10: Goat Cheese & Rosemary Stuffed Chicken Breasts / Sweet Potatoe Puree / Roasted Balsamic Veggies

This may seem like a complicated recipe, but it is actually pretty quick and simple if you have leftover sweet potato puree. Since me and Amber went to a friend’s parents for Thanksgiving, we didn’t have the usual couple pounds of leftover turkey. This was our post-Thanksgiving meal. It’s delightful and light, the perfect remedy to overeating on Thanksgiving. I think the plating is a little sloppy looking here, but the lovely flavor profile more than made up for it. Roots vegetables are in season, so I added broccoli and cauliflower to this dish.

Ingredients and Directions:

-2 large chicken breasts

-1.5 cups sweet potato puree

-1.5 cups chopped broccoli and cauliflower

-Goat cheese (leave out at room temp 30-40 mins before cooking)

-1/3 cup chicken broth (or ½ cup white wine)

-2 tablespoons fresh chopped rosemary

-1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

-1 garlic clove, minced

-3-4 tablespoons olive oil

-salt and pepper

-1 tablespoon butter

-toothpicks

Cut 3 inch pockets on the side of the chicken breasts in the thickest portion. Spread goat cheese and rosemary in the pockets of the breasts – use as much as you like! Use toothpicks to secure the openings. Season both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper to taste.

 Heat the olive oil and one tablespoon of butter on medium-high heat in skillet large enough to hold chicken. Add the chicken, turn up to high heat, and sauté each side 2-3 minutes. Turn the heat down to low, add broth, cover, and cook for an additional 8-10 minutes.

Heat olive oil on medium heat in skillet large enough for broccoli and cauliflower. Add sweet potato puree and ¼ cup water to small pan over medium heat. Add garlic to pan with oil after 2 minutes and sauté for 1-2 minutes more. Add broccoli and cauliflower, salt and pepper to taste. Splash vegetables with balsamic vin after 4 minutes. Stir puree and water while sautéing vegetables. Everything should be done about the same time. Reduce heat on puree and vegetables to low if done before chicken. Serve immediately, and add a spoonful or two of sauce from chicken over chicken breasts once on a plate.

Enjoy!

9: Scrambled Eggs / Sweet Potato Puree

With all this leftover sweet potato puree (and an empty fridge), I decided to make scrambled eggs with the sweet potato puree. I added a little maple syrup and a dash of sugar to the puree right before serving. This breakfast recipe is simple, yet mightily delicious!

Ingredients and Directions:

-4 eggs whipped with a fork

-1.5 cups sweet potato puree

-1/2 cup sliced onions

-2 minced garlic cloves

-minced parsley to taste (thyme or basil also works well)

-pinch of sugar (optional)

-splash of maple syrup (optional)

-butter (optional)
-olive oil

Heat the butter and oil in a large pan. Add puree to a small pan with ¼ cup water on medium heat – the idea here is to warm and moisten but not cook. Add garlic and onions to a large pan and sauté for about five minutes. Stir potatoes to absorb water while sautéing garlic and onions. Add eggs to large pan and scramble to desired doneness (I recommend keeping the eggs a touch moist.). Be sure to keep stirring the potato puree at the same time. Eggs and potatoes should be done around the same time - turn heat on potatoes down to low if they’re warmed before your eggs are done. Garnish eggs with parsley, and add maple syrup and sugar to the puree.

Serve and enjoy!

8: Sweet Potato Puree / A Truly Versatile Dish

Ahhh, the Fall season brings beautiful foliage, cooler temperatures, and Thanksgiving flavors. My girlfriend and I went to a friend’s parents for Thanksgiving, and she made a sweet potato pie with graham cracker crust. She also made way more sweet potato puree than needed for the pie (this recipe reflects enough to make as a side dish for 2-3 people). That “mistake” only meant I could make sweet potato-inspired dishes, which you will see in the next couple of posts. Sweet potato puree is incredibly easy to make!

Tips: This puree is made just a hint sweeter with maple syrup, but you can really play around with the flavor profile. For example, you can sub in lime juice and cayenne pepper or orange juice and ginger for the lemon juice and maple syrup. You can use the puree for a number of recipes such as a ravioli filling, or add eggs to make a pie filling.

Ingredients and Directions:

-1 pound sweet potato, peeled and cubed

-1 tablespoon vanilla extract

-Sugar to taste

-Maple syrup to taste

-1 tablespoon lemon juice

-1 tablespoon salt

-1/4 stick of butter

Cover cubed sweet potatoes in water and bring it to a boil. Continue boiling until easily pierced with a fork, 10-15 minutes once brought to a boil. Drain and add potatoes to a large mixing bowl, if using a hand blender. You can also do this in a blender or food processor. Begin pureeing sweet potatoes while adding in all the other ingredients in the list. Puree to desired smoothness.

Serve and enjoy!

7: Root Vegetable Gratin / An Amazing Side Dish

Gratin is very much like casserole, so the possibilities are endless when it comes to making a gratin. Most of us are familiar with potato gratin, and I add a twist by using root vegetables. This gratin makes a perfect accompaniment with pork or chicken (I served it with steak, but I wasn’t happy with the pairing.).  I forgot to take a picture of this amazing dish, so I have included a stock photo of what the gratin looks like. This dish came out amazing, enriched with a semi-soft cheese of gruyere and cream.  This really shows off my Midwestern roots!

Tip:  Using a mandoline will make slicing the vegetables easy. Otherwise, better use a sharp chef’s knife, and watch your fingers!

Ingredients and Directions:

-1 tablespoon butter

-2 minced garlic cloves minced

-1 cup heavy cream

-Salt and pepper to taste

-1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg

-Half pound parsnips, peeled and sliced 1/8 inch thick

-Half pound sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/8 inch thick

-Half pound celery root, peeled and sliced 1/8 inch thick

-1 cup shredded gruyere cheese  

-1.5 tablespoons minced fresh thyme

-1.5 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Preheat an oven to 400°F. Butter the bottom and sides of a baking dish.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for one minute. Add the cream, salt, pepper and nutmeg and heat just until bubbles form around the edges of the pan, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for 10 minutes.

Arrange a layer of parsnips, slightly overlapping, in the baking dish. Add a layer of sweet potatoes on top, and then a layer of celery root. Pour half of the cream mixture over the celery root, and sprinkle half of the cheese, thyme, and parsley on top. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.

Cover the dish with aluminum foil, place on a baking sheet and bake for one hour. Remove the foil and lightly press the gratin down with a spatula to release air. Continue baking until the vegetables are tender and the top is golden brown, about 15 to 30 minutes more. Let the gratin stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

6: 30 Minute Quick Fire: Rosemary-Garlic Lamb Chops w/ Sauteed Spinach, Mushrooms & Onions

As you might have guessed, the Quick Fire title is from Top Chef. The last season of Top Chef was somewhat disappointing in that they seemed to emphasize all the personal drama. Nonetheless, I enjoy the Quick Fire challenges because it challenges chefs to create something special in a short amount of time. Chefs have 60 minutes on the show, but this meal can be prepared in 30 minutes from the start of prepping to sitting down to eat.

Lamb is a delicious, gamey meat that compliments my savory style of cooking rather well. The evergreen family member of rosemary is mint- and pine-like all in one herb with an unmistakable scent that pairs with lamb like a match made in heaven. Rosemary is also a healthy herb, containing decent amounts of fiber, iron, and calcium.

I had a sandwich and bag of chips for lunch, so I went with a starch-less dinner preparation. You could easily add some roasted potatoes to provide a rustic profile to this meal. The combination of sautéed vegetables provided a nice contrast to the broiled meat. This meal was made complete with an intensely fruit concentrated pinot noir from the Arroyo Grande Valley near San Luis Obispo in the Central Coast region of California that has the natural pinot noir characteristics of earth and spice on the finish – Laetitia Vineyards (2009).

Ingredients and Directions:

-4 lamb chops, frenched

-2.5 cups spinach, packed

-1/2 cup sliced baby portabellas

-sliced onion, as much as you like

-2 minced garlic cloves, separated

-1 tablespoon olive oil

-1 tablespoon lemon juice

-1 tablespoon fresh rosemary finely chopped

-1 tablespoon butter

-salt and pepper to taste

Prep everything before cooking. Mix together lemon juice, rosemary, garlic, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Coat lamb chops with this mixture in bowl and set aside on a plate. Preheat broiler on high heat, and place a stainless steel or cast iron skillet large enough to hold the lamb chops under the heat for 10 minutes to get very hot.

Place a pan on low heat on the stove after four minutes of warming skillet in broiler. Add olive oil and remaining garlic to pan after two minutes and turn up heat to medium. Add onions to pan and sauté for two minutes. Add mushrooms to onions and cook for two minutes. Add the butter and melt. Now remove the skillet in the broiler – the skillet is going to be hot, so remove it carefully. Place lamb chops in skillet, and return to broiler for about four to five minutes. Wait two minutes to add spinach to onions and mushrooms and stir to wilt. Cook veggies and lamb for two more minutes.

Serve and enjoy!

5: Balsamic-Herbed Filet Mignon w/ Garlic Bacon Red Potatoes & Steamed Brussel Sprouts

A few notes about this recipe: Few precise measurements were used, giving you the freedom to use as much or as little of the ingredients/seasonings as you want here. The timing of everything is the trickiest part of this meal. Amber dealt solely with the potatoes while I cooked the steaks and brussels sprouts. You will either need one really focused person or two people to prepare this mouth-watering steak dinner.

Steak is the quintessential American centerpiece of a fine meal. My girlfriend and I just spent a few days in West Virginia, and subsequently Virginia Wine Country, and we were treated to American cooking as fresh as possible and from the soul. It is with this inspiration that I cooked dinner tonight.

We went to Eastern Market to buy freshly butchered Black Angus Filet Mignon, brussels sprouts, and potatoes. The mashed potatoes were made from scratch and the steak was marinated in balsamic vinaigrette, garlic, sage, and rosemary for about four hours prior to grilling. The succulent look of the steak is the result of the marinade on the grill. I used mesquite coals for this delight to create a subtle smoky-sweet contrast, served the steak with bacon- and garlic-laced mashed red potatoes, and rounded out dinner with steamed brussels sprouts. Dinner was perfectly complimented by a robust and fruit driven merlot from Monterey County, The Rescue Block (2009).

Ingredients and Directions:

-one pound filet mignon, cut into two fillets

-12 brussels sprouts, halved

-small red potatoes, equaling about two medium-sized potatoes, partially peeled

-three strips of bacon

-garlic

-balsamic vinaigrette

-sage

-rosemary

-butter

-milk

-salt and pepper

The marinade is simple, but it requires four hours in the fridge. Mince garlic, sage, and rosemary. Use a quart-sized Ziploc bag and add half the seasonings to the bottom of the bag. Now add the filets to the bag. Flip over and add the remaining seasonings to the other side of the steaks. Firmly press the bag into the table. Add enough balsamic to cover to each side of the steaks. Refrigerate for four hours, turning once at two hours.

When ready to cook, start by browning bacon equally on both sides and set aside in paper towels once done. Cube partially peeled potatoes, cover with water and salt, bring to a boil, cover once boiling, and cook until potatoes are easily pierced with a fork. Get the grill started while waiting for the potatoes to boil. You can also halve your brussels sprouts at this point as well as mince more garlic for potatoes.

The grill should be ready at the same time the potatoes are done boiling. Once potatoes are cooked, drain from water and season with butter, milk to desired fluffiness, garlic, salt, and pepper to taste. Breakdown the potatoes with a fork, and mash with whatever utensil available (we used a hand blender). Start boiling water with salt and pepper for steaming the brussels sprouts while mashing, and then throw the steaks on the grill at the same time you add the brussels sprouts to the water. Cook to desired doneness. Crumble bacon while you wait for the meat and sprouts. Mix bacon with mashed potatoes. If potatoes or brussels sprouts are ready before meat, as was the case for us, cover both and put on low heat to keep warm on the stove until meat is done.

Serve and enjoy!

4: Dinner With My Neighbors

After making this homemade pesto sauce I sat down for dinner with my neighbors to catch up.  I have lived next door to them April 2009. They have become good friends, and it had been awhile since we all enjoyed a meal together. The homemade pesto sauce was the highlight of our meal, so of course I had I had to blog about it with a picture.

They cooked fresh pasta to toss in the pesto as well as a butter-coated biscuit loaf, and a salad of fresh arugula and broccoli from the farmer’s market and a balsamic/olive oil vin to top the salad. I paired a trebbiano d’abruzzo with this meal. The floral essence, pear and apple flavors, and crisp nature of this wine cut through the creaminess of the meal quite nicely.

I’ll be adding some of my favorite recipes over the course of the next couple weeks. Some personal highlights include bolognese, silky cauliflower soup, and branzino. Stay tuned!

3: Pesto Sauce with Homegrown Basil

Mmmm pesto! This turned out really nice, and I used three different cheeses and a lot of garlic in my usual fashion of tweaking traditional recipes. I’ve been enjoying the homegrown basil all summer, and it was time to harvest the plant as a whole because we’ve already had our first frost of the season.

Pesto is incredibly easy to make, and it can be frozen for up to three months. Depending on how much you make, you may freeze pesto in a freezer ziploc bag or add to jars to keep in your fridge. Harvesting my basil plant yielded six cups of leaves, for a grand total of 32 ounces, or 4 cups, of pesto sauce. You can add pesto to fresh cooked pasta, toss shrimp in it, or marinade lamb or chicken in the sauce before placing on a grill.

Tips: If freezing in ziploc bags, lay the bag down on its side in the freezer, so you can usually break off a chunk as you need it. Another method of freezing pesto is to use an ice cube tray.

The recipe below is for the amount of pesto I made tonight, so adjust the recipe accordingly.

Ingredients and Directions:

-6 cups of basil leaves, packed

-1 pint extra virgin olive oil

-2 ounces grated parmesan cheese

-2 ounces grated asiago cheese

-2 ounces grated romano cheese

-8 garlic cloves

-1/2 cup sunflower kernels

Combine all ingredients except for olive oil in a blender or food processor. Add about a 1/3 of the olive oil and begin to pulse until desired consistency. Continue adding olive oil little by little until gone, and process everything for about 15-20 seconds.

Enjoy!

2: Farmer's Market Breakfast Skillet

Good morning. Whether you had a late night or have a day of activities planned, this hearty breakfast skillet will hit the spot!

I call this a Farmer's Market Breakfast Skillet because you could really throw anything you have in the recipe, and it would still be good. 

Need a little hair of the dog? Try adding a bloody mary (a mimosa might be too light for this) or glass of red wine.

This serves two, so adjust accordingly if you're not cooking for two people.

Ingredients and Directions:

-2 medium red potatoes cubed

-2 strips of thick cut bacon

-2 tablespoons finely chopped onion

-1/2 cup sliced portobella mushrooms

-1/2 cup diced green bell peppers

-1/2 cup diced red bell peppers

-2 cloves of garlic minced

-2 eggs, beaten

 -salt and pepper to taste

-extra sharp cheddar cheese grated

Prep everything before you begin cooking. Cube the potatoes and boil for 10 minutes. Cook bacon in skillet on medium-high heat until nicely browned on both sides while potatoes are boiling. Remove bacon to paper towels when finished cooking, and drain potatoes as well. Crumble bacon when it cools off. Potatoes and bacon should be done about the same time.

Add potatoes, veggies, and preferred seasonings to the bacon grease left over in the pan and cook on medium-high heat. Cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally so nothing sticks to the pan. Push mixture to the sides of the pan, and pour the eggs in the center to cook. Scramble eggs and mix together everything, including bacon, when eggs are just about finished. Serve immediately and garnish with salt, pepper, and cheddar cheese to your liking.

Now, carpe diem!

1: Scallops & Shrimp / Champange Sauce with Mushrooms & Broccoli / Whole Wheat Penne

Welcome to my food blog! I started this food blog to share my experiences with food, wine, and people. The act of sitting down to share a meal with great company is a centerpiece of many cultures. It allows time for family and friends to catch up, discuss current issues, laugh, and strengthen any bond. A good meal is an amazing experience, and I hope you will enjoy the recipes and stories shared within. I love hearing feedback and trading recipes, so don't be shy in the comments section.

This inaugural post includes a dinner I made for the first time tonight, and it is inspired by my love of classical French cooking, with a New World twist of course. This is nice well-balanced meal. The tender and sweet nature of the bay scallops is wonderfully contrasted against the rich sauce that is surprisingly light. The mushrooms help ground the flavor while the broccoli brightens up the dish, with a dash of fresh chopped thyme and lemon zest rounding out the flavor profile quite well. We drank a New Zealand sauvignon blanc with this dinner, but you may consider a pinot grigio if you prefer a cleaner, crisper finish to your wine. The beauty of this recipe is that it can be tweaked in so many ways, but give it a try this way first!

Ingredients and Directions:

-whole wheat penne pasta

-3/4 pound of fresh bay scallops

-1/4 pound of fresh shrimp, deveined and peeled

-1 cup sliced crimini mushrooms

-1 cup broccoli cut in small pieces

-2 tablespoons minced white onion

-2 garlic cloves minced

-1 cup dry champagne

-3/4 cup heavy cream

-1 cup water

-3 tablespoons butter

-2 tablespoons all purpose flour

-sea salt and pepper to taste

-fresh thyme chopped for garnish

-lemon juice or fresh lemon zest for garnish

Choose a 12-14 inch pan. Coat the cold pan with 1 tablespoon of butter. Add the scallops, shrimp, mushrooms, onion, garlic, champagne, water and salt and pepper to the cold skillet. Turn heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Create a paste with the flour and remaining 2 tablespoons of butter while waiting for sauce to boil. This is also a good time to begin cooking the pasta according to directions on package. Reduce heat to low once the sauce is boiling and simmer for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and remove ingredients from the sauce and keep at room temperature.

Return the sauce to stove top and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce sauce by about half, about 10 minutes, and add the paste and cream to thicken. Return to a rolling boil, making sure to continuously whisk until all of the paste is dissolved. Steam the broccoli while waiting for the stock to boil again. When broccoli is done steaming, add the seafood and all vegetables to the sauce. Bring to a boil one final time and serve immediately over a plate of pasta. Garnish with chopped thyme and a dash of lemon juice or fresh lemon zest.

Enjoy!