Tag: recipe

Garlic-Parmesan Broccoli

 

Garlic Parmesan Broccoli

Quick prep, and cooks in 12 minutes
Print Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings: 4
Course: Side Dish
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 2 heads broccoli
  • 4 cloves garlic minced
  • 1/4 cup parmesan cheese grated
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 3 tbsp lemon juice

Equipment

  • 1 baking sheet
  • 1 bowl large, for mixing broccoli w/ oil and garlic
  • 1 oven

Method
 

  1. Preheat oven to 425F
  2. Cut the broccoli into bite-sized florets
  3. Toss broccoli with olive oil, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste
  4. Spray baking sheet or pan with non-stick spray or oil
  5. Bake for 10 - 12 minutes, until tender and very slightly crisped around the edges
  6. Sprinkle with parmesan

Notes

Pairs very well with Garlic Baked Whitefish.  You can cook both in the same oven at the same time, just cook the broccoli at 400F a little longer (3-4 minutes)

Inspired by damndelicious.net

Creamy Tuscan Garlic Chicken

 

Creamy Tuscan Garlic Chicken

Very fast chicken in a delicious cream sauce
Print Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings: 6 people
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 1/2 lbs chicken breasts boneless, skinless, thin sliced
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp Italian seasoning
  • 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese grated
  • 1 cup baby spinach
  • 1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes julienned, packed in oil, drained

Equipment

  • 1 Skillet
  • 1 whisk optional, a wooden spoon is ok too

Method
 

  1. Add oil to pan over medium heat
  2. Cook chicken, 3-4 minutes per side, until cooked through. Sides should be a little browned.
    Remove from pan, set aside on a plate
  3. Add cream, chicken broth, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and parmesan cheese to skillet.
    Whisk or stir over medium-high heat until it starts to thicken (4-5 minutes)
  4. Add spinach and sun dried tomatoes, cook until spinach starts to wilt (1-2 minutes)
  5. Add chicken back to pan, until warmed back up.
    Spoon sauce over chicken before serving.

Notes

You can use full-sized chicken breasts, but your cook times will be much longer.
This pairs well with egg noodles and glazed carrots.
Originally taken from https://therecipecritic.com/creamy-tuscan-garlic-chicken/

Bread Dough

This recipe is adapted from an excellent cook book, Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day.  Our friend Becky gifted it to us years ago, and I’m still rocking the many sub-recipes within.

We don’t make much bread during the summer, due to the heat the oven adds to the house, but during the winter we have fresh bread constantly.  It’s so much better than even the “fresh-baked” baguettes from the grocery store, which still has dough conditioners, sugars, and other extra ingredients.

Basic Bread Dough

Basic bread dough recipe
Print Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Rising time 2 hours 40 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 25 minutes
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 3 cups water lukewarm (100F)
  • 1.5 tbsp yeast granulated
  • 1.5 tbsp salt kosher or other coarse grind
  • 6.5 cups flour all-purpose

Equipment

  • 1 bucket (we use plastic TupperWare that holds 16 cups)

Method
 

  1. Add water to bucket
  2. Add yeast and salt
  3. Add flour, mix until uniformly moist
  4. Allow to rise for 2 or more hours
  5. Cut out a 1 pound piece
  6. "Cloak" the dough for 30-60 seconds
  7. Allow to rise for 40 minutes
    At 20 minute mark, preheat oven to 450F with pizza stone and broiler pan
  8. Dust and slash dough ball
  9. Transfer dough ball to pizza stone; add 1 cup of hot water to broiler pan
  10. Bake for 30 minutes

Notes

The instructions here are for adequate for reproducing the recipe if you've read the book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day and know the overall instructions.  You really should read the book!

Meatball Marsala

To make a complete menu: start with my meatball recipe, make some mashed potatoes, then top with this Marsala.

Meatball Marsala

A classic meatball marsala, just add meatballs
Print Recipe
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings: 8 people
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: European
Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • 3 tbsp butter salted
  • 16 oz sliced mushrooms
  • 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup Marsala wine
  • 1 pinch black pepper optional

Equipment

  • 1 cast iron pan, 15"
  • 1 measuring cup

Method
 

  1. Melt the butter over medium heat
  2. Toss in the mushrooms, flip around to coat with butter
  3. Cook the mushrooms, stirring occasionally, until they soften and start to brown, about 10 minutes
  4. Sprinkle in the flour and stir to coat the mushrooms
  5. Stir in the Marsala wine, and bring back to a boil
  6. Stir in the chicken broth, and bring back to a boil.
  7. Turn down the heat and simmer until the sauce starts to thicken, 5-10 minutes.
  8. Add the cooked meatballs, stir to coat the meatballs, remove from heat, and serve

 

Adapted from food.com.

Stew Beef and Egg Noodles

This is a family favorite.  It’s delicious, but it’s not healthy.  Each serving takes about six months off your life expectancy.

We frequently pair it with glazed carrots, but it also goes well with buttered peas or a green salad.

Stew Beef and Egg Noodles

Pan-fried stew beef served over buttered egg noodles
Print Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings: 5 people
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 lb stew beef
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 tbsp black pepper
  • 1 tbsp garlic powder
  • 2 tbsp butter divided
  • 4-8 tbsp olive oil
  • 12 oz egg noodles 12 oz = 1 standard bag

Equipment

  • 1 pan, large I generally use a 15" cast iron pan
  • 1 stock pot
  • 1 bowl medium-sized for dredging beef
  • 1 wooden spoon

Method
 

  1. Prepare the stew beef by cutting it into bite-sized pieces (about 1 inch cubes)
  2. Put on a pot of water to boil
  3. Mix flour, pepper, and garlic power together in a bowl
  4. Dredge the cut-up stew beef through the flour mixture until all pieces are well coated
  5. Heat pan at medium heat with a tbsp of butter and a tbsp olive oil
  6. Once butter is melted and oil starts to shimmer, you're ready to start cooking the beef.
Cook the beef in batches
  1. add beef one piece at a time
  2. Let each side brown for about a minute, flip to brown next side, repeat until all sides are brown, and then push to the side of the pan.
    You can generally add about 10-20 pieces at a time before it's time to flip the first piece. Flip everything until all sides are brown, then push to the side and start the next batch.
  3. Add more oil as needed to keep the "landing area" for new beef coated in a thin layer of oil.
    The flour will tend to soak up the oil. You don't want the pan to get dry, or the new pieces won't brown properly.
  4. Once all pieces are browned, spread evenly across the pan and allow to cook for 10 more minutes or until pieces are cooked through.
Make the Egg Noodles
  1. Cook according to package directions, drain, then return to the pot and add a tbsp of butter. Mix to coat noodles with butter.
Serve
  1. Spoon noodles onto plates and top with beef.
    Scrape the bottom of the pan to get the cooked-on bits unstuck, and divide among your servings. (they carry a lot of flavor.)

Notes

This recipe scales very well.  Increase ingredients proportionally.  I've made it with just over two pounds of meat; much more and I would have needed a larger pan, or a second pan.

Every time I make this recipe I can’t help but wonder when egg noodle companies cut their bag weight from an even pound of noodles to 12 oz.

Garlic Baked Whitefish

This is a super-easy recipe.  My first time trying I went from pre-heating the oven to dinner on the table in under 30 minutes.

The source recipe calls for tilapia, but it should work with nearly any white fish.  Really there’s no reason it couldn’t work well with darker fish like salmon or tuna, though being thicker you may need to cook longer and flip the fish halfway through, as well as increase the other ingredient amounts.

This pairs well with rice and roasted vegetables.

Garlic-Baked Whitefish

Print Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Servings: 4 people
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients
  

  • 1.5 pounds White fish (Tilapia or similar)
  • 6 tbsp Butter melted
  • 3 cloves Garlic minced
  • 1 tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
  • Juice from 1/2 lemon

Equipment

  • Cast Iron skillet

Method
 

  1. Pre-heat oven to 400° F, with cast-iron pan inside
  2. Mix up the melted butter, lemon juice, garlic, and red pepper flakes
  3. Toss fish into the pre-heated pan and sprinkle on some pepper. You don’t need to grease the pan first, dry is fine, the fish won’t stick.
  4. Pour the butter mixture evenly over the fish
  5. Bake for 12 minutes

Adapted from https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/a19665918/oven-baked-tilapia-recipe/

Indian Butter Chicken

 

Indian Butter Chicken

Delicious chicken and cauliflower. Pairs well with rice and/or naan bread.
Print Recipe
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings: 6
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • Olive oil
  • Onion, yellow, small diced
  • 4 cloves Garlic
  • 2 tbsp Ginger, fresh
  • 2 tbsp Butter
  • 3/4 cup Chicken Stock
  • 6 oz Tomato Paste
  • 2 tsp Cinnamon
  • 2 tsp Cumin
  • 2 tsp Garam masala
  • 1 tsp Tumeric
  • 1 tsp Salt
  • 1.5 pounds Chicken diced to bite-sized pieces
  • 1 head Cauliflower chopped into bite-sized pieces
  • 2 tbsp Lemon juice
  • 1 cup Heavy cream

Equipment

  • 14+ inch skillet w/ lid

Method
 

  1. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in the skillet until it shimmers
  2. Add onions, garlic, and ginger, and sauté for a couple of minutes, until the onions begin to soften
  3. Stir in, and bring to a simmer:
    butter
    chicken stock
    tomato paste
    cinnamon
    cumin
    garam masala
    tumeric
    salt
  4. Add chicken and cauliflower, and stir until coated
    Don’t be alarmed: the previous steps leave you with a paste, not a sauce, and the chicken and cauliflower might seem a little dry.
  5. Cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes (or until the chicken is cooked through)
  6. Stir in lemon juice and cream, and bring back to a simmer
  7. Simmer, uncovered, for a couple of minutes

Notes

A variation of a traditional Indian dish, my recipe is adapted from The Modern Proper.
This is one of those recipes where your significant other may saunter through the kitchen and compliment the fragrance; children might run away in fear and loathing.  The final product is smooth, tasty, and not nearly as strong as it seemed while you were cooking.

Korean Beef Rice Bowls

 

Korean BBQ Beef Rice Bowls

Savory beef with a tiny bit of bite
Print Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings: 4 people
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Asian
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 bunch scallions sliced (for garnish)
Sauce
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce reduced sodium is better
  • 2 tsp sesame oil
  • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper

Equipment

  • 1 Skillet
  • 1 mixing bowl

Method
 

  1. Brown the hamburger and garlic in a pan. Break it up into crumbles as it browns.
  2. While the hamburger is cooking, whisk the sauce ingredients (brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, red pepper, black pepper)
  3. When the hamburger is browned, drain off the fat and mix in the garlic. Simmer for a minute.
  4. Pour in the sauce. Simmer for another couple of minutes. Mix in the scallions and serve.

Notes

Serve over rice with a side of broccoli to round out a complete meal

This recipe was an instant hit.  I have to make a double batch if I want leftovers for the next day.

Adapted from therecipecritic.com

Lentil Soup

When I was a kid I disliked soups and stews, and hated even the idea of lentil soup. (which, as a child, I somehow equated with Barbara Streisand – probably due to the publicity of her movie Yentl.)  Fortunately I became more open-minded as an adult, and found that I absolutely love lentil soup.  It’s very healthy for you, to boot.

The red lentils in this recipe break down and make a very creamy soup.  Green and brown lentils may be substituted, but black lentils don’t work out well.

Red Lentil Soup

My favorite lentil soup recipe
Print Recipe
Prep Time 15 days
Cook Time 35 days
Total Time 50 days
Servings: 6 people
Course: Soup
Calories: 250
Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients
  

  • 2 whole Carrots diced or sliced
  • 1 whole Yellow Onion, medium-sized diced
  • 4 cloves Garlic
  • 1 tbsp Curry Powder
  • 1 tsp Cumin, ground
  • 1 tsp Thyme, dried
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 15 oz Tomato Sauce
  • 6 cups Chicken Broth, low sodium substitute vegetable broth to make a vegan soup
  • 1 lbs Red Lentils, dried
  • 1-5 cups Baby Spinach Optional, stir in at end

Equipment

  • 1 Dutch Oven or any large stock pot

Method
 

  1. Rinse lentils under cold water, until water runs clear (about 1 minute)
  2. Sauté carrots and onion until softened (about 5 minutes)
  3. Add garlic, curry powder, cumin, thyme, and salt
    Cook until fragrant (about a minute)
  4. Stir in lentils, tomato sauce, and broth
  5. Bring to a simmer and cover
  6. Cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally
  7. Remove from heat, and (optionally) add baby spinach

 

Alternatives

You can try other vegetables as substitutes or additions, including sweet potatoes, butternut squash, mushrooms, celery, or whatever you have on hand.

Adapted from The Absolute Best Lentil Soup.

Beef Kebabs

I am shocked, shocked I tell you! that my children actually enjoyed this recipe.  I’m not sure why, perhaps they have given up all hope of enjoying a decent meal from my kitchen and now sullenly submit to my demands that they eat the goddamn food that I paid for and worked hard to put in front of them and it’s not like you do any chores around…  Ahem.  I got a little off track here.

Whatever the reason, they ate this one on my first attempt.

These are basically middle-eastern meatballs.  You can cut in other things with the meat, serve them in a variety of ways, whatever floats your boat.  (I rather enjoyed wrapping them in some naan with rice.)  It’s a meatball.  It’s the spices that make it.

The oven instructions are below.  We haven’t grilled them yet, but they should do great, just use a little grill-sense.  It’s a reasonably easy and fast recipe, ~20 minutes to prep and ~20 minutes to cook.

The recipe plus rice and other sides makes enough for 6-8 people.

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds of ground beef – don’t get a lean mix!  80-85% seems good
    • mix in other ground meats as your fancy takes you, but you need some fats – don’t go too lean
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley, or 1/4 cup dried
  • 1/2 small onion, diced fine
  • 1 red bell pepper, diced fine
  • Garlic, 3-4 minced cloves
  • Paprika, 1 tsp
  • Salt, 1 tsp
  • Cumin, 1/2 tsp
  • Pepper, 1/2 tsp

Directions

If you plan on skewering the meat, and you’re using bamboo or wood skewers, soak them in water for ~30 mins.

  1. Preheat oven too 350°
  2. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl (don’t overmix)
  3. Form the mix into oblong patties, about kielbasa-thick
    • If you’re skewering, shove in the skewers now or form the patties around the skewers
  4. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, or grill for ~20 minutes, flipping at least once
  5. For the last couple of minutes turn on the broiler to brown the meat

Usual disclaimer with ground meat dishes: make sure the internal temp is at least 160° before serving.

Serve with some traditional middle-eastern sides, like:

  • Naan bread
  • Tabbouleh
  • Cucumbers and cherry tomatoes
  • Rice

kebab with rice and naan