September 7th: oven-roasted tomatoes, rigatoni with pork ragù

Our vegetable garden is exploding with tomatoes, and I've spent three days trying to perfect an oven-roasted tomato recipe. This is a recipe that easily uses up 3-5 tomatoes, depending on their size, and when you do get it right, it's fabulous. My first batch, I completely forgot about in the oven and I was attempting to have a nap and couldn't figure out what the annoying beeping from the kitchen was: my oven timer telling me to get the tomatoes out. They were black, burnt and crispy. I ate half them anyway. My second batch I cooked at a lower temperature and had to take out before they were done because I had to leave the house. They were red, squishy and not quite done. I ate the whole pan in one sitting. My third batch was pretty close to perfection: cooked, crispy, deeelicious. I ate most of them, shared a few with my family, and packed two in a container for a snack at work.

From Farm-Fresh Recipes from the Missing Goat Farm:

Oven-Roasted Tomatoes

3-5 ripe tomatoes, any size, thinly sliced
salt
freshly ground black pepper
olive oil

Preheat the oven to 225F.*

Line a baking tray with parchment paper and lay as many tomato slices as you can fit on top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil.

Bake in preheated oven for about 2 hours and 20 minutes. They should look dry and should be crispy when you pick them up. You can store these in the fridge to use over a week or so.

*Part of what took me so long to get this recipe right was figuring out the right temperature for my oven, which runs cold. I found 275F to be a good one for me.

I spent a good part of Labour Day labouring (I crack myself up) over a pork ragu sauce. It was worth the labour.

From Epicurious:

Rigatoni with Pork Ragù

1 medium onion, quartered
1 carrot, peeled, cut into 1" pieces
1 celery stalk, cut into 1" pieces
4 garlic cloves
2 teaspoons fresh oregano leaves (I used 1 tsp dried)
1/4 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley, divided
1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
1 pound hot or sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
1 pound ground pork
Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 pound mezzi rigatoni or penne rigate
3/4 cup finely grated Parmesan or Grana Padano plus more

Pulse onion, carrot, celery, garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes, and 1/4 cup parsley in a food processor until finely chopped; transfer to a small bowl and set aside. Purée tomatoes with juices in processor; set aside.


Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat; add sausage and cook, breaking up with a spoon, until browned, about 4 minutes. Add ground pork, season with salt and pepper, and cook, breaking up with a spoon, until no longer pink. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a plate.


Increase heat to medium-high. Add reserved vegetable mixture to drippings in pot, season with salt, and cook, stirring often, until golden, 8-10 minutes.


Stir tomato paste and 1 cup water in a small bowl; add to pot. Cook, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until liquid has almost evaporated, 6-8 minutes.


Add reserved meat and tomato purée and 1 cup water.* Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, adding more water as needed to keep meat nearly submerged,** until meat is tender, about 4 hours. Season with salt.

DO AHEAD: Ragù can be made 3 days ahead. Let cool. Cover and chill, or freeze for up to 2 months. Reheat before continuing.


Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Drain, reserving 2 cups pasta cooking liquid.


Add pasta and 1/2 cup pasta cooking liquid to sauce; stir to coat. Stir in 3/4 cup Parmesan and remaining 1/4 cup parsley. Increase heat to medium and continue stirring, adding more pasta cooking liquid as needed, until sauce coats pasta. Divide among bowls; top with more Parmesan.

*I used up some leftover white wine in place of the water.
**I had to add quite a bit of water, probably two cups.

Supper, with Greek salad.

September 27th: spaghetti squash with pomodoro sauce

I have been working for years on squash, trying to get myself to like them. I try all the varieties, and I try all different approaches to them. Nothing seems to work. I do like a tiny acorn squash, roasted and drenched in maple syrup, about once a year. I have yet to convince G or O to get on board the squash train, and I can't really blame them.


However, with our veggie baskets from the farm including several squash recently, I'm on task again. In the past week, I've cooked two spaghetti squash and one delicata. I have three more delicatas and two huge acorns to get through yet. Jeepers. I did some searching on Epicurious and found this spaghetti squash with pomodoro sauce recipe which - surprise! - all three of us ended up liking. I had reservations about spaghetti sauce on squash; it just sounds wrong, but, it actually works. The sauce is so flavourful itself, you actually don't taste the squash, and the texture of the squash is close enough to pasta that it doesn't seem weird. Best bonus: upping the health factor with more veggies! The sauce is spicy though; if you have spice-averse eaters, I recommend cutting back on the red pepper flakes.


We had enough sauce left over that tomorrow night I'm going to cook up some sausage in the sauce and have it over pasta for real.

Notice the purple basil on the sauce - gorgeous!

I served this with Mediterranean pork chops from October 2011's Chatelaine, but they were not too exciting, so I'm tossing the recipe.

September 7th: chicken enchiladas

Not my usual inspiration for recipes: this one came to me by way of a review on facebook, and the link introduced me to Pinterest, which I hadn't come across before. The recipe itself - Chicken Enchiladas - is from a blog called Pink Parsley. I cut back on both the chili powder and the fresh jalapeno, and Olivia still said it was too spicy, so thank goodness I cut out what I did. I used chicken thighs rather than breasts, as they stand up better to the longer cooking. Greg fell in love with me over this meal; I have to say, I saw that coming. These are really good. Warning: Time Consuming!

June 12th: miso pork kebabs and tomato sauce

For supper tonight, from June 2011's Chatelaine: Miso-glazed pork kebabs. I was looking for a reason to use some of the miso paste I bought last fall. It doesn't seem to go bad, which is great. It made the pork pretty tasty too. Might try this one again.

I've already posted a couple of good tomato sauce recipes, but I have another favourite I haven't shared yet: from May 2007's Chatelaine: Basic Tomato Sauce. I made this one tonight to have a couple bottles on hand; it makes 2.5 L of sauce and freezes well.

May 29th: pasta al pomodoro (take 2)

This is a super quick mention as I'm busy getting ready for yet another trip. Edmonton for the next four days. Tonight I made, from Epicurious: Pasta Al Pomodoro for supper. G&O loved it. I thought it was pretty good too. Simple tomato sauce-coated pasta. Yummy. This definitely wins over my last attempt.

April 19th: roasted mini peppers with goat cheese and balsamic vinegar

My main dish tonight was a bow tie pasta dish, but I wasn't super impressed with it, so I thought I'd skip writing about it and instead write about my side, which was made out of leftovers. I halved some mini peppers, tossed them with oil, salt and pepper and roasted them at 400°F for about half an hour. Once done, I peeled off the skins, topped with some goat cheese, drizzled on balsamic vinegar and that's it! I liked this better than the stuffed mini peppers on the weekend, and it was easier to boot! Sometimes the best things just come out of my head.

Then, wouldn't you know it, my husband came home, late and tired and hungry, and declared the pasta the best. So now I have to share the recipe, just in case you agree with him rather than me. Adapted from the Ottawa Citizen:


Butterfly pasta with Simple smashed tomato sauce


8 oz Farfalle (bow tie) pasta (half a box)
2 tbsps olive oil + 1 tbsp (optional)
2 sausages, removed from casing (optional)
1 1/2 pints (3 cups) cherry tomatoes
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
3 tbsps chopped fresh herbs (I used fresh basil), or 1 tsp dried
1/2 tsp coarse salt
freshly ground black pepper
freshly grated Parmesan cheese or cubed fresh mozzarella


Cook pasta according to package directions.


Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; if using, add sausage meat and take the time to break it into small pieces (about 2 minutes). Add tomatoes. Cook, stirring a few times, until tomatoes begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Add onion; cook, stirring, 3 minutes. Add garlic; cook 1 minute. Gently smash tomatoes (carefully!). Add herbs, salt and pepper to taste; cook 1 minute. If sauce looks dry, ladle in a couple scoops of pasta water before draining the pasta, and add another tablespoon of oil if desired. Drain pasta; stir into skillet with the sauce until coated. Sprinkle with cheese to taste, adjust seasoning and serve hot.

The sausage, pasta water and extra oil were my additions.

November 23rd: Make ahead meal: Manicotti

Verdict:
Toss: manicotti
Try Again: sausage tomato sauce

Here I am, still alive. That's an enjoyable place to be.

The last couple of weeks, I've been dedicating some weekend time to preparing food to put in the freezer, in preparation for surgery week (that's now!). Two days ago, I pulled the first meal out of the freezer and left it in the fridge for two days to thaw, and tonight we had, from Cook's Illustrated: Streamlined Manicotti. At least, that's what they're calling it. Let me tell you, this was a labour-intensive project on the prep side, and a time-intensive project on the cooking side. This recipe will not be kept, which is unfortunate after all the work I put into it. I'm attaching a link, but it doesn't work because (annoying) they don't post all their recipes online for free. I would type it out for you, but hey, it sucked, and right now I'm not interested in promoting Cook's Illustrated.

Here's what I wrote the night I made it, a Sunday night a few weeks back:

I was tired tonight because I spent two hours making manicotti after Olivia went to bed, which is going in the freezer to eat in a couple weeks' time. More on that later. My feet and calves are killing me. Bed calls.

I have problems with both oven-ready noodles and ricotta. This recipe promises to streamline the process of making manicotti. It took me two hours of prep, prior to cooling, freezing, defrosting and cooking. That, to me, is not streamlined.

And, sure enough, after eating:

I haven't liked ricotta in the past, thought I'd give it one last try, and have now vowed never to buy it again. The oven-ready noodles (lasagna noodles rolled up to form manicotti) came out mushy. Even after 40 hours of defrosting in the fridge, the dish took way longer in the oven than the recipe called for. Every time I checked it, the centre was still cold. One of my least favourite things to do as a mother is tell my 2 year old that supper will be "a little longer." If a recipe tells me it will take 75 minutes to bake, and it takes 105, I turn into a cranky mama.

Okay, we all know I'm not a pasta fan, right? It behooves me to say that G & O did like supper tonight, however, it was agreed we would toss the recipe. And alright, I will give the recipe this: delicious sauce. I opted for the sausage version, which goes like this:

Sausage tomato sauce
2 (28-oz) cans diced tomatoes in juice
2 tbsps extra-virgin olive oil
1 lb Italian sausage, casings removed
3 medium garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp salt, plus more to taste
2 tbsps chopped fresh basil leaves

1) Pulse 1 can tomatoes with their juice in food processor until coarsely chopped, 3 or 4 pulses. Transfer to bowl. Repeat with remaining can tomatoes.
2) Heat oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook sausage, stirring to break it into pieces, until no longer pink, about 6 minutes.
3) Add garlic and pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until fragrant but not brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and 1/2 tsp salt and simmer until thickened slightly, about 15 minutes. Stir in basil; season with salt to taste.

November 14th: pear & cranberry muffins, artisan bread take 2, bean-free chili

Verdict:
Keeper: muffins, artisan bread, bean-free chili

Today, I managed to avoid leaving the house even once, which makes an amazing difference in the number of hours one can devote to one's past times, in my case meaning hours in the kitchen. I likely would have spent the same number of hours in the kitchen, but been more stressed out, if I had done things that needed to be done, like gone to the grocery store and the drug store. I'll worry about those things later.

During my multitudinous hours in the kitchen, I made pear and cranberry muffins and I prepped dough for gingerbread cookies (more on those whenever I get around to baking them). This was a second go-around for the muffins, and these are really good muffins, though I would say they are closer to a cupcake in terms of the amount of sugar in them. That must be why they taste so good. I think I'll keep this recipe; I just need to see what I think after eating one tomorrow for breakfast.

The recipe came from the Ottawa Citizen, November 2009, and I believe it may be a Karen Barnaby (Fish House Restaurant, Stanley Park, Vancouver) recipe, but I can't confirm that.

Pear and Cranberry Muffins

1/2 cup (125 mL) brown sugar, firmly packed
6 tablespoons (90 mL) flour*
1/4 cup (60 mL) unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon (5 mL) ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups (375 mL) brown sugar, firmly packed
2/3 cup (160 mL) vegetable oil
1 large egg
1 teaspoon (5 mL) pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup (125 mL) water
2 teaspoons (10 mL) apple cider vinegar
2 1/4 cups (560 mL) flour*
1 teaspoon (5 mL) baking soda
1/2 teaspoon (2 mL) salt
2 cups (500 mL) cored ripe pear (about 1 1/2 pears), diced into 1/2-inch (1-cm) chunks
1/2 cup (125 mL) dried cranberries (or raisins, if preferred)

*I used a combination of all-purpose white and whole wheat flours

Preheat the oven to 325°F (165°C).

Prepare a 15-cup muffin tin.

To make the topping, combine the 1/2 cup (125 mL) brown sugar, 6 tablespoons (90 mL) flour, butter and cinnamon in a bowl. Mix until crumbly.

Beat the 1 1/2 cups (375 mL) brown sugar, oil, egg and vanilla together in a large bowl.

Combine the water and vinegar.

Sift the flour, soda and salt together and blend into the oil mixture alternately with the water.

Add the pears and cranberries and mix until just combined. Spoon into the prepared muffin pan and sprinkle generously with the topping.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, until golden brown and the top springs back when lightly touched.

Makes 15 muffins (or 12 muffins and 12 mini muffins) (mini muffins take 20 minutes to bake)

For supper, I whipped up artisan bread for the second time, with a few modifications. I wasn't planning to make the bread, but Patricia called me Saturday night as she was in the process of making the bread and I was inspired to make it as well. This time, though, I followed the recipe from Cook's Illustrated, which took the original Sullivan Street Bakery bread, reduced the liquid, and added in a bit of kneading to the process. Rather than using all water as the liquid, this one is a combination of water, beer and vinegar. The loaf turned out better than my first try, probably at least in part because I saved a few pieces of Saran from some mushrooms I bought and used those as plastic wrap over my bowl as I let the dough rise over night. I think I'll stick with this recipe in future; this loaf was more attractive, cooked perfectly, and tasted amazing.

To accompany the bread for supper I made a bean-free chili. This was a re-try from November 2009's Chatelaine: South-of-the-border sauce. The recipe I am keeping; the name I am not. This is a cross between a pasta sauce and a chili, without the pasta or the beans, the two parts I like the least. It's like it was meant to be. The recipe suggests serving the sauce on bread, which is what we did last year, and we didn't like that, so today we just ate it in bowls, à la chili, with bread on the side. This was the ideal way to eat it. Suggested toppings are sour cream and cheddar cheese (good) and avocado, which would probably be fabulous, but mine didn't ripen enough from the time I bought it on Friday. That's what happens when I plan meals last minute, as I did with this one. Had I known in advance I would need an avocado, I would have bought it a week ago.

Greg is in love with the bread, and me because of it. He swore tonight was the best meal we've ever had ever.

I'm off to Montreal for the next few days for work, so there will be no blogging for a bit. :)

October 5th: Spaghetti bolognese

Verdict:
Toss: spaghetti bolognese

Because I just love pasta and questionable meat so much, I cooked it for two days in a row! Last night's chicken meatball miso soup noodles was not a winner, and tonight's recipe is getting tossed too. BUT. Tonight's meal was a re-try from last year; from October 2009's Chatelaine: Spaghetti bolognese. Last year I jotted, "V. Good" on the recipe, and this year I think I would say the same, but it is just not quite good enough to keep. Greg and Olivia may differ in opinion on this from me. It's on the spicy side as far as flavour goes, but without a lot of depth; no onions and garlic, and what is cooking with no onions and garlic? Especially where pasta is involved? Fairly easy in preparation, though you can't trust Chatelaine when they say things like, "Cook the meat for 4 minutes, stirring frequently. Meanwhile, chop veggies." Trust me: chop the veggies before embarking on meat-cooking. Oh, and the recipe says it makes four servings. You can easily feed more than four people with this recipe. Do we need to eat 1/4 lb of pasta each?

Oh dear, I sound quite negative. That's likely just because I am writing this when I should be sleeping and my alarm is set to go off in 5 hours. But no worries, I slept in Olivia's bed for 2 hours earlier tonight! Hopefully tomorrow night's meal is more pleasing to my palate: chicken and sweet potatoes!

September 8th: BBQ Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

First, some follow up. The carrot pickles were good, but I should have halved them lengthwise. Note for next time. I finally finished the tomato sauce today - I needed to buy basil and blend the whole deal up. But really, it's an easy recipe! And now I have five jars in my freezer--or I would, if I hadn't used up all my jars making pickles.

Last night, after staying up late to post, I set my alarm for 5:30 a.m., but forgot to click the little button over that makes the alarm actually go off. I woke up at 7:51 a.m., 21 minutes after I should have been at work. Oh dear. Must speed things up in the evening ... BUT HOW?

Tonight I taught my last class at the South Orleans GoodLife. Long story, but I gave up my classes for the fall. I'll still be teaching though. Several ladies had words of kindness for me, so I came home in a good mood to the supper Greg had prepared, from September 2010's Today's Parent: BBQ Grilled Cheese Sandwiches. I had intended to make this for lunch on the weekend and hadn't found time, so since we already had the ingredients, I gave Greg the choice of making this or, from the same magazine, Pasta with Fresh Greens. It's just as well he chose the one he did, as I needed all the basil that would have been used in the pasta for my pasta sauce which is now in the freezer. Now, what to do with the spinach and brie I bought for the pasta recipe? Anyway, the sandwich was good. Not outstanding, probably won't bother keeping the recipe, but would have made a good lunch and was certainly an easy supper, which Greg especially appreciates on Wednesdays, as he is running with the Running Room on Wednesdays. He's such a good husband, he even took five pictures of my sandwich for me!