Italian

Meaty Porcini Marinara

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This week’s cooking spree continued with homemade “meaty marinara.” I call it this because marinara is traditionally a tomato sauce and a Bolognese is a meaty version of marinara in a round-about-way. But, to the dismay of Italian cooks everywhere, I made a bastardized version of both and have chosen to call it meaty marinara. It was my first ever attempt at making either marinara (not surprising since I do not eat marinara) or meat sauce, and it was really – ummm -incredible. This accompanied turkey and arugula pizza pockets, but it would be wonderful tossed with fresh pasta and a bit of cheese, tossed with gnocchi, or made into a pizza sauce. If you choose to use Porcini, you will need to be dried as they only grow in Italy and must be imported. You can either grind them or you can reconstitute them in liquid before adding them to the sauce. This is a great sauce to make and then let hang out on the stove whilst you turn your attention to something else. Additionally, it gets better the longer it sits and this includes fridge time. Make a big batch and freeze it or use it to make three different dishes over a three or four day span.

I fear I must apologize as this “recipe” was concocted in true Andiland style. I threw stuff in a pan (without measuring as always) and then adjusted as necessary. The measurements I provide below are guesses at best, feel free to adjust to your preferences.

Note: I did not add celery to my Soffrito, only garlic, onions, and carrot. I did use celery seed in the sauce as a replacement. You can use whichever you like.

Meaty Porcini Marinara

Two slices Bacon
1/3 pound of Hot Italian Pork Sausage (bulk)
Four Large Shallots, sliced
12 Cloves Garlic, whole and slightly crushed (skin removed)
3/4 Tube of Good Quality Tomato Paste
Two Tablespoons Butter
Red Wine (I used a Malbec), about a half a cup
Beef Broth, about 2 and a half cups
Chicken Broth, about a half cup (this was added to thin the sauce out some and is optional)
About a quarter cup of porcini mushrooms, either ground or reconstituted
Three tablespoons Herbs de Provence and Italian Seasoning, split
A couple good pinches of salt
Three tablespoons black pepper
One large carrot, diced
One tablespoon celery seed (or a few stalks of celery cut into large dice)
One tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes (adjust according to preferences)
12 campari tomatoes on the vine, halved and gently squeezed of seeds
Fresh torn basil for garnish

In a large dutch oven, heat a couple glugs of olive oil over a medium heat high. Once fat is smoking, add bacon (or its porky sub) and all to crisp. Then add hot Italian sausage and brown slightly. Push meat to the side and add the soffrito (carrot, onion, garlic, celery seed) with a touch of salt. Once the onions turn glassy, add the tomatoes, salt, pepper, HDP and Italian Seasoning, Crushed Red Pepper, Tomato Paste, Ground Mushroom, and give a good stir to mix everything well. Then add in wine and broth (in 1:2 ratio), reduce heat and cover. Allow to simmer for a few hours (I cooked it for about four hours). Adjust seasoning as necessary. Once you are ready to serve, use an immersion blender to partially puree the mixture. Top with basil and serve or reserve for use with pasta else.

A few ideas of uses for this sauce:

Dipping Sauce for Pizza Pockets
Sauce for pasta and veggies
Lasagnameat sauce
Served individually with a little bit of cheese and fresh basil
Pizza sauce

Butternut Squash Pizza

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Last Thursday, I just could not seem to get butternut squash out of my head. Being summer, (ergo my love is out of season) I blame it on my strong desire for fall and cooler temperatures that I spent about 90 percent of my day fantasizing about one of my fall/winter favorites. Ironically enough I was supposed to be making chicken and dumplings for dinner on Thursday evening – another cold weather favorite – but D was amazing enough to acquiesce to my squash craving (most likely out of a desire to avoid hearing me talk about orange truly for three hours if I did not get it).

On the first night, I did not care for this pizza much. It tasted good, but was a bit too sweet for me. I began to wish that I used the Delicious Orange Truly  a.k.a roasted butternut squash whole as it was with a pesto topping instead of puree-ing the squash and using it as the sauce. However, this pizza seemed to get better and better as a leftover and by the next afternoon I was enjoying it thoroughly. It is entirely possible that it was delicious the whole time and I was in a weird mood (a culinary trend that dominated last week), but either way this pizza is a tasty way to deliver loads of nutrition to picky adults or kiddos! Feel free to add whatever you like, or omit whatever you don’t like. As usual, this is a great way to use up leftovers before they spoil.

Butternut Squash Pizza

For the Squash Puree

One recipe Roasted Butternut Squash
One head garlic, for roasting (omitting this might detract from sweetness)
Small amount of chicken broth

Preheat oven to 350°F. Cut top 1/4 inch off heads of garlic to expose cloves. Place garlic, butternut squash, and onions in a baking dish. Add oil and spices to taste, sprinkle with salt and pepper; toss to coat. Turn garlic cut side up. Bake until garlic skins are golden brown and squash is tender, 40-50 minutes.  Squeeze garlic cloves from skins, combine with squash, onions, and a small amount of chicken stock in a food processor or blender and puree (can also use an immersion blender). Taste and adjust for seasoning preferences.

For the Pizza

Favorite Pizza Dough, stretched and rolled to desired thickness
Spinach
Crushed red pepper flakes to taste
Handful of sliced mushrooms
One-Half a zucchini, sliced into quarters
Grilled chicken breast with seasoning of choice, sliced
One-Half Mild Italian Chicken-Provolone Sausage, pan seared and sliced
Summer Heirloom Tomato, thickly sliced (optional, these are also wonderful as a side salad)
Fresh mozzarella, either grated, crumbled or cut into small dice (optional)
Half cup each of shredded Fontina and Smoked Provolone (more if necessary to cover or desired)
Salt and Freshly cracked black pepper
Sun-dried tomatoes, minced (optional or can sub for heirloom tomatoes)
Simple Arugula salad
Caramelized onions (optional)
Two cloves garlic, minced or cut into thin chips

Place rolled pizza dough on a pizza baker (preferably one with holes). Spoon the squash mixture onto the dough and spread in a circular fashion; top with the fresh garlic. Sprinkle a bit of salt, crushed red pepper flakes, and freshly cracked pepper.  Top with a layer of spinach (to keep the spinach from drying out), then a layer of the cheese mixture. After the cheese, arrange zucchini, mushrooms, chicken sausage and chicken around the pie. If using sun-dried tomatoes or regular tomatoes, add at this time. If you have extra roasted garlic, feel free to squeeze it over the pie. Bake in the oven (preheated to 400) for about 12-15 minutes until the dough rises and turns golden brown – adjust cooking time for thicker or thinner crusts accordingly. Once you remove the pizza from the oven, cut into slices with a pizza cutter and top with Arugula salad. If using caramelized onions add now as well and serve with crushed red pepper and freshly cracked black pepper to taste.

Longhorn Pizza

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This pizza will be called the Longhorn Pizza because even though our beloved Horns (and Cubs and Red Sox) lost in the College World Series opening day, D and I still won. In a BIG, grandslam kind of way. This pizza was awesome. It had a perfect crust, had excellent flavor and was just completely satisfying. All for a whooping price of $4.33, which represents the cost of the dough that I purchased from Rounders. Short background, D and I both were craving pizza and cannot spend money because we are savings for our upcoming trip to the Yucatan. We had been game-watching with wonderful friends at a bar downtown and they had a pizza menu – I tried it and it was not good. Mediocre at best, but the damage was done….I wanted some pizza! I needed to use up some stuff at home – mainly two tomatoes. I also had a small sprinkling of other items that had been previously purchased and needed to be used. So….stopped by Rounders on the way home and got to prepping. End result…AMAZINGNESS!!!! This was hands down the best pizza that I have made, ever (and I like my pizzas that I have made before). Let’s just go ahead and add pizza to the growing list of things I cannot eat out anymore. Shucks but my belly sure was happy. I served this with Garlic Knots that were made from the leftover dough (since there is enough for at least two ten inch pizzas)!

Favorite Pizza Dough
1/2 cup Basil Pesto
Salt and Fresh Ground Black Pepper
One Shallot, thinly sliced
Six Cloves Garlic, minced
2.5 tablespoons of Crushed Red Pepper
3/4 cup of Monterrey Jack, shredded
3/4s cup of Mozzarella, shredded
One half chicken breast, previously cooked with a salt, pepper, thyme, and cayenne crust – sliced roughly
Handful of baby spinach (I had every intention of using this, but forgot to add it – feel free to keep or omit)
8-10 fresh basil leaves, chiffonade
2 beefsteak tomatoes, sliced into quarter-inch pieces and seeded

Roll dough on a flat surface to desired thickness (I prefer thin crust so I roll mine somewhat thin). Place dough on an aerated pizza baking tray (I have found that my aluminum pizza tray with holes in the bottom makes the best crust, crunchy on the outside and chewy inside, but feel free to use your traditional stone or a cookie sheet if that is what you prefer). Spread the Pesto in a circular motion around the dough. Salt, pepper, and sprinkle dough with crushed red pepper. Sprinkle the sauce with garlic and shallots, followed by spinach if you are using this ingredient. Then top with cheese, followed by the chicken. Place tomatoes on the dough until entire surface is almost covered. Salt and pepper (and crushed red pepper) to taste and place in a 400 degree oven. Bake until the Crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted and the tomatoes are good and roasted. Upon removal from the oven, add the basil leaves and serve immediately.

Butternut Squash Penne with Shrimp and Greens

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So Wendy Davis screwed up my summer (not to mention screwed Texas) with a filibuster so when the leg adjourned Sine Die and announced they would be back the next day, I was less than thrilled. D wanted to know what I wanted to do, which really was curl in a ball and cry whilst simultaneously working out and getting a massage. You see, when you are sitting in an uncomfortable chair for 18 hours a day for about two weeks (straight) your body aches like you have the flu. Not to mention my derriere is now competing for Kim Kardashian status (except not as toned) and I need vegetables like regular people need water. So instead of crawling in bed and catching up on desperately needed sleep (only after I cried myself to exhaustion of course), I poured an ice cold beer and decided I very badly wanted to see my Sarah, hang out with D, go to the grocery store for a proper shopping trip, and cook a homemade meal – veggies inclusive. Being that I was not in any sort of mental state to be decisive about what I wanted to make, I made a small list of seemingly healthy dishes (since the special session will keep me out of the gym, and full of crap food from a box, meaning the pounds will keep adding up) that would provide flavor and nutrition. Once at the store I decided that I would make one of two things and got ingredients for both in the hopes that if I double prep, maybe tomorrow I can throw together whichever I do not make tonight. On the menu: Penne with a Butternut Squash sauce and Shrimpies and Greens, Sauteed Kale with Mushrooms, and Steamed Beets and Carrots. Dinner was awesome. Veggies were awesome. The mess I made was awesome. Standing up was awesome. Hanging out with Sarah, D and Reagan (he made a surprise appearance) was awesome! Then I passed out – which was also awesome.

Butternut Squash Penne with Shrimp and Greens

One three-pound butternut squash
Half pound to three quarters of Penne Pasta
A few good handfuls spinach
A few good handfuls of Arugula
About 3/4 cup of shredded smoked provolone and shredded Pecorino Romano
4 cups chicken broth
1/8 cup half and half, plus 1/8 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/2 cup basil, chopped
six garlic cloves, minced
4 large shallots, mined or sliced
red pepper flakes to taste
1/2 cup white wine
couple of pinches salt
3 tablespoons herbs de provence
Cayenne to taste
Two tablespoons ricotta cheese

For butternut Squash

Preheat oven to 400. Cut squash (peeled) into half-inch dice and place on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil (flavoured if you like), and toss with salt, pepper, cayenne and herbs de provence. Add 3 tablespoons shallots and 2 tablespoons garlic to pan and mix well. Bake on 400 for about 25 minutes until squash is soft.

For the Sauce

Once the butternut squash is done, spoon the contents of the baking sheet into a food processor. Add half and half, almond milk, and ricotta cheese and blend well (if you would like a thinner sauce add a little bit of broth reserved from cooking the pasta as well).

For the dish

Cook pasta in boiling broth until al dente.

In a pan, heat a bit of olive oil and add remaining shallots, garlic, red pepper flakes and a pinch of salt. Cook until just glassy and add white wine. Add shrimp, searing on each side then transfer the squash sauce to the pan and stir well. Add arugula and spinach to sauce and allow to wilt, add any desired seasoning (i.e. black pepper or salt). Add pasta to the sauce (add pasta broth according to sauce consistency desires) and stir well. Add cheese to pan, stir well to incorporate. Once cheese has melted, top with basil and serve.

* This can also be made with chicken, just like the portion that I made for D because of his seafood aversion. Pancetta could also be crisped and added to this dish. Additionally, if you have dairy aversion – or are vegan – feel free to omit the half and half and use almond or rice milk instead.

Homemade Pizza

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D and I love, and I mean LOVE, Rounders pizza. However, you cannot really get out of Rounders for under $30 bucks and since we do not have that kind of cash to support our mutual love of pizza – this is a homemade version of Rounders pizza using stuff I had I the fridge and the freezer. It was great. D also made his man-pizza (pina, sausage, pepperoni and jalapenos).

Serves Two

Rounders Pizza Dough, rolled flat
One Zucchini, halved and thinly sliced
3-4 tbsp of Sun-dried tomato, coarsely chopped
Handful of fresh basil
Spinach
Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage
Minced Garlic
Small amount of Mario Batali tomato sauce
Part Skim Ricotta Cheese
One cup Mozzarella, shredded
One cup Smoked Provolone, shredded
2 tbsp Crushed red Pepper
Fresh Black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roll pizza dough on a flat surface. Mix a small amount of Ricotta with Tomato Sauce, Red Pepper Flakes and Pepper. Spread on the dough. Top this with cheese, then layer remaining ingredients covering entire surface area. Bake for about 10 minutes or until dough has risen and is golden brown and cheese looks melted.

Basil Pesto Chicken Pizza

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One of my favorite pizzas and it is so easy to make yourself. I do not eat tomato or pizza sauce, so I have to get creative with my pizzas. My favorites are Alfredo sauce, basil pesto, truffle oil, 3-cheese sauce. Here is one version.

Store bought or homemade pizza dough of preference
Shredded or chopped chicken (can be freshly cooked – I almost always use up leftovers)
Black olives – sliced
Mushrooms – Sliced
3 or 4 cheese blend – shredded – I like to use Mozzarella, Fontina, Asiago, and Pecorino
Fresh cracked Pepper

Preheat oven to 400.

On a floured surface, roll out pizza dough with a roller pin. Once you have achieved your desired thickness (or thinness), shape and size, spoon pesto directly onto dough and spread to cover. Go around the pie with a pepper mill and crack fresh pepper over it. Then add the cheese, spreading evenly over pie (again add desired amount). Then top with black olives and mushrooms and chicken (and tomatoes if using). Crack more pepper, add a small sprinkling of cheese and a drizzle of truffle or basil olive oil if you so desire. Bake on 400 for about 12 minutes or until the crust is done and remove from oven. Slice and serve.

Little Ears

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One of my favorite pasta dishes is one that created on a particularly lazy “let’s hang out and not go to the store” night. My friend Kelly and I were having a slumber party and the menu was based on the ingredients that we had that desperately needed to be cooked. The original for this dish was created and now it part of my kitchen arsenal for something easy, satisfying and versatile. I also call this the “best pasta ever” in a previous post – a good indicator of how much I love it. I have decided to officially call it “Little Ears” because I always use Orecchiette, which means “small ear” in Italian. You can add as much or as little to this as you want. The original version had only shallot-white wine sauce as a base, fresh mozzarella, cherry tomatoes and basil and it was incredible. This version strays from the original but still boasts the basic ingredients.

Two tips – actually more like two very, very strong suggestions: 1) Use Rustichella d’abruzzo Orecchiette. This is the BEST brand that I have found and this dish really is not the same with other brands. Trust me, I learned the hard way. The Whole Wheat kind of this brand is absolutely incredible – though now I have to special order it as Whole Foods now only sells regular Orecchiette and Central Market sells the brand but not the type at all. 2) You will want to cook the pasta until just under al dente, strain and the allow to finish cooking in the sauce so that the pasta absorbs all that yummy flavor. These are both good tips for any pasta dish that you make in the future =)

Little Ears, about 3 servings

One Half to Two-thirds box of Rustichella d’abruzzo Orecchiette
One pint cherry tomatoes, halved and seeded
Small amount of shredded Pecorino Romano cheese for serving
One cup of Shredded Cheese (half Mozzarella, half smoked Provolone)
Two cups Baby Spinach
One Zucchini, quartered
1 cup chopped fresh basil
Fresh ground pepper
Salt to taste, plus ample salt for pasta water
One Shallot White Wine Sauce Recipe
1/4 Cup Starchy Pasta Water


Boil salted water and cook pasta to instructions, under-cooking by two or three minutes. When straining, reserve some pasta water to add to sauce.

Begin making shallot white wine sauce (make enough for the amount of sauce that you want). Add Zucchini at the stage when the shallots and garlic become glassy. Saute for a minute or so before adding liquid. Reduce liquid, then halved tomatoes and cook until the skins loosen and tomatoes lose their shape slightly, if you have not already (and you need more sauce) add the pasta water. Add spinach and allow to wilt just slightly. Put  Combine with pasta and allow to cook a few more minutes. Add half of the basil, salt to taste, add pepper and cheese and stir gently but well. Garnish with remaining basil and some shaved Parmesan or Pecorino and serve. This is an excellent side for your favorite baked fish or chicken or with Andi’s Favorite Chicken. It is also a great way to use up leftover chicken – you can shred it and throw it in the pasta or serve it alongside!

I literally eat this with my hands for breakfast the next day! Enjoy!

Hatch Green Chile Mac and Cheese

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Hatch Green Chile Mac and Cheese

So this might take me a while to get to the recipe as there are about five stories that go into this dish. First, we had dinner at a friends house last weekend and the fare was fajitas. I was going to bring black bean corn salsa and brilliantly garlicky guac (guac turned into pico but that is another story) and then make rice cooked in Hatch Green Chili enchilada sauce (it just sounded so good). But I failed to specify the ingredients I needed to the person buying them, ergo no sauce. The next night we went to my parent’s house and I walked into my bedroom and there was a can of the missing ingredient sitting on the dresser. I laughed and texted my Ervetta (the person doing the shopping the day before) who happened to be in the ER with an extremely broken toe. Needless to say – she did not care much. But I was excited because now I get to make the dish I had envisioned. Fast forward to this weekend, we are heading out to the lake to have Easter with D’s family. D says that I can figure out what I am making in the car and we can stop at the HEB in Marble Falls. This complicates things for me because I am not sure what staples I need to bring, so I pack two grocery bags (yes I pack food to take with me in case the store doesn’t have it) and see the sauce and say – why not? IN goes the sauce, out goes D, Foster Brown, and I on the road. His brother was making flank steak so I started turning the wheels and gave D his options – knowing which one would get picked (the options were roasted mashed sweet potatoes, green beans and hatch green chili mac and cheese – no brainer). We decide on mac and cheese (shocker I know), hit the grocery and relax at the lake for a while before I start cooking. As it turns out, this was the best choice for a side because it ended up being the only thing we ate for dinner. =)

Notes: Use a tubular or shell shaped pasta (I prefer penne). Use good quality cheese for best taste and texture. The cheese needs to be aged over two years to melt properly. Sorry, but you gotta spend the extra $2 here. You can sometimes find canned diced tomatillos (HEB has them), feel free to sub these instead of using the fresh ones in a time crunch. I use less milk than I call for – I sub chicken broth for health reasons. Feel free to use as much butter as you want – again, health reasons limit my usage. You can run the chilis, onions, garlic, and tomatillos through a blender to puree them until smooth if you like. I prefer to leave them as is for a texture contrast and burst of flavor. Spinach is optional and only there because I literally put spinach in everything! Finally, feel free to use spiced corn chips as a topping instead of panko. Central Market has a wonderful chile corn chip crust that would be fantastic (pre-made) or you can make your own. I use seasoned panko because, generally, I am trying to get it in the oven and I always have panko.

Update: This dish has now become a regular part of my cooking rotation. I was asked to make it for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, giving me the impression that it is has now become a new tradition. I also tend to make this for large group gatherings as it feeds a ton of people in a very tasty way and really is not difficult at all to prepare (and can be made in advance). Fourth of July and Memorial Day will never be the same…

Hatch Green Chile Mac and Cheese

Serves 12 – 18

Two pounds pasta of choice
One to two cans Hatch Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
Two Hatch Green Chilis – roasted, skins removed, and minced (if not in season sub Jalapeno, Serrano, or Poblano)
Three Tomatillos, hush removed and boiled or roasted
One cup Sharp Cheddar, shredded
1.5 cups Queso Asadero, shredded
One cup Jalapeno Jack Cheese, shredded
Two cups Oxaca Cheese
Two Onions, sliced and diced
3-4 large handfuls of Spinach
one-half lime, juiced
One cup whole milk (I used less for health reasons but the sauce did not come out quite as creamy)
3 tbsp butter
Six to ten large cloves garlic, minced
One pint of Cherry tomatoes, seeded and roughly chopped
Pinch salt
Good amount of black pepper
One cup Chicken Broth
Two to three heaping tablespoons of Wheat Flour
Sriracha (optional)
Parmesan, shredded or grated (optional)

Cook pasta in salted water according to instructions.

Saute (seasoned) garlic, shallots, and flour with butter – stirring well to make a light roux. Add roasted peppers and continue to saute. To the pan, add the Hatch Green Chile Enchilada Sauce, milk, and chicken broth – stir well and reduce slightly. After the tomatillo has been boiled it should be soft, coarsely chop it and add it to the pan. Continue simmering. Remove from heat and put the sauce into a food processor and puree until smooth (this step is optional – if you do not mind chunk then by all means skip – I did). Return the sauce to the hot pan and add in a small handful of cheese (this needs to be done in batches) and stir until melted. Repeat this step until cheese is gone and sauce is thick and gooey. Add lime juice, salt, and pepper to taste. Combine the pasta, tomatoes, spinach, and sauce in a greased oven-safe dish. Stir well. Top with bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese if using (feel free to butter your bread crumbs to get them extra brown and delicious – I usually skip this step out of deference to my remarkably expanding derrière). Drizzle the topping with Sriracha to kick up the heat factor if desired. Bake, uncovered, in an oven that has been pre-heated to 375 degrees. Bake until the top is golden brown and the sides are bubbling up. About 45 minutes.