Recipes

Cauliflower Pasta Casserole

Ingredients
2 ¹⁄₂ cups small pasta, such as elbow macaroni
4 tablespoons butter
2 red bell peppers, diced
1 onion, diced
1 cauliflower, cut into florets
3 tablespoons flour
1 ¹⁄₂ cups milk
1 teaspoon salt
¹⁄₄ teaspoon pepper
1 cup cheese, shredded (I used a combination of cheddar, swiss, and mozzarella.  Use what you like and have.)
¹⁄₂ cup bread crumbs

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350*F. 

2. Cook pasta according to package directions and drain.  Transfer pasta to large bowl. 

3. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in large pan over medium heat. Add peppers, onion and cauliflower and sauté for 5 minutes.  Transfer vegetables to bowl with pasta. 

4. Melt remaining butter in same pan over medium heat.  Stir in flour and mix until smooth and bubbly.  Gradually add milk, stirring constantly.  Season with salt and pepper and continue cooking, stirring, until mixture thickens.  Add ³⁄₄ cup cheese and stir until melted. 

5. Add sauce to bowl with pasta and vegetables and stir well to combine.  Transfer to 9 by 12-inch baking dish.  Top with remaining cheese and bread crumbs.  Bake for 30 minutes. 

Comments
This recipe is from Zoom Yummy.  Cauliflower isn’t a vegetable I grew up eating, so it’s nice to experiment with from time to time now.  I did change out the green peppers in the original recipe for red peppers which are significantly tastier in my opinion!  I think this would have worked well with broccoli instead of cauliflower, so I might have to try that next time. 

Shown here with Slow Roasted Salmon.

Internet - Zoom Yummy

Slow Roasted Salmon

Ingredients
4 (6 ounces each) salmon fillets
Olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 sprigs fresh dill

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 250*F. 

2. Place salmon on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Drizzle each piece with olive oil and then season with salt and pepper.  Place a sprig of dill on top of each piece.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Remove dill before serving.

Comments
This recipe is from Tiny Urban Kitchen and it seemed like it might solve my problem of baked salmon always being too dried out.  And it did solve that problem!  The salmon was very moist and perfect.  The dill infused every bite.  Even microwaved leftovers were moist and delicious.  This might be my new go-to method for baking salmon! 

Shown here with Cauliflower Pasta Casserole.

Internet - Tiny Urban Kitchen

AB’s Meatloaf

Ingredients
6 ounces garlic-flavored croutons
¹⁄₂ teaspoon ground black pepper
¹⁄₂ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 small onion, roughly chopped
8-10 baby carrots, roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1 red bell pepper, roughly chopped
2 pounds ground beef
1 ¹⁄₂ teaspoon kosher salt
1 egg

For the glaze:
¹⁄₂ cup ketchup
1 teaspoon cumin, ground
1 dash Worcestershire sauce
1 dash hot pepper sauce, such as Sriracha
1 tablespoon honey

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 325*F. 

2. In a food processor, combine croutons, black pepper, cayenne pepper, chili powder, and thyme.  Pulse until mixture is a fine texture and transfer to large bowl. 

3. Combine onion, carrots, garlic, and red pepper in food processor.  Pulse until mixture is finely chopped, but not pureed.  Transfer to bowl with crouton mixture.  Add ground beef and mix well.  Season with salt, add egg, and mix until fully combined.  (I use my hands for this.) 

4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Form meat into loaf on top of parchment paper.  Bake until meatloaf has reached 155*F, about 45 minutes. 

5. Meanwhile, mix all glaze ingredients.  Spread glaze over meatloaf after it has been cooking for 10 minutes. 

Comments
This recipe is from the amazing Alton Brown.  It’s the most flavorful, moist, and delicious meatloaf I’ve ever tasted.  If you think you don’t like meatloaf, give this recipe a try.  Assuming you have a food processor, it’s a cinch to bring together. 

Shown here with Cheesy Baked Gnocchi.

Internet - Alton Brown

Balsamic Potato and Zucchini Casserole

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, plus more for drizzling
2 potatoes, scrubbed and sliced (about ¹⁄₂ pound)
2 large zucchini or yellow squash, sliced into rounds (about ¹⁄₂ pound)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350*F. 

2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large oven safe skillet or pot over medium heat.  Add onion and garlic and sauté for a few minutes until starting to soften.  Add 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, lower heat, and cook a few more minutes until nicely browned. 

3. Spread onion mixture evenly over bottom of pan. Layer potatoes and squash on top.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and drizzle with a little more olive oil. 

4. Bake at 350*F for 30 minutes then drizzle with a little more balsamic vinegar.  Bake for 10 more minutes or until potatoes are cooked through.

Comments
This recipe is from The Creative Pot and, while mine did not look nearly as fantastic as the original, it was delicious.  I actually had to make it in the Big Green Egg because my oven had died, but I’m happy to report that the Egg works quite well as a substitute oven.  I used summer squash because that’s what had come in my CSA box.  I also used small new potatoes for the same reason.  I would be very happy to make this again, even in the grill! 

Shown here with grilled flank steak and Chimichurri.

Internet - The Creative Pot

Chimichurri

Ingredients
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons water
4 cloves garlic, minced
³⁄₄ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₂ teaspoon red pepper flakes
¹⁄₂ teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
¹⁄₄ cup olive oil
¹⁄₂ cup fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 bay leaf, broken in half

Instructions
1. Stir together vinegar, water, garlic, salt, red pepper, and black pepper until salt has dissolved. 

2. Whisk in oil until combined, then whisk in parsley.  Add bay leaf and let stand for 30 minutes at room temperature.  Discard bay leaf and stir sauce before serving. 

Note: You can mix the ingredients except for the parsley and bay leaf in a hand blender if you’d like. 

Comments
This recipe is from epicurious.  I’ve wanted to make chimichurri for quite some time and finally decided to give it a try when Art suggested grilling up some flank steaks.  The sauce was delicious on the steaks!  Tons of flavor from the red wine vinegar, parsley and garlic.  I would make this again in a heartbeat. 

Shown here with grilled flank steak and Balsamic Potato and Zucchini Casserole.

Internet - Epicurious

Slow Cooker Corned Beef

Ingredients
1 corned beef brisket plus seasoning packet (I stock up around St. Patty’s Day when they’re on sale.)
¹⁄₄ cup peppercorns
12-14 ounces beer
1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled

Instructions
1. Place all ingredients in slow cooker.  Cook on LOW for 8-12 hours, or until tender and falling apart.  Remove meat from pot and let rest 10 minutes.  Slice or shred, and serve. 

Comments
This is a very simple recipe that even works well if your brisket is still frozen, which often happens when I make it.  If you don’t have 12 hours to cook, you can go with 6 hours on HIGH instead of 12 on LOW.  I had 8 hours when I made the one pictured here so I did 4 hours on HIGH followed by 4 on LOW.  Worked like a charm and the brisket was extremely tender and flavorful.  I like to serve this with a good spicy mustard, rye bread, and cabbage. 

Shown here with store-bought rye bread and Frizzled Cabbage.

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Chicken Bacon Quesadillas

Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 pound bacon, cut into pieces
2 cups Mexican cheese blend, shredded
2 bunches green onions, chopped
¹⁄₄ cup barbecue sauce
¹⁄₄ cup ranch dressing
10 burrito size flour tortillas

Instructions
1. Heat oil in a large skillet.  Add chicken and cook for 10 minutes on each side, or until fully cooked.  Remove chicken from skillet and chop or shred. 

2. Add bacon to skillet and cook until crisp.  Drain in colander or on paper towels. 

3. Mix chicken, bacon, cheese, green onions, barbecue sauce, and ranch dressing in a large bowl. 

4. Wipe out skillet and return to medium heat.  Spread 1 cup of filling onto tortilla.  Press second tortilla on top. Microwave quesadilla for 1 minute and then move to skillet.  Cook in skillet for 1-2 minutes a side, or until nicely browned.  Repeat process for remaining 6 tortillas. 

5. Cut quesadillas into wedges for serving. 

Comments
I’ve always had the problem, when making quesadillas, that the quesadilla gets browned and crispy before the cheese gets melty.  I’ve solved this problem by nuking the quesadilla for a minute before finishing in the skillet.  This yields deliciously melty quesadillas every time.  My nephew calls these Dillas and they’re always a great, quick meal. 

While I have these filled with chicken, bacon, ranch, bbq, and onions, you can easily fill them with flavors you’d like.

Person - Gwen

Fried Zucchini Sticks

Ingredients
²⁄₃ cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon dried oregano
¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₄ teaspoon pepper
2 eggs
2 teaspoons water
²⁄₃ cup plain bread crumbs
48 zucchini sticks, 3 x ¹⁄₂ x ¹⁄₂ inches, from 2 large zucchini or 4-6 smaller zucchini
Oil for deep frying

Instructions
1. Combine flour, oregano, salt and pepper in a shallow dish.  In a second shallow dish, beat eggs together with water. Place bread crumbs in a third shallow dish. 

2. Working with 4 to 6 sticks at a time, toss zucchini in flour, then in egg, and then coat in bread crumbs.  Spread sticks on baking sheet and chill 1 hour. 

3. Heat oil (4 to 6 cups) in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over high heat until it bubbles when a few bread crumbs are tossed in. 

4. Add zucchini sticks to oil a few at a time, being careful not to crowd the pot.  Cook, turning occasionally, until golden, about 1 to 2 minutes.  Drain on paper towels and serve with warmed marinara sauce. 

Comments
I recently found out that my great friend loves zucchini most of all.  I’m not sure why it took me so long to learn but the knowledge was good inspiration to make zucchini sticks.  This recipe is from the fantastic 1,000 Vegetarian Recipes by Carol Gelles.  It’s the cookbook that’s been in my collection longest and this was one of the first recipes I tried from the book.  The sticks are delicious and crunchy and pair very well with a simple marinara sauce.   They come together very easily which makes for a nice appetizer.

1,000 Vegetarian Recipes

White Cheddar Chicken Pasta

Ingredients
For the chicken
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon dried thyme
¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₂ teaspoon pepper
3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes

For the pasta
1 pound short pasta (I used rotini.)
1 tablespoon butter
1 small onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
¹⁄₂ teaspoon dried thyme
¹⁄₂ teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon flour
¹⁄₄ cup white wine
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 cups milk (Or some combination of milk and cream.)
8 ounces sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded or cut into small pieces
Red pepper flakes, to taste
Parmesan cheese, to taste

Instructions
1. Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium heat.  Mix together mustard, thyme, salt and pepper and toss with chicken.  Cook chicken in skillet, stirring often, until cooked through, about 5 to 10 minutes.  Remove to a plate and cover with foil. 

2. Bring large pot of salted water to boil and cook pasta as directed by packaging. 

3. In same large skillet, melt butter over medium heat.  Cook onion and pepper, stirring, until beginning to soften.  Add garlic, thyme, and oregano and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Add flour and stir to combine.  Stir in wine, mustard, and milk and increase heat to high.  Bring to boil while stirring to break up any clumps.  Continue to boil until mixture begins to thicken, 5 to 10 minutes more.  Reduce heat to low and add cheese, stirring until melted. 

4. Add chicken and pasta to skillet and toss to incorporate.  Serve with red pepper flakes and Parmesan cheese, if desired. 

Comments
This recipe is from Homemade by Holman and I thought it would be a nice casserole-type dish to make Art happy since casserole-type dishes are the one thing he really misses while traveling.  Sadly, those plans didn’t quite come together and I ended up making it while he was gone, but he thought the bite I gave him of leftovers was tasty!  Lance and I thought the dish was great, especially with the addition of red bell pepper which was not called for in the original recipe.  The pepper added great color and flavor to the dish.

Internet - Homemade by Holman

Parmesan Encrusted Zucchini

Ingredients
Salt
4 medium zucchini
2 tablespoons butter, melted
²⁄₃ cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Instructions
1. Bring large pot of salted water to boil over high heat.  Slice zucchini into sticks about 3 inches long and ¹⁄₂ inch thick.  Add zucchini to water and cook until barely tender, about 3-4 minutes.  Drain well and rinse well with cold water to stop cooking.  Drain again and spread out on paper towels to dry.

2. Meanwhile, preheat broiler and adjust rack to 6 inches away from the heat. Spray baking sheet with nonstick spray.

3. Arrange zucchini on baking sheet in a single layer.  Brush zucchini with butter and then sprinkle with Parmesan, coating as much of the zucchini as possible.

4. Place baking sheet under broiler and cook until cheese is completely melted and browned, about 15 minutes.

Comments
This recipe is from Kalyn’s Kitchen and I found it while looking for something simple and different to do with fresh zucchini. This recipe is extremely simple which is a huge plus.  There’s not much to say about this recipe other than “You should make it.” 

Shown here with Eye Round Roast, Horseradish Cream Sauce, and Garlic and Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes.

Internet - Kalyn’s Kitchen