon I was feeling a bit better.

I knew the date for posting my #citruslove recipe was this weekend and since it was early afternoon I figured today was the perfect day to cook up some citrusy dinner since I normally wouldn’t get home from work for another few hours. I had an idea in mind for a lemony pasta. I also had leftover sour cream and ham that Nate’s mom sent me home with after New Years. I thought they could all combine into a tasty dish.

Nate came with me and we did some grocery shopping and after catching up on my Teen Mom 2 (oh come on, you know you watch it too), I got started on dinner.

Things were going well until I started zesting the lemon. I had a brand new zester, but as any of you who have used one know, you have to apply a lot of pressure to the fruit to scrape the peel off.

*this is where you might want to skip to the end if you’re not good dealing with blood…

I was just about to finish zesting the lemon when I pulled a little too hard and the zester decided to zest the side of my palm instead. At first I just felt pain but then I looked down and it was a deep slice gushing blood. I get lightheaded when I see blood, especially if it’s my own. I screamed for Nate while running cold water over it. I then applied pressure with a paper towel while I sat down and attempted not to faint.

Nate desperately wanted to help and asked me what to do but I was too light-headed to answer. I finally laid on the bed with my feet up and managed to instruct Nate where I *luckily had butterfly bandages in the linen closet. I would never have bought these but, being the pack rat that I am, I saved them from when my parents were moving out of their condo. Since Nate was unsure and I was too freaked out to think, I did what I do in any emergency, I called up my mom :)

My mom calmly talked me through what Nate should do and Nate very adeptly sealed up my wound. I don’t know what I would have done if I had been alone!

After laying down for a while and making sure the wound was bound enough to stop bleeding, I was determined to finish this meal. I sat on a chair in the kitchen while instructing Nate how to make the rest of the pasta since there was no recipe. Luckily most of the chopping was done since Nate isn’t a fan of using knives. Mind you, Nate has never cooked a meal from scratch.

All-in-all he did an awesome job and dinner was delicious! So that just goes to show you how easy this meal really is ;)…and how lucky I am to have such a wonderful, helpful and sweet fiancé (and a mom who remains cool and collected in a state of emergency!).

Don’t worry, no blood got onto the pasta ;)

Be aware that this pasta is very lemony, so steer clear if you’re not a lemon person.  That being said, Nate and I both thought this may be the most delicious pasta I’ve ever made! Yep, I’m willing to make a statement that bold!

The tart lemon perfectly complements the richness of the sour cream and makes the whole dish seem “light.” Neither Nate nor I are usually a fan of creamy sauces but this one was perfect!

This month’s #citruslove is brought to you by the following lovely hosts:

Astig Vegan ~ Richgail
Oh Cake ~ Jessica ~ @jesshose

Please join in on the #citruslove fun by linking up any citrus recipe from the month of January 2012. Don’t forget to link back to this post, so that your readers know to come stop by the #citruslove event! The twitter hashtag is #citruslove :).

Click here to enter your link and view this Linky Tools list…(Powered by Linky Tools)

Creamy Lemon Pasta with Ham and Escarole
Recipe by me

Print this recipe!

serves 5-6

1 medium head of escarole< roughly chopped
1 lb pasta
2 Tbsp butter
1 medium onion, diced
2 Tbsp miced garlic
zest and juice of one lemon
8 oz. sour cream
3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 cups diced cooked ham
salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta as directed. When pasta is al dente, add escarole and cook one minute. Reserve 2 cups pasta water (for thinning sauce out later) and drain pasta/escarole.

While water is boiling, melt butter in a large saucepan. When butter is melted, add onions and cook til soft, 5ish min. Add garlic and cook until garlic begins to brown.

Add lemon juice to pan and stir to get any stuck bits off bottom. Add sour cream and parmesan and stir to combine. Add ham and continue to cook until it’s warmed through. Salt and pepper.

Add pasta/escarole to saucepan and stir to combine with sauce.  If necessary, thin sauce out with some of reserved pasta water to help pasta get coated.

A Quick “Summer” Meal for a Confused Autumn

21. November 2011 · 18 comments · Categories: Dinner, food, recipes, Savory

This stupid fall weather can’t make up it’s mind.

First it’s so cold that I pull out my hat, scarf, gloves, even crank up the heat. I’ve been walking around the apartment in my velour sweatpants and a sweatshirt I inherited from my mom that’s probably about as old as I am…and it has a hole in the armpit (I just typed airport instead of armpit. I’m obviously ready for a vacation).

Needless to say, Nate hasn’t been too pleased with my appearance. He told me that, according to Seinfeld, when you walk outside in sweatpants (which I may or may not have done to make a quick trip to the grocery store… They were velour!), that “you’re telling the world: ‘I give up. I can’t compete in normal society. I’m miserable, so I might as well be comfortable.'” And comfortable I was!

But the thing is, I don’t complain about the cold weather. I love being chilly and bundling up. I love piling on the comforter in bed and getting all snuggly. I mean, you can always make it warmer inside.

Then the weather got all hot again. Come on, autumn, make up your freaking mind. The stupid air conditioner in our apartment building got turned off because it’s not summer anymore. I go to bed with the comforter still on which feels right at the time and then in the middle of the night I kick everything off because I’m so hot. I toss and turn and then pull the comforter back on at 4am when I’m shivering, because the next morning it’s cold outside again. I’m so tired from this lack of sleep!

I think I need a better place for taking my photos…or a less nosy cat.

I figured I’d go along with the warm weather and pretend like it’s summer. So the other night I cooked up some pulled chicken bbq sandwiches. If you can’t beat the heat, you might as well embrace it, right?

Now if I could only get them to put on the A/C.


Black Pepper and Molasses Pulled Chicken Sandwiches
Recipe from Cooking Light

Print this recipe!

serves 2-4

3 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
1 tablespoon molasses
3/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
12 ounces skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 2-inch pieces
4 (2-ounce) sandwich rolls, cut in half horizontally
12 dill pickle chips

Combine first 9 ingredients in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook, stirring occasionally, 23 minutes or until chicken is done and tender.

Remove from heat; shred with 2 forks to measure 2 cups meat. Place 1/2 cup chicken on bottom half of each roll. Top each with 3 pickles and top half of roll.

Serve with coleslaw if desired.

#squashlove!- Indian-Spiced Chicken and Butternut Squash Stew

05. November 2011 · 100 comments · Categories: cooking, Dinner, food, recipes, Savory · Tags: , , ,

Have you been feeling these cooler temperatures? I guess it depends where you live, huh. Well I gotta say that I much prefer the colder weather even with some rain drops than that awful heat and humidity. I was definitely ready for fall.

And nothing quite screams fall like squash: pumpkin, acorn, butternut. There are so many things you can make with this versatile ingredient, from sweet treats to savory suppers.

So when my blogger friend Junia at Mis Pensamientos organized a #squashlove bloghop for the month of November, you better believe I was in!

As I mentioned in my other post, I made a delightful stew to go along with that awesome cilantro flatbread last month. When I was deciding what I should make, I knew it would have to be something with some Indian spices to complement the flatbread.

I had made a great cauliflower/potato mixture with Garam Masala a few nights before for myself. Nate would’t dare touch cauliflower. All the more for me.

Anyway, that dish turned out so well that I wanted to make something with the same flavors that he could enjoy as well.

I settled on using chicken but thought that some butternut squash, diced tomatoes and yogurt would be amazing together. So that’s what I did. This whole dish really didn’t take too long to make.

I call for chicken thighs because I personally believe they stay extremely moist to the point that you can’t really overcook them. If you like dry meat, then go for the breast, but that’s not my thing. And for those calorie-counters out there, there are 110 calories in boneless skinless chicken breast vs 130 calores for boneless skinless thighs,  for the same 4 ounces. I really don’t think 20 calories are worth sacrificing moisture and flavor. But that’s just me ;)

The link below is powered by Linky Tools.
Click here to enter your link and view this the recipes that are part of #squashlove!

I am co-hosting this #squashlove! bloghop with the following fine chefs:

Baker Street | Anuradha : @bakerstreet29
Bloc De Recetas | Salomé : @blocderecetas
Bon à croquer | Valerie : @valouth
Cake Duchess | Lora: @cakeduchess
Cafe Terra Blog | Terra : @cafeterrablog
Food Wanderings | Shulie : @foodwanderings
Hobby and More | Richa : @betit19
Mike’s Baking | Mike : @mikesbaking
Mis Pensamientos | Junia : @juniakk
My Twisted Recipes | Dudut : @mytwistedrecipe
No One Like Crumbley Cookies | T.R : @TRCrumbley
Queens Notebook | Elizabeth : @mango_queen
Simply Reem | Reem : @simplyreem
Skip To Malou | Malou : @malou_nievera
Teaspoon Of Spice | Serena : @tspcurry
The Daily Palette | Annapet : @thedailypalette
The Professional Palette | Regan : @profpalate
The Spicy RD | EA : @thespicyrd
Vegan Miam | Rika : @veganmiam

Indian-Spiced Chicken and Butternut Squash Stew

Recipe by me!

Print this recipe!

Serves 4-6

1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite sized pieces
1.5 Tbsp Garam Masala
1 tsp tumeric
1 cup lowfat plain yogurt (not greek style)
1 lb butternut squash, peeled and chopped into 3/4″ cubes (weight after chopping)
2 cups onions, thinly sliced
1 Tsbp vegetable oil
1/4 cup fresh ginger, minced
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1-14.5 oz can diced tomatoes with green chiles
1 tsp cornstarch
1/2 cup chopped cilantro

 Combine first 4 ingredients in bowl and let marinate 30 min.

Heat the oil over med-hi heat. Add onions and saute 5 min or until soft. Add ginger and garlic and saute 1-2 minutes.

Add butternut squash to pan and saute 1-2 min. Add chopped tomatoes with juice. Cover and cook 10 minutes, stirring occassionally.

Add chicken. Reduce heat to simmer and cook 10 min, covered. Uncover and cook an additional 5 min.

Take 2 Tbsp or so of cooking liquid and put in a cup. Mix with the cornstarch and whisk to dissolve. Add cornstarch mixture back into chicken mixture and stir. Cook another few minutes until thickened. Salt and pepper to taste.

Stir cilantro in and serve.

Speedy Supper: Broccoli Cheddar Chicken Braid

20. October 2011 · 34 comments · Categories: Baking, Brunch, cooking, Dinner, food, recipes, Savory · Tags: , , ,

Broccoli Chicken Cheese Braid ~ ElephantEats.com

I’ve been hoping I’d come across a recipe to use that leftover chicken breast I had from a different recipe that was all cooked and chopped in the freezer.

So when I was doing my usual browsing on Pinterest yesterday and came across a pic that looked tasty, I was excited to see its main ingredient was 2 cups of chopped chicken!

I checked out the rest of the recipe and it seemed like it couldn’t be more simple. It was 6 ingredients and only took 30 min to bake.

Broccoli Chicken Cheese Braid ~ ElephantEats.com

Since you all know I’ve been super busy and short on time, I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to finally get a blog post up.

Broccoli Chicken Cheese Braid ~ ElephantEats.com

This turned out totally delicious and I think it’s extremely kid friendly! I hope you enjoy :)

P.S. Sorry the color in my pictures stinks. For a more appetizing view of this recipe, click on the Food Family Finds link below.


Broccoli Cheddar Chicken Braid

Adapted from Food Family Finds

Print this recipe!

serves 5

Ingredients
2 cans Pillsbury Original Crescent Rolls or 2 cans Pillsbury seamless sheet
2 cups chicken chunks, cooked
2 cups cheddar cheese
1 10-oz box frozen chopped broccoli, thawed and drained
1/2 cup light mayonnaise
1 egg yolk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

On a parchment paper lined cookie sheet, spread both cans of crescents, sealing the long edge of one sheet to the long edge of the other.

Press each of the seams to form a single layer of dough.

In a large bowl, combine chicken, cheese, broccoli and mayonnaise

Spread mixture over the center of the croissant dough evenly to create a log. It should be in a rectangle perpendicular to the seam.

Using a sharp knife or kitchen shears, cut horizontal strips 1 inch apart down each side of the crescent dough bordering the chicken mixture.

Fold the end up and over the chicken. Then fold the dough strips over the top of the chicken mixture, alternating left and right to create a braid.

Brush the top of the braid with a beaten egg yolk.

Bake for 28 – 30 minutes until golden brown. 

« Older articles
Newer articles »