What's cookin'? - Zucchini Noodles with Roasted Grape Tomato Sauce!

These days I'm constantly scouring the Internet or the knowledge of friends for things to do with the over-abundant vegetables in the garden.

My husband loves having a garden and tending to it. We are fortunate that we have the space for a big garden.

 (Note the log cabin shed that my husband is now building in his spare time... The nut!)

We're always trying new things - foods we have never planted before, along with the tried-and-true crops: zucchini, tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers. 

This year, new foods for us include red cabbage, beets and peas... I thought they were green peas. When I picked some and started shelling them, I did not find a green pea, but rather a black-eyed pea! I guess when we bought the starter plant, the the tag listed them as "cowpeas". Being the naïve planters that we are, we planted them, expecting green peas. Oh well! I cooked them anyway. That recipe I will share on another day!

Some things are still growing and not ready to harvest (like the cabbage). Others are way more prolific than I ever imagined (like the cucumbers!)

That's just the ONE day's picking from ONE cucumber plant in that picture - I'm not kidding! And to boot, my husband always plants about six grape tomato plants and four other tomato plants!

Yikes!

I've given lots away... Thank you Terri, Pat and Patty for taking some off of my hands!

So anyway, I'm sure my next series of food blogs will be about using the vegetables from my garden. Hopefully you will find some new uses for your garden vegetables as well!

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Grape tomatoes.... What to do with six plants that keep producing more ripe ones each and every day? My husband can only eat so many off the vine as he works outside (too much acid gives you heartburn!)

I came across this recipe and thought I would give it a whirl...

Grape tomato sauce (makes approx. 2 cups)

• Line a 9" x 13" pan with clean, stem-free grape tomatoes (about 5 cups)

• Before adding 5 fresh, whole garlic cloves to the pan, crush them slightly with the side of a knife.

• Drizzle with approximately 1T olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss gently to coat.

• Roast for 45 minutes in a 400° oven. Tomatoes will begin to "pop" and release their juices. Don't overcook you don't want a burnt taste to the sauce!

• Once removed from oven, allow to cool (about 20 minutes).

• Put contents of pan, plus about 8 fresh basil leaves in a food processor. Add salt and pepper to season.

• Process to desired consistency. (This solves your problem of having to peel tiny tomatoes - you don't!)

** I heated this on low heat about 45 minutes before we ate it, in order to thicken it up it. (Without heating, the original recipe states that you have 2-3 days to use the refrigerated sauce before it spoils.)

** The sauce was awesome, but I think it could use a sprinkling of sugar to reduce some of the acidic taste - I'll leave that up to you!

** I'm planning to make another batch, heat it through, allow it to cool, and then freeze it for future use.

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Of course you could just serve this marinara over any pasta.... But when you have "oodles" of zucchini you make noodles!

Zucchini noodles (or, "zoodles", as I have seen them called) are all the rage right now. I see them in TONS of low-carb recipes. 

Apparently, there is some kind of kitchen gadget that will help you to make zucchini noodles. I don't own one, so this is what I did instead - not as perfect as the gadget would produce but, overall same effect!

When I was ready to drain my boiling spaghetti, I simply poured the hot water over the zucchini noodles which were resting in the colander. That hot water bath was enough to cook the thin strips of zucchini.

Mix it in with your spaghetti or just have the zucchini noodles, topped your favorite way....

What's cookin'? - "Lady sings the bleus"

I love bleu cheese.

For some it is an acquired taste, I know.

But even if you think you don't like it, I'm going to suggest that you read this post. There's bound to be something in it that you will like, and eventually become a blue cheese lover like myself!

We often buy a big hunk of Gorgonzola cheese. 

What's so special about Gorgonzola?

Actually, I don't know!

I do know that it is a type of bleu cheese... I know that it originally comes from a special place in Italy.... I know that it does not have as strong a smell as regular bleu cheese... It's still salty and sharp like bleu cheese... It melts and crumbles easily, so I cook with it a lot.

That was a big help, I know.

You're welcome.

Anyway, this post all started because of my dinner tonight. Two of my family members are eating elsewhere. That leaves just two of us.

I decided to make pasta but my son does not like red sauce. (Must be the part in him that's NOT Italian!)

What to do...?  What to do...?

I decided that he would have his favorite old standby of olive oil and Parmesan cheese (or butter and cheese). 

I, on the other hand, had a hankerin' for something special! We had some Gorgonzola in the fridge, so I decided to make a Gorgonzola Cream Sauce for my pasta.

I have made this sauce a few times, following a recipe, that also adds broccoli and is served over fettuccine.

I have no broccoli, but I knew I wanted this sauce! 

So, I consulted the cookbook that contained the recipe:

I skimmed over the "cast of characters"/ingredients ... Then, I threw caution to the wind.... I didn't measure a thing as I made a little bit of sauce for myself. (Gasp!) All of my measurements were "eyeballed", since I was only making a little bit of sauce for myself.

It was wonderful, just as I had hoped it would be! 

I started by bringing some white wine and chicken broth to a boil (maybe 1/2 cup of each). Then I added about 2 tablespoons butter, one cup half-and-half, one cup Gorgonzola. Simmer maybe five minutes, sauce will thicken somewhat. Add a sprinkle of pepper - the cheese is salty enough that you do not have to add additional salt!

Serve with grated Parmesan and fresh parsley:

OMG... He doesn't know what he's missing!

** Usually cream sauces call for heavy cream. Many times I substitute half and half because it is what I have on hand. Just know that it won't be as thick as it would've been using heavy cream, but the taste is the same!

Another way to use a Gorgonzola cream sauce is with steak.

Yes. Steak!

If you are hesitant at all, this recipe will make you fall in love with blue cheese!

Grilled ribeye steak with onion-Gorgonzola cream sauce

Grill your steak to perfection and then set it on top of this delectable sauce (courtesy of The Pioneer Woman). For original post, go to:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/09/grilled-ribeye-steak-with-onion-blue-cheese-sauce/

• melt one half stick of butter in the pan

• add one onion, sliced

• Cook over medium heat until onions caramelize (that is, start to get soft and brown)

• add 1 cup heavy cream (I use half-and-half) 

• Cook until heated through and starting to thicken (cream will take on the brownish color of the onions)

• Add 1 cup crumbled Gorgonzola. Heat through until melted, making sauce even thicker.

• Before serving, spoon the cream onto plate and top with your grilled ribeye.

Mmmm...

I need to learn how to make an appetizer I had once at La Cupola in Litchfield. It was "steamed mussels in a Gorgonzola sauce". I thought I had died and gone to Heaven when I ate that. I just about licked the bowl! When I do figure out how to make it I'll be sure to share!

I love having the cheese on hand, we use it so much. 

Last night I sprinkled it on my steak salad.

It goes especially well with pears -sometimes I throw them both in a salad.

My oldest son mixes chicken breast strips with hot sauce and then adds the bleu cheese to make a buffalo chicken sandwich.

Once I made a cranberry-pear tart that had crumbled blue cheese on top. It was made with leftover Thanksgiving turkey. I'll have to find that recipe! That was so good!

What are ways that you use Bleu cheese? I am always looking for new ways to incorporate this favorite ingredient!

What's cooking? - Sauce!

A wise Italian man (my father) once said, "Hon, sauce is the key!" 

He said this as we were discussing why Del's Restaurant, in the Bloomfield section of Pittsburgh, has always been our family favorite.

He was right, of course. 

As any Italian knows - the sauce can make or break you!

With that in mind, I do have my tried and true marinara sauce. But, I also serve pastas with many other types of sauces.

Some are creamy white sauces. Others are red. A couple are a combination of the two!

"Variety is the spice of life", they say!

Here are two red sauces with meat that we enjoy (both come from the Quick From Scratch Italian cookbook). Feel free to serve over any type of pasta you wish! 

Sardinian Meat Sauce (served with cavatelli)

• 3T olive oil

• 1 lb. Italian sweet sausage (casings removed)

• 1/4 t dried red-pepper flakes

• 1 onion, chopped

• 3 cloves garlic, minced

• one 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes in thick purée 

• 3 T chopped fresh mint

• 1/3 c chopped fresh parsley

• 1/4 c water

• 1 1/4 t salt

• 1/4 c chopped fresh basil

• 3 T grated Parmesan cheese

1) In a large hot heat oil over moderate heat. Add sausage and cook, breaking up with meat, until it is no longer pink (about 5 minutes).

2) Reduce the heat to moderately low and stir in onion and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent (about 5 minutes).

3) Add: tomatoes, mint, parsley, water and salt. Simmer until thickened (about 15 minutes).

4) Toss your cooked, drained, pasta with meat sauce, the basil and cheese. If sauce is too thick add some of the pasta water (up to 1/2 cup).

Serve with additional Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese.

** The recipe says that the mint is optional. I have made it both ways and I say include it if you can - it makes a difference!

(That's vegetable focaccia bread I bought at a local supermarket bakery - Yum!)

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Here's one that's wonderful on Fridays during Lent!

Arrabbiata Sauce with Tuna (a little spicy!)

(The original recipe calls for 1 pound cod fillet, cut into 1- inch chunks, but I have always used tuna)

• 1/4 c olive oil

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• one 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes in thick purée

• 1 large tomato, peeled and chopped (or 1 can diced tomatoes with juices)

• 1 3/4 t salt

• 1/2 t dried red-pepper flakes

• two 6 oz. cans tuna, drained

• 3 T chopped fresh parsley

1) In a large pot, heat the oil over moderate heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add: the crushed tomatoes, fresh tomato (or your diced, canned tomatoes), salt and red-pepper flakes. Simmer until sauce is thick (about 30 minutes).

2) Add the tuna and 2 tablespoons of the parsley to the sauce. 

3) Stir tuna into the tomato sauce and warm for about a minute.

4) Toss sauce with your cooked, drained pasta. Top with remaining parsley and Parmesan cheese (if desired).

My picture shows rigatoni, because that's what we had. Sometimes I use penne pasta if we have it , but really, you can use anything!

**note: I do use fresh herbs, if I can, in my cooking. If you don't have fresh, you can substitute dry herbs - but only use 1/3 the amount called for. Dried herbs are more potent!

What's cookin'? - Spicin' it up!

Who doesn't like hamburgers and French fries? It's the all-American meal!

Now they have miniature hamburgers called "sliders" that are all the rage for some reason. They are cute. They are mini. They are the perfect size if you are trying to watch your amount of food intake. Of course, for the men in my family, mini cheeseburgers means that you can eat more of them!

 I followed the directions that I saw online to make these Easy Cheeseburger Sliders and then topped them with Sweet Chipotle Barbecue Sauce. 

Instead of frying individual burgers, you put the ground beef mixture (chopped onion and breadcrumbs) in a square baking pan.

 Poke a few holes in the meat mixture for grease to escape. The burgers are baked at 400° for 30 minutes. Then, pour off all the grease. (Be aware that the meat will shrink and pull away from the pan after done baking!) Being in a square pan makes it easier to cut into individual, square, slider size. 

We topped each burger with cheddar cheese and put the pan back in the oven for a few minutes in order to melt the cheese. We used King's Hawaiian rolls as our slider buns - they are the perfect size!

We also topped this burger with a Sweet Chipotle Barbecue Sauce. This made the burger!

We love this sauce!

The recipe made extra, so I stored it in a mason jar. But, we have used it in so many things that is almost gone - and I just made it on Saturday!

To make it, you combine in a blender: 1 chipotle pepper and 1/2 cup grape jelly. Pulse on "chop" until pepper is almost completely pulverized. Next, add 8 oz. (one small bottle) barbecue sauce (we use Sweet Baby Ray's).

Yum!

If you've never used chipotle peppers, they add a spicy, yet smoky, flavor! Be careful though! You only need one pepper (and a little of the sauce) for this recipe. There are five or six packed in that little can, so I just put them rest in a Tupperware and store them in my fridge. They keep for a while.

The boys have been using the sauce for their afterschool snack of chicken nuggets. I used some tonight for my mango meatball wraps which I will describe in another post - Delicious!

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Thr French fries that I made were Oven- Baked Potato Wedges. Nothing really fancy - you probably already know how to make these.... but in case you don't, I'll share the link where I found the recipe:

http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2011/08/baked-tater-wedges-and-utahs-famous-fry.html

 

We liked the potatoes because they were full of flavor and had a little crunch. They weren't greasy at all.

The recipe also includes a "Utah" sauce for dipping. We skipped that, as we are trying to avoid mayonnaise-based sauces.

This was a great, kid-friendly meal. And my husband was happy too, since it went well with a beer. It was a Saturday night, after all!