Tuscan White Bean Soup

Tuscan White Bean Soup

2 T olive oil

1/2 large white onion, chopped

2 carrots, peeled and chopped

2 celery ribs, chopped

1/2 t dried basil

1/2 t dried sage

1/2 t dried thyme

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 c white wine

1 bay leaf

3 c chicken broth

2 15-oz cans white beans, drained

4 slices pancetta, fried and crumbled (you can substitute bacon if needed)

1/4 c fontina cheese, shredded (you can substitute with just about any white Italian cheese)

4-6 fresh basil leaves, julienned

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrots and celery and saute about 8-10 minutes, or until onions are translucent and vegetables are softened. Add dried basil, sage, thyme, garlic and white wine. Cook until the wine is reduced by half, about 3-5 minutes. Add bay leaf, chicken broth and white beans. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer covered for 2-4 hours. (Really you can simmer it for as little as 30 minutes, but the flavors are more enhanced the longer it simmers.) About 15 minutes before serving, use an immersion blender to puree the soup(or puree in batches in a blender - but be careful not to burn yourself).

Garnish with crumbled pancetta, fontina and basil leaves.

Read more...

French Countryside Bread

For Christmas I gave Andrew a bread maker since he's mentioned an interest in making his own bread. Having made bread from scratch before, I knew that he wouldn't enjoy the kneading part so I thought the bread maker could do the hard work for him. We tried out our first loaf tonight and it turned out beautifully! The crust was golden brown and deliciously crunchy. Hot out of the bread maker with a pat or two of butter and I was in heaven!

French Countryside Bread

1 3/8 cups water

1 1/2 T olive oil

1 1/2 t salt

4 c bread flour

1 T sugar

2 t active dry yeast

Measure and add liquid ingredients to the bread pan. Measure and add dry in gredients (except yeast) to the bread pan. Use your finger to make a well in the flour and pour yeast into the well, being careful not to allow yeast to touch the liquid ingredients. Snap the baking pan into the breadmaker and close the lid. Press the 'Select' button to choose the French setting. Press the 'Crust color' button to choose medium. Press the 'Start/Stop' button.

Source Oster Breadmaker User Manual and Bread Recipes

Read more...

Sun-Dried Tomato and White Bean Dip

About a year ago, one of my friends had a birthday party that was catered and there was this addictive white bean dip and I've been wanting to recreate it ever since. I saw this healthy recipe on the Food Newtork website and I knew it would be similar. The only addition I made was about half of a jar of sun-dried tomatoes because I thought their sweetness would contrast nicely with the creamy white beans. (And because I needed to use them up before they expired.) Anyhoo, I took this dip to a Christmas party and it went over nicely - several people asked me for the recipe. It's one I'll definitely make again!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/white-bean-dip-with-pita-chips-recipe/index.html

Read more...

Andrew's Smokey Red Sauce

Hi there, this is Andrew, Erin's husband. Let me start this recipe by saying that, to me, cooking is more art than science. Whereas baking, on the other hand, is more science than art. So with that being said, please feel free to "trust your gut" and modify the recipe as you see fit.

Ingredients:
Half pound of hamburger
3 slices of bacon, diced
1 link of Italian sausage, casing removed
3/4 shallot
1/2 red onion
1 14 oz. can of peeled whole tomatoes
1 roma tomato
tomato paste
parmesan cheese
italian seasoning
red pepper
Worchestshire Sauce
Red Wine
Olive oil

Mix the bacon, hamburger, and italian sausage together and then brown the meat in a pan. When the meat is brown, remove it from the pan and drain off the excess grease on a paper towel and set aside.

In a food processor, puree the can of whole, peeled tomatos and the roma tomato and then set aside.

Slice the shallot into 1/16-1/8 inch slices and dice the red onion. Saute in pan with 2-4 tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat. Once shallots and onions start to brown, add the pureed tomatoes and reduce the heat to medium.

As soon as the sauce starts to begin simmering, stir in the meat and then the italian seasoning and red pepper to taste. A good ball park amount is from a teaspoon to a teaspoon and a half of italian seasonings and one decent shake of red pepper. Of course add as much or as little red pepper as you desire.

Add a quarter cup or so of red wine.

Let simmer for about ten to fifteen minutes.

Add a quarter to a third of a cup of shredded parmesan cheese. Cook at least five more minutes.

Add two tablespoons of tomato paste five to ten minutes before serving.

That's it. Serve this sauce with your favorite pasta. Top it off with parmesan cheese to taste and enjoy!

Read more...

Meatloaf with Tomato Relish

I like meatloaf but Andrew never seems to enjoy it as much as I do so I rarely make it. Earlier this week I saw an episode of Tyler's Ultimate on the Food Network and he did his dad's meatloaf recipe. Afterwards, I had a hankering for some meatloaf so I decided to give Tyler's a try. It turned out moist and flavorful and while baking the house smelled fabulous. Even Andrew loved it! I don't have a picture of it because I had a minor injury in the kitchen when a mandoline met my thumb (ouch!) and wasn't thinking about taking pictures - sorry!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/dads-meatloaf-with-tomato-relish-recipe/index.html

Read more...

Scotcheroos

I'm a big fan of rice crispy treats but every now and then I want something a little different. These are tasty little treats that combine the crunch of rice crispies and the peanut butter-chocolate combination of Reese's peanut butter cups. In other words, these are divine! You can whip them up, start to finish, in about 20 minutes too, which makes them even better in my book!

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Kelloggs-Chocolate-Scotcheroos/Detail.aspx

Read more...

Poblano Cream Sauce

After Finley was born, my sweet friends brought us many, many meals so that Andrew and I didn't have to worry about grocery shopping and cooking while our daughter was in the NICU. One of the dishes was chicken with poblano cream sauce brought by Meagan. It was delicious and I've made it several times since then. Meagan gave me the recipe that she uses but I've misplaced it so I've started using a similar recipe I found in one of my cookbooks.

Poblano Cream Sauce

2 T extra-virgin olive oil

1 poblano chile, minced

3/4 c onion, diced

2 T garlic, chopped

3/4 c cilantro, chopped

1/4 c whipping cream

1/2 c sour cream

salt & pepper

Heat oil in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the chile and onion and saute about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for 2 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 1 to 2 minutes to blend and thicken. Season with salt and pepper. Use an immersion blender or pour into blender to puree.

Source Secrets from a Caterer's Kitchen by Nicole Aloni

**I serve this with cilantro-lime rice (recipe in previous post) and sauteed chicken breasts topped with sauce, shredded Monterrey Jack cheese and avocado slices.

Read more...