Recipes

Broiled Cod

Ingredients
4 (4 to 6 ounces each) thick cod pieces
2 tablespoon butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions
1. Heat broiler with rack about 4 inches from heat source. 

2. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.  Season cod with salt and pepper then place on lined baking sheet.  Top each piece of cod with pat of butter. 

3. Broil fish for 8 to 10 minutes per inch of thickness, or until fish is nicely browned on top and cooked through.  If the fish is browning too quickly, finish in oven heated to 500*F. 

Comments
This recipe is from Dinner Tool and it’s a super simple preparation for any thick white fish.  I cooked the fish for about 10 minutes and wish that I had cooked it just a bit longer, but the heated up leftovers the next day were cooked just about perfectly.  If you haven’t cooked a lot of fish, this is a great and easy recipe to get you started.  The simplicity of the fish means it works well with very strongly flavored side dishes.  

Shown here with Pasta with Mascarpone and Prosciutto.

Internet - Dinner Tool

Roasted Beet Hummus

Ingredients
4-5 small beets
1 (14-15 ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small yellow onion, roughly chopped
6 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
¹⁄₂ cup tahini
1 tablespoon cumin
¹⁄₄ cup lemon juice
¹⁄₄ cup olive oil

Instructions
1. Heat oven to 450*F.  Remove stalk from beets if necessary and scrub well.  Place beets on aluminum foil and drizzle with olive oil.  Fold foil closed around beets to make a packet and roast 30 to 90 minutes or until tender when poked with a knife.  Remove from oven, cool, then peel. 

2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in medium skillet over medium heat.  Sauté garlic and onions until soft, about 4 to 5 minutes. 

3. Using food processor, process all ingredients until smooth, scraping down sides of processor bowl occasionally to ensure everything is incorporated. 

Comments
This recipe is from Erin’s Food Files and it was delicious!  What a nice way to use up roasted beets.  The hummus was a gorgeous colour and the beets added a nice sweetness to the usual flavors of hummus.  I did miss the punch of garlic that my usual hummus recipes provide so I think that, in the future, I would skip sautéing the garlic and just add it in raw.  Cooking garlic really takes away that delicious garlicy bite.  If you love hummus and are looking for a way to use up beets, this is your recipe!  Even Art, who was worried that the addition of beets would ruin his beloved hummus, thought this stuff was fantastic.

Internet - Erin’s Food Files

Beef and Noodle Skillet Meal

Ingredients
2 pounds ground beef
¹⁄₂ pound bacon, cut into small pieces
3 (14 ounces each) cans diced tomatoes
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon white pepper
2 medium onions, diced
2 large red bell peppers, chopped
1 cup water
1 cup chili sauce
1 (12 ounce) bag egg noodles

Instructions
1. Cook ground beef and bacon in large skillet or Dutch oven until meat is cooked through.  Drain meat if necessary. 

2. Add remaining ingredients and stir well to combine.  Increase heat to high and bring to boil.  Once boiling, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 35 minutes or until cooked through and pasta is tender.  Stir once during cooking. 

Comments
This recipe is from Recipe Curio.  Sadly I made it on a night when all I could think about was sushi, but it still managed to be delicious.  The chili sauce added a nice heat to the dish and we all enjoyed it at varying points during the week.  This recipe is definitely a keeper and a nice way to use up ground beef.  Don’t be worried about adding in uncooked egg noodles, the liquid in the recipe will cook them!

Internet - Recipe Curio

Zucchini Parmesan Crisps

Ingredients
4 medium zucchini, sliced into ¹⁄₄-inch rounds (about 2 pounds total)
2 tablespoons olive oil
¹⁄₂ cup Parmesan cheese, grated or shredded
¹⁄₂ cup bread crumbs
¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions
1. Heat oven to 450*F.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Toss zucchini slices with olive oil in medium bowl.  In small bowl combine Parmesan, bread crumbs, salt and pepper.  Dip each zucchini round into Parmesan mixture, coating evenly on both sides.  Place slices in single layer on baking sheet. 

3. Bake zucchini until browned and crisp, 25 to 30 minutes.  Remove with spatula and serve immediately. 

No photo yet

Comments
This recipe is from Food Network and, sadly, I made it when we had company over and I completely forgot to take a picture.  Thankfully it’s early in zucchini season and I suspect I will be making it many times in the months to come.  The recipe is simple, quick and easy.  The zucchini was delicious and I could have eaten the entire two pounds alone.  Too bad I had to share!

Internet - Food TV

Spicy Stir-Fried Sugar Snap Peas

Ingredients
1 pound sugar snap peas
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon Sriracha
1 teaspoon peanut oil
2-3 slices ginger
2 cloves garlic cloves, sliced

Instructions
1. Slice each sugar snap pea on diagonal. 

2. Mix soy sauce, sesame oil, and Sriracha in small bowl. 

3. Heat peanut oil in large skillet or wok over high heat.  Once oil is hot, add ginger and garlic.  Stir-fry 1 to 2 minutes, long enough for oil to be seasoned, but not so long that the ginger and garlic begin to brown.  Remove garlic and ginger. 

4. Add sugar snap peas and cook, stirring constantly, until peas turn bright green and are just starting to cook, about 2 minutes.  Add in sauce mixture and cook, stirring, until sauce coats peas, about 1 minute more.  Serve. 

Comments
This recipe is from Kalyn’s Kitchen and has quite a lot of potential.  The sauce was tasty and would go fantastically with sugar snaps.  Sadly, the things I thought were sugar snaps from Art’s market purchase were actually shelling peas so… I look forward to making this recipe with actual sugar snaps so that they’re edible.  I’ll update the recipe when that occurs. 

Shown here with Chicken Katsu.

Internet - Kalyn’s Kitchen

Swiss Chard and Sundried Tomato Mac

Ingredients
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 small onions, chopped
8 cloves garlic, minced
2 bunches Swiss Chard, cut into pieces
2 tablespoons flour
¹⁄₂ cup sundried tomato pesto
2 cups plain whole fat yogurt
2 cups goat cheese or feta
1 pound elbow pasta
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated or shredded

Instructions
1. Bring large pot of salted water to boil and cook pasta as directed by package directions.  Reserve 1 cup pasta cooking water then drain well. 

2. Heat oven broiler. 

3. Heat oil and butter in large ovenproof skillet or Dutch oven until butter has melted.  Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, about 3 to 4 minutes.  Add garlic and continue cooking until vegetables are tender.  Add chard and cook until leaves have mostly wilted, another 3 to 4 minutes.  Stir in flour and cook 1 minute. 

4. Add pesto, yogurt, goat cheese, and pasta.  Stir and cook until everything is heated through and begins to thicken.  If sauce becomes too thick, thin with reserved pasta water.  Sprinkle Parmesan over pasta and place skillet under broiler 5 minutes or until cheese starts to brown.  Remove from oven and cool slightly before serving. 

Comments
This recipe is from Perry’s Plate. I saved it in my bookmarks last year and have been waiting for Swiss chard to be back in season ever since.  It was a long wait, but well worth it!  I thought it was delicious and have been enjoying leftovers ever since.  Art also loved it but Lance has decided that he’s not a huge lover of goat cheese.  If I make it again, I’ll try using feta instead.  This pasta was creamy and full of great flavors.  If you’re looking for new things to do with chard, consider this!

Shown here with Seasoned Top Round Roast.

Internet - Perry’s Plate

Seasoned Top Round Roast

Ingredients
For the rub
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon rosemary
1 teaspoon thyme
¹⁄₂ teaspoon ground allspice
¹⁄₂ teaspoon ground red pepper
1 teaspoon olive oil

4 pound top round roast

Instructions
1. Heat oven to 325*F. 

2. Mix together all rub ingredients in small bowl, then rub mixture evenly over roast. 

3. Place roast on rack in roasting pan or baking sheet.  Cook for 2 to 2 ¹⁄₂ hours or until instant read thermometer reads 130-135°F for medium-rare or 140-145°F for medium. 

4. Remove roast from oven, tent with foil, and let rest 15 minutes before carving into thin slices. 

Comments
This recipe is from the Haverhill Beef Company.  I’m slowy, but surely, working through the remaining cuts of meat leftover from our first half cow purchase from back in August.  Roasts are easy and delicious, and require hardly any prep time, just some unattended time in the oven. They’re great for a weekend meal when you’ve got a chunk of time at home.  This cut of meat isn’t a super tender one, but the roast was flavorful and we all enjoyed it.  And the leftovers!

Shown here with Swiss Chard and Sundried Tomato Mac.

Internet - Haverhill Beef Company

Baked Wonton Slaw Cups

Ingredients
For the dressing
1 cup olive oil
¹⁄₄ cup balsamic vinegar
¹⁄₄ cup rice vinegar
4 tablespoons soy sauce
4 cloves garlic, peeled
4 tablespoons brown sugar or honey
4 tablespoons ginger, peeled
2 teaspoons sesame oil

For assembly
3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 head cabbage, cut into wedges
3-4 carrots, peeled or scrubbed
1 zucchini
1 package wonton wrappers (My package had around 48.)

Instructions
1. Combine all dressing ingredients in immersion blender cup or food processor and process until smooth.  Likewise, you could mince ginger and garlic and whisk all ingredients together. 

2. Heat olive oil in medium skillet over medium heat.  Cook chicken about 10 minutes a side or until cooked through.  Cool, then chop or shred. 

3. Heat oven to 350*F.  Spray two mini muffin tins with cooking spray. 

4. Using knife, box grater, or food processor with shredding disk, shred cabbage, carrots and zucchini.  Mix vegetables, chicken, and dressing together in large bowl. 

5. Place wonton wrappers in muffin tins, one wrapper per cup.  Bake 7 to 9 minutes or until crisp and starting to brown.  Let cool in muffin tins 5 minutes before removing cups and filling with slaw mixture. 

Comments
The recipe for this dressing is from epicurious.com, the rest Is of my own creation.  This is a fairly simple recipe and the baked wonton cups are so much easier to make than dealing with hot oil and frying.  These would make a great appetizer or light lunch.

Internet - Epicurious

Parmesan Roasted Asparagus

Ingredients
1 pound asparagus
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper
¹⁄₂ cup Parmesan cheese, grated or shredded

Instructions
1. Heat oven to 425*F. 

2. Trim tough ends from asparagus spears.  Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper.  Spread asparagus on baking sheet, sprinkle with Parmesan, and bake 10 to 15 minutes or until tender crisp. 

Comments
This is hardly a recipe at all and, as such, it’s from my brain.  Roasted asparagus is delicious and roasted asparagus with a bit of Parmesan cheese is even better! 

Shown here with Chuck Steaks with Balsamic Mushrooms.

Person - Gwen

Spice-Rubbed Chicken Fingers with Cilantro Dipping Sauce

Ingredients
For the rub
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt
1 pound chicken breast tenders or chicken breasts cut into strips

For the sauce
¹⁄₂ cup fresh cilantro
¹⁄₄ cup fresh parsley
¹⁄₄ cup slivered almonds
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded
¹⁄₈ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons water

Instructions
1. Prepare grill pan, grill or broiler for cooking. 

2. Combine chili powder, cumin and salt.  Rub spice mixture over over chicken and let sit 10 minutes.  Cook for 15 minutes or until chicken reaches 170*F on instant read thermometer. 

3. Meanwhile, combine all sauce ingredients in food processor or immersion blender cup.  Process until sauce is smooth.  Serve sauce with chicken. 

Comments
I think this recipe might have come from a South Beach Diet book a long, long time ago.  It’s one of Art’s favorites and I’m surprised that it’s taken me over two years of blogging to make it.  We used to have this dish somewhat often.  The sauce is super flavorful and the rub on the chicken is lovely. 

Shown here with Skillet Cornbread with Corn.

South Beach Diet Cookbook