Baked Tomatoes, Italian Grandmother Style (Almost)

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Awesomeness

Let’s just clear the hurdle and accept the fact that you will see an abnormal (by abnormal I mean INSANE) amount of baked tomatoes. And some will be different and some will not be different. When you have a man-friend who would literally eat baked tomatoes at every meal it is bound to happen. Additionally, I almost always have everything i need to throw them together and since they are healthy and extremely satisfying , cheap, and easy – trust me when I say I am not complaining at all. So, Saturday we were in Katy (yes – this girl just said that) for D’s best friend from – well diapers I think – wedding shower. I have been hearing, pretty much since the day we started dating, the amazing food that he would eat at this Italian/Texan via Mexico household growing up. Side-bar: Gooey Butter Cake was mentioned frequently. Naturally, I was thrilled to get to experience this food and talk food with foodies (they own restaurants in the Houston Metroplex). The day was wonderful, the people were absolutely incredible and the food was – celestial (I really wanted to use another word, but propriety stopped me – first and last time for that to occur I can promise you). It was kind of like one of those get-togethers you read about in a Bon Appetit magazine – you know when food really brings you together (okay really it was the engagement of a fantastic couple – but food brought me closer to a dream I have had since I started cooking. This dream, ladies and gentlemen, is to cook with an Italian grandmother. Recall I mentioned that the family was half Italian. By this I mean Nina came off the boat from Sicily. HEAVEN. So whilst I was gorging on amazing pulled pork and cabbage slaw with sweet buns, I had a long conversation with an Italian grandmother. She suggested how I should make baked tomatoes. Spicy Provelone is the secret. I also got an invite to her home, which incidentally has a basement that has been converted into a second kitchen. So last night I made baked tomatoes (thought not exactly following her instructions but that will come later) and today I am happy that I am one step closer to my dream.

These tomatoes were so good. They were large tomatoes and I left a good amount of juice in them before baking, something I normally do not do. The result was almost like a brothy soup with yummy stuff in it. I made four thinking we would eat two and save two for lunch today – that did not work out – we ate them all. =) If you are looking for a budget and belly friendly meal that is tasty and satisfying this is it. You can feed a family of four with this meal for about ten dollars (probably less – I can cook, but my math skills are not anything to brag about).

  • Two large heirloom or beefsteak tomatoes, halved
  • 1 Large shallot, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • handful of torn arugula, roughly chopped
  • 6 large basil leaves,roughly chopped
  • Fresh Ground Pepper, to taste
  • Salt, to taste
  • Red Pepper Flakes
  • 4 slices of smoked Provolone
  • One link of Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage
  • One tablespoon pesto

Topping

  • 2 cups baby Spinach
  • 3 tbs white wine
  • 1 shallot sliced
Stuff me please!

Cut tomatoes in half and scrape out about half of the juice (trying to get as many seeds out as possible – the seeds can give you heartburn, make the tomato acidic or be bad for people with certain health conditions). Place each half into a small ramekin and let them hang out for a little bit.

Heat oil of choice in a skillet. Add shallots and garlic and a pinch of salt, cook for about five minutes and add the sausage, red pepper flakes, and pepper. Cook for about five minutes and remove from heat. Add to basil, arugula, pesto, pepper and mix well. Stuff the mixture into the tomatoes. Bake on 375 for about 20 minutes, remove, then add the cheese slices over the top and return to the oven for about five minutes.

Sausage, Garlic, Shallots: They Love Each Other


Whilst the tomatoes are baking prepare the spinach by heating a small bit of oil in the same pan the sausage was in. Add shallots, cook until glassy and add the wine. Allow the wine to cook until the alcohol is just cooked off, add spinach to the pan, crack fresh pepper over it and allow to wilt. If making garlic bread (which is HIGHLY recommended) begin preparation now and add to the oven in the last 7 minutes.

Remove tomatoes and top with Sauteed Spinach and serve with garlic bread that is very toasted.

Chicken Marsala – The Version that occured last night

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As with practically everything else I make, this is a dish that is different every time. That is what I get for not using recipes I suppose. I admit I had some anxiety before making this last night. I actually have not made it since maybe the first month that D and I started dating. The story with that meal is less than a fairy tale. It was getting cooler at night and I was craving chicken Marsala like I sometimes do. I did my shopping at the Marble Falls HEB – a decent size but not anywhere near my normal spots (which we all know by now are Central Market and Whole Foods). This ends up with me staring wistfully at the Marsala choices (only one and it was NOT Holland House) knowing that my craving was probably not going to be satisfied but hoping the dish would still come out – yes that is how much loyalty I show to my products. I also used the only selection of pancetta that was available, again a product that was new to me. This whole “new to me” argument really is not a god one I suppose, as a decent cook should be able to roll with the punches but new products coupled with a salt shaker that apparently does not show that salt is coming out (also my first time to use) lead to a meal that was so salty I refused to eat it. D was a trooper and ate it, I am still not sure how, but he had to drink water with every bite. Believe me when I say I did everything possible to tone the salt down – lemon, the rest of the cream, more Marsala (which led my to believe this particular Marsala contained a higher amount of salt than ANY Marsala should), more butter, water.NOTHING worked. I was going to throw it all away (unprecedented – I HATE wasting food), but D would not let me. Considering this was only the second meal I had cooked him – I am pretty lucky he gave me another shot and stuck around for the third (though I am certain he agrees that worked out well for him). Basically, I cooked the worst thing I have ever made and he ate it – all of it – that is some kind of wonderful right there. =) But what I have been craving is my Marsala. The Marsala that is better than any restaurant can offer. The Marsala that my Dad licked off of his plate. The Marsala I made for my friend Mel’s bachelorette party and the Marsala that I made for large dinner parties that always resulted in a recipe inquisition (and my lack of response since I just throw stuff into a pan). Then there is also my stuffed Marsala — but that will have to be another entry. You get the gist, I was craving Marsala and – last night – I redeemed myself. Due to the previous disaster, I asked D if he liked it maybe 4 times. His response: Silence. He was too busy eating. He only stopped to say that if I want him to talk during dinner, I have to stop making food that is so good. Hey, I’ll take it! This version is lower calorie than the big versions I make for larger groups. It is much lighter and less rich but even more flavorful than what you can get in a restaurant.

FYI – in a restaurant you will get just the broth and the mushrooms. I prefer mine with the broth that still contains everything that went into it. The sweetness of the shallots soaked in sweet Marsala is just – well – perfect on bread after you finish your chicken.

Marsala

  • 4 Large Shallots, thinly sliced
  • 4 Cloves Garlic, minced
  • One pound of Cremini mushrooms, sliced (mix and match if you like)
  • 4 fresh sage leaves, whole
  • 10 fresh thyme stems, whole
  • 1 tablespoon Herbs de Provence
  • 1/2 tablespoon Crushed Red Pepper
  • Pinch of Salt
  • Large amount of black pepper, cracked
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1.5 tablespoons truffle oil
  • One slice of Pancetta or thick prosciutto sliced
  • Juice from one/half lemon
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • 2 tablespoons Half and Half
  • Half a bottle (plus a little more) of Holland house Marsala – about 1 1/4 cups (I think)
  • about 1/2 cup of chicken broth
  • Handful of baby spinach
  • 3/4 cup flour, plus 2 tablespoons for sauce
  • One tablespoon Cayenne
  • 1 teaspoon Salt
  • One tablespoon of Fresh thyme or Herbs de Provence
  • Generous amount of cracked black pepper
  • One egg, beaten
  • Two Chicken Breasts
  • Two small slices of Fontina cheese (or whatever you have)

One a plate combine 3/4 cup flour, Cayenne, Salt, Pepper, and fresh Thyme or HDP and mix well (add and decrease seasoning as desired). Coat Chicken in egg then dredge in flour (I do not pound my chicken breasts thin because that is one more step and the chicken is generally less juicy and tender). Brown chicken well on each side in a large skillet with heated truffle oil. Remove chicken to a plate and discard plate with flour.

In the same pan, add a dab of butter, allow to melt, then add pancetta, shallots, garlic, crushed red pepper, and a pinch of salt. Scrape bottom well to soak up all the chicken flavor and bits from the bottom. Saute until almost glassy, then add mushrooms, sage, thyme, plenty of cracked black pepper, and HDP. Cook until mushrooms are browned and add a dab more butter and 2 tablespoons flour, making a very quick roux. Add Marsala, cream, and broth and allow to reduce – about 8 minutes. Squeeze the lemon juice in and let it hang out for a second. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired (I would add more pepper and a touch more cream of butter if it needs it). Cut a slit in each chicken breast and insert a small slice of Fontina cheese in the slit. Return to pan and let warm for a few minutes and add spinach to wilt into sauce. Remove from heat, top with Parsley and serve chicken smothered with sauce with warm, crusty bread.

*Before serving remove the thyme stems and sage leaves.

Nairagi Tartar with Mango and Zucchini

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I know, I know….you are probably getting sick of seeing this variation of my favorite dish, but what can I say – I love it! So simple, so satisfying, so not bad for you, such a better bargain than restaurant tartar, so amazing and addictive! Sorry, groan all you want but I eat a variation of Tuna/Salmon/Nairagi tartar EVERY week. Here is this weeks!

Tartar

  • 1/3 pound of fresh Nairagi, cut with a Sushi Knife into small dice
  • 1/2 Large Avocado – diced
  • 1 cup Green onions – large dice
  • Sesame seeds – black or white – to taste (I use about two tablespoons)
  • Sriracha – to taste – I use about a tablespoon and a half
  • Soy sauce – to taste about a 1/2 tablespoon
  • One Lime, Juiced
  • Eel sauce, 1 tbsp
  • Ginger Lime marinade/sauce, 1.5 tbsp
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 Mango, diced
  • 1Small Zucchini, cut into small dice

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well, adjusting flavors as desired.

Coconut Rice

  • One cup Coconut Milk
  • Two Tablespoons Ginger People Minced Ginger
  • One tsp salt
  • Half cup of Basmati Rice

Bring milk, ginger and salt to a boil in a small saucepan. Add rice, cover, reduce to simmer. Cook for ten minutes and fluff.

To Assemble:

Pack Rice into a small, round ramekin. Turn upside down in the middle of the plate, then remove ramekin leaving a small mound of rice. Top with the tartar, drizzle with additional eel sauce – or place a small dot in various spots on the plate. Feel free to top with fried shallots if desired. Alternately, you can Julienne the zucchini and arrange the zucchini below, above, or around rice, then top with tartar and shallots if desired. I went for the all-in-one combo to make life simple.

White Bean Soup with Ham, Sausage and Kale

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>Easter weekend just passed and it was a very incredible weekend filled with yummy food, time to cook, good wine, mimosas, family (well D’s family not mine but they are wonderful so I am not complaining!), four amazing labs (usually there are six but two stayed in Katy), and plenty of pool/sun time. Post-Easter saw D and I with a fridge that was literally overflowing with leftover food (thanks to D’s generous mom). I had two honey baked hams. One was destined for soups because it had been in the freezer since Christmas and was defrosted for the weekend, but just did not have the right texture to eat. Not a problem at the time of eating has we had a back up ham and the old one would be perfect in soup because the texture would not matter. Incidentally this old ham, also had the largest ham hock I have ever seen. It was the size of my forearm – if not bigger. So the fridge is full and I have carrots and celery and 20 pounds of ham that need to be eaten. I am thinking…you know I have always wanted to try a cassoulet. Dilemma – it is the weekday and I do not have the time it takes to make a cassoulet. I need something I can prep ahead, throw in a pot in the morning and simmer it until I get home for dinner. Additionally, Whole Foods does not sell duck thighs and I am not paying 30 bucks for a do-it-from-your-fridge meal. Solution: White Beans (which I had in the pantry), Spicy Chicken Sausage (which I had in the freezer), Ham (you are quite aware I had ham) and Kale soup. Kale later turned into Swiss Chard because WF was out of it. It was good for my first time. I can see why it is a winter trend – next time I think that I will use less liquid to make a ticker stew that the beans really stand out in (I LOVE beans). I also think that I will finish it off in the oven with a nice layer of cheese and some garlic croutons – in a nod to one of my favorites – French Onion Soup. Cassoulet – that masterful feat I have yet to accomplish – will have to wait. Don’t be intimidated by the length of this list – it is basically just the contents of a fridge, pantry and freezer thrown together to get used in time.If you have chicken thighs, those would be great to throw in this as well. You should know that I did this the incredibly lazy way – I did not put my soup broth through a strainer. I did not puree it. I did not pick out the veggies and replace with uncooked one (carrots and such lose their flavor after about two hours cooking so generally, you are supposed to replace them to obtain a soup that does not have muddled flavors). I just ate it as it was.

Time wise here is what I did. The day before cooking, I prepped all ingredients and put them into bowls and soaked the beans. Day off I brown the meat, then threw in the veggies, liquid and seasoning. Let hang out for a few hours, taste test once you get home and adjust seasoning as necessary.

  • 2 large white or yellow onions
  • 1 entire (Large) head garlic, cloves peeled and halved
  • 3 celery stalks, diced
  • 5 carrots, sliced into half inch pieces then halved
  • couple of pieces of fresh torn sage leaves, whole
  • 2 bay leaves
  • One sprig rosemary
  • 8 Thyme stems
  • Red Pepper Flakes
  • Salt
  • Pepper to taste (a lot)
  • 1.5 cups dry white wine
  • 2.5 cups Chicken Stock
  • Sun-dried tomatoes or regular tomato paste, to taste
  • Dried Chipotle Peppers or Sriracha to taste
  • 1/4 cup Parmesan or Pecorino cheese, grated
  • 2 tablespoons pesto
  • A couple of slices of toasted garlic bread
  • 2 links of Spicy Italian Chicken Sausage
  • One ham Hock
  • Handful of torn ham pieces
  • 4 cups dried Great Northern beans, soaked overnight
  • Two bunches Kale or Swiss Chard, sliced into long sliced and stems removed
  • 1-2 Parmesan Cheese Rinds (I keep old rinds in the freezer and throw them into soups to get them more depth)
  • Smoked Paprika (optional – I added it just because)

Soak beans over night in room temperature water (fill bowl with water covering the beans plus four inches). The next day, heat a good amount of olive oil in a large dutch oven. Add sausage (and whatever other meat is being used i.e. chicken thighs, duck thighs, ham hock, etc) and sear. remove from pan and add the onions, garlic, red pepper flakes, celery, bay leaves, a pinch of salt, and a small bundle (tied with kitchen string) that contains the rosemary, sage, and thyme to the pan and saute until glassy – scrapping up the bits of meat from the bottom. Once glassy, degalze the pan with the white wine cook for a couple minutes. Add beans, meat, dried chilis, cheese rind, tomato paste and a good amount of black pepper to the pan. Add the chicken stock. Stir and cover. Cook over a low heat for 2-4 hours. Taste test and add flavors has necessary. Add the greens and allow to cook for another 30-45 minutes, then remove any bones or chunks of fatty meat, chilis, and the bouquet garni from stew.  Laddle into large bowls and top with a handful of shredded cheese and a spoonful of pesto. Serve with crusty, toasted garlic bread.

Spinach and Apple Salad with Pesto Chicken Salad

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Elsewhere in the blog, there is a recipe for Pesto-Chicken Salad which I love. The other day I had some chicken breast I needed to use up, so I whipped up some Pesto Chicken Salad and brought and apple and a bag of spinach to work the next day for a light, healthy and quite tasty lunch.

  • 3 cups Spinach
  • 1/2 favorite Red Apple of Choice (I used a small Gala apple), thinly sliced
  • 1cup Pesto Chicken Salad with Cranberries
  • 1.5 tbsp Girard’s Light Champagne Dressing
  • Fresh Black Pepper

Put Spinach in a large bowl on on a plate. Cut apples into spinach and crack black pepper over spinach. Pour dressing in a circular motion over spinach. Mix well. Top the greens with a scoop of Basil Pesto Chicken Salad and enjoy. Feel free to heat the chicken first if you prefer that element hot.

My favorite Breakfast Smoothie

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I love smoothies for breakfast. Partially because I cannot eat most breakfast food and partially because I LOVE fruit! Smoothies are perfect for custom design, but here is my favorite.

2 cups Strawberries (whole)
1 cup Blueberries
One half of a banana
1/4 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk
2 large handfuls of baby spinach
1 tbsp Flaxseed
Small amount of Juice Plus Complete – French Vanilla
1 Pure Acai concentrate packet (kept in the freezer)
1.5 cups Crushed Ice

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Enchilada Eggs

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Pretty quick and easy combination that occurred when I took last Friday off and made D breakfast. We had had enchiladas the night before and had leftover sauce so I decided – since D loves them so much – that I would combine them with eggs for homemade breakfast tacos (I of course had a smoothie given my egg allergy). He liked them=)

  • 2 eggs, cracked and beaten
  • Pinch Cayenne
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Monterrey Jack or Cheddar Cheese
  • Dash of milk or cream
  • 1/2 cup of Black Bean Corn Salsa
  • 1/2 cup Green Chile Pork Enchilada Sauce
  • 1 shallot, diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • Small handful of torn rotisserie chicken
  • Salsa of choice

Combine Eggs, milk, Cayenne, and Sat and Pepper in a small bowl and beat well.

In a pan, saute the shallot and garlic in a dab of butter until glassy. Add black bean corn salsa and heat for about a minute. Add eggs and scramble. Once almost cooked, add enchilada sauce to the pan, along with cheese and chicken pieces.Serve with warmed tortilla, avocado slices (if desired), and salsa of choice.

Grilled Ham and Cheese Cornbread Sammies with Cilantro-Jalepeno Pesto

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Over Easter weekend, D and I scored the jackpot (because his parents were generous enough to give us the leftovers) and bring home, not one, but two spiral hams. One was destined for soups (and had a hock the size of my forearm) and the other was destined to be enjoyed on its own – or maybe my favorite way – in sandwiches. My mom had given me these giant corn bread muffins a while back so I pulled them out of the freezer for a quick meal.

Cornbread sandwich

  • Two slices of corn bread, one side of each buttered
  • One thick slice of spiral ham
  • One slice of Fontina or Monterrey Jack cheese
  • Small handful of Arugula
  • Two slices Avocado

Assemble sandwich and place on a panini maker. Grill until nice, dark marks appear and cheese is melted.

Cilantro-Jalapeno Pesto

  • Half Bunch of Cilantro
  • One half of a roasted Jalapeno Pepper
  • One half of 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
  • One half of 1/4 cup Good Quality Olive Oil
  • Squeeze of lime juice if available

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.

Serve with Tomato soup.