#23 - Quick & Easy Pasta Carbonara

Even though today is only the second "official" day of Summer, we are almost halfway through our Summer Break! June has basically been a blur! I have to say that it has NOT been easy to try a new recipe each week. When things get busy I'm much more likely to slip into cooking the same ole, same ole instead of taking the time to plan for something different. There's nothing wrong with tried and true recipes but for the sake of this blog and the challenge I made myself (a new recipe each week), I've got to keep going!

This one is quick and easy, hence the name... Quick & Easy Pasta Carbonara. Fifteen minutes from the stove to the table (or the countertop if you're at my house). Use any kind of pasta you have on hand. I used rigatoni.  It would also be good if you threw some frozen peas in towards the end of cooking. I might try that next time!

Quick & Easy Pasta Carbonara
Serves 4 - 6.

Ingredients

1 pound of pasta

2 large eggs

1 cup grated Italian-blend Cheese 

4 slices bacon, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

• In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package instructions; reserve 1 cup water and drain well.
• In a small bowl, whisk together eggs and cheese; set aside.
• Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes; leave about 2 tablespoon of bacon grease in the pan.
• Stir in garlic until fragrant, about 1 minute. Reduce heat to low.
• Working quickly, stir in pasta and egg mixture, and gently toss to combine; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add reserved pasta water, one tablespoon at a time, until desired consistency is reached.
• Serve immediately, topped with more cheese, if desired.

 

#20 - Breakfast Grilled Cheese

The One Who Left Me for Higher Learning is home for the summer and this Mama is pretty happy about that! I'm also pretty happy that this kid has been increasingly joining the ranks of a foodie! Gone are the days of only eating chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, and pepperoni pizza... gone, but not totally abandoned 'cuz we like a good mac or pizza as much as the next guy! It's just nice to now have variety in our dinning choices.

The other day, the boy and I watched a cute little flick called, Chef, starring Jon Favreau who plays a chef who quits his job at a popular restaurant and starts a food truck to reclaim his career and passion as a chef. In it, there is a scene where Chef makes a grilled cheese sandwich... I know what you're thinking, "bid deal, it's a grilled cheese sandwich," but just you watch...

Ooooooh, cheeeesy goodness! Yummy, right?! And that got us thinking... ya know what would make that sandwich even better?? A fried egg and bacon! The birth of our Breakfast Grilled Cheese! It's nothing fancy and it's not even pretty, but it sure is tasty (be prepared to have egg yolk running down your elbows when you dig in)!

BREAKFAST GRILLED CHEESE

INGREDIENTS

 

2 slices of bread, your choice
butter, softened
2 strips of bacon
1 egg
4-6 slices of sliced cheese, your choice
salt and pepper

 

DIRECTIONS

• Cook bacon in a frying pan.
• While the bacon is cooking, butter one side of each slice of bread.
• Melt about 1 tablespoon of butter into a separate frying pan (med-low heat) and place bread into pan, buttered side down and top with cheese.
• When the bacon is cooked, remove from pan and set aside. Carefully crack egg into the pan with remaining bacon grease. Cook until your desired "doneness" (is that a word?). Season with salt and pepper.
• Place egg on one of your bread slices and bacon strips on the other. Flip the bacon side onto the egg side and cook a minute or two more, turning once.
• Cut in half and enjoy!

Not the best picture! We were too anxious to eat
it to take a good one!

 

(Recipe #20 of 52)



#18 - ASPARAGUS AND GRUYERE TARTS

I am SOOOO behind on my recipe posts! It's not that I haven't been cooking, it's that I haven't been posting! I'm going to try to pound out the posts this week to get caught up... no promises!

This recipe is SUPER easy but the finished product looks and tastes FANCY SCHMANCY!  I'm pretty sure that even someone who is not a fan of asparagus might like this one... and if they don't, more for the rest of us! My asparagus was super long, even after cutting it down, so the tarts were probably a little big but I didn't hear anyone complain! You can serve them drizzled with a yummy balsamic reduction (I made that the day before... easy peasy!).  These would be great for appetizers, for brunch, lunch, or as side dish.... or anytime, just because!

ASPARAGUS AND GRUYERE TARTS
(I got 6-8 tarts out of this recipe or you could make one big one!)
Recipe adapted from Joy The Baker

INGREDIENTS:

2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed but still cold.

1 egg, beaten

2 cups finely grated gruyere cheese

1-1 1/2 pounds slender asparagus

kosher salt and coarse ground black pepper

olive oil

balsamic reduction (recipe below)

 

DIRECTIONS:

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

 

Unfold thawed puff pastry onto a lightly floured work surface.  Unfold the pastry and slice into thirds at the creases.  Cut each strip in half, creating six equally sized rectangles - I used my asparagus as a gage of how long/wide my strips needed to be.

 

Gently press each rectangle with your fingers, flattening slightly.  With a small pairing knife, score a 1/4 inch boarder along the inside of each rectangle.  Arrange 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet.

 

Brush each square lightly with beaten egg. Sprinkle with salt and coarse ground black pepper.  Top with a generous sprinkling of grated cheese.  Press five to six asparagus spears into the cheese. Brush the asparagus with olive oil and sprinkle with more coarsely ground black pepper.

 

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until puff pastry is golden brown and asparagus is cooked through. Remove from the oven, allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.  Serve with balsamic reduction.   Tarts can be stored, well wrapped in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

 

BALSAMIC REDUCTION

Recipe from PopSugar

 

All you need is a bottle of balsamic vinegar!

Pour a cup of balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring the heat to a boil without reducing the heat on the stove.

 

At this point, turn down the heat so that boil reduces to a simmer. Stir occasionally and allow to simmer until the vinegar has reduced by at least half (for a thinner reduction) or more (for a more syrupy consistency). However impatient you may be, don't try to increase the heat, unless you want to be left with a stiff, hardened mess!

 

Allow to cool and transfer to an airtight container; store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

 

 

(Recipe #18 of 52)

#17 - Masa Corn Cakes with Chorizo

 

HAPPY CINCO DE MAYO!!

 

When I started this 52 recipes in a year thing, I said that I wouldn't just share the great recipes, but that I would even post some of the not-so-great ones... this would be one of those. Fear not amigos, there is still hope for this dish!  It wasn't terrible, it just needs a little tweaking.

 

The original recipe I started with was from Cooking Light .  I chose not to make the pico de gallo included in the recipe. I was more interested in the "pancakes". As I started mixing the ingredients, it was quickly apparent that the 1 cup of warm water called for was way too much! It was the consistency of pancake batter, which would have been fine but I needed to "divide dough into 16 balls; flatten each to form into 2-inch pancakes". That was NOT going to happen! So, I added some more flour, some more masa (corn meal), maybe a little more baking powder, and then I added some corn (those cakes NEEDED corn). I ended up with a sticky batter more than a dough.  I shaped it into about 12 - 3" cakes and started frying.

 

They weren't bad really.  The feedback I got was that they 1. needed more flavor and 2. needed more corn. I'd have to agree on the corn issue. The flavor... well, I'm the only one that ate chorizo with mine and the chorizo added plenty of flavor. The other two in the house have an aversion to chorizo, so they had beans, cheese and salsa.  Like I said, they weren't terrible and we didn't go hungry. I'd probably eat them again, as is.



 

 

Masa Corn Cakes with Chorizo

Yield: About 12 - 3" cakes.

 

Ingredients:

 

1 1/2 cups masa harina (cornmeal)

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt   

1 ounce queso fresco, grated (about 1/4 cup)

1 tablespoon canola oil, plus more for cooking

1 cup frozen corn, thawed (I used HERDEZ Sonora Blend (fire roasted corn, with red and green bell peppers)

Your favorite chorizo, beans, salsa, sour cream, etc., for toppings

 

Directions:

1. Lightly spoon masa harina and flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine masa harina, flour, baking powder, queso fresco, and salt in a medium bowl; stir with a whisk. Drizzle 1 tablespoon oil over top, and stir to form coarse meal with some pea-size pieces. Add 1 cup warm water, and stir until dough forms. Stir in corn. Divide dough into 12 balls; flatten each to form into 3-inch cakes.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add about 1 teaspoon oil. Place 4 pancakes in pan, and cook 2 to 3 minutes or until set and golden brown on bottom; flip and cook 2 to 3 additional minutes (you may need to add more oil). Repeat procedure with remaining pancakes and oil.

3. Meanwhile, heat up your chorizo and beans. Serve cakes warm with desired toppings.


(Recipe #17 of 52)

 

 

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#13 - Spring Break and Beer, Bacon & Smoked Gouda Risotto

Just got back from 10 days in AZ with The Fam. It was Spring Break for The One Still at Home, so we headed to Mesa for some R&R, to take in some Chicago Cubs Spring Training, and to spend some time with The One Who Left Me for Higher Learning.  We had a great time (except for Still at Home stuck in bed for 3-days with the flu)!  We ate at our favorite restaurants, laid out by the pool, watched a BUNCH of baseball, and celebrated The Hubs' 50th birthday!  I thought about posting all of our trip pictures here like an old school slideshow... remember when people used to do that when they'd return from a trip? ..."and this was Aunt Martha standing next to the giant buffalo.."  Anyway, fear not, I only posted a few pics (the rest are all on Instagram if you're a glutton for punishment).

 

After being away, it was good to get back in the kitchen! This week I came up with Beer, Bacon & Smoked Gouda Risotto.  I hadn't planned on eating much this week to make up for EVERYTHING I did eat last week, but knowing that I needed a recipe to post I just went for it.  I actually made it with stuff I already had in the kitchen... that was just pure dumb luck!  A quick shout-out to our friends Bill & Taffi for buying a case of Shock-Top beer, not loving it and passing it on to us! I don't love it either but I'll definitely use it for cooking!

 

PS. My 'Rents are headed down this week! Looking forward to cooking up a storm for them! Recipes to follow.... for now, here's the risotto:

 

 

Beer, Bacon & Smoked Gouda Risotto
Yield: 8 (1 cup) servings

 

Ingredients:

• 2 slices bacon
• 1 tablespoon butter
• ½ a small onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cups uncooked Arborio rice
• 12 oz bottle of beer
• 5 cups chicken broth
• 1 ½ oz Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
• 1 cup shredded Smoked Gouda (I may have used a bit more than that)
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper

 

Directions:

1. Cook bacon is a large sauté pan. When bacon is crisp, remove from pan and set aside. 
2. Place the butter in sauté pan with remaining bacon grease and return to medium-low heat until butter is just melted. Add onions and cook 3-5 minutes until the onions are translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another minute until garlic is fragrant. Add the rice and stir to combine. Cook an additional 2 minutes, stirring throughout.
3. Pour in the beer and turn the heat up to high until the beer begins to simmer. Reduce heat back to medium-low and add ½ cup of the chicken broth. Stir until the liquid dissolves and then add another ½ cup. Repeat until all the broth has been added and the rice is creamy and al dente.
4. Remove the rice mixture from the heat and add the cheeses, bacon, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper to taste. Stir until thoroughly combined and serve.

 (Recipe #13 of 52)

#8 - Bacon 'n Ballyshannon Mac & Cheese

 Anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE CHEESE! Really! If I could get away with it, I’d eat cheese and bread (and maybe a little fruit) everyday! The other day I was at Sam’s Club looking for a little cheese to take to the beach for our usual picnic spread… I know, sounds crazy because you can’t just buy a “little” cheese at Sam’s.  Listen, Sam’s has a pretty good cheese section!  So what if you end up with a GIANT brick of Havarti!  I ended up with a $13 giant brick of Ballyshannon - a creamy, white Irish cheddar.

My almost 2 pound block of cheese!

Our beach picnic spread.

That was some good cheese!  As we were eating it I kept thinking how great it would be in mac & cheese!  So a couple of days later, Bacon 'n Ballyshannon Mac & Cheese was born!

Bacon 'n Ballyshannon Mac & Cheese

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients:

8 ounces elbow macaroni

5 slices Applewood smoked Bacon, cooked & diced

2 1/2 cups milk

6 tablespoons butter

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped

1 1/2 cups shredded Gruyere cheese

1 1/2 cups shredded Ballyshannon Irish Cheddar

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

2 tablespoons butter, melted

½ cup plain dried breadcrumbs

1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2.  In large pot of boiling salted water, cook macaroni according to package instructions; drain well and set aside.

3. Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add bacon and cook until brown and crispy, about 6-8 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.  

4. Heat milk, thyme and garlic in a small saucepan, but don't let it boil. 

5. In a large pot, melt 6 tablespoons of butter and add the flour. Cook over low heat for 2 minutes, stirring with a whisk. Still whisking, add the hot milk and cook for a minute or two more until thickened and smooth. Remove from heat, add the Gruyère, cheddar, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Add the cooked macaroni and bacon and stir well. Place the mixture in a buttered 9x13 baking dish.

6. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, combine them with the breadcrumbs and parsley, and sprinkle on the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the sauce is bubbly and the macaroni is browned on the top.

PS.  I’m still working on that brick of cheese!! I've used it in several other things since! Tonight we put it in the Potato-Leek soup we had for dinner… YUM!!

(Recipe #8 of 52)

Egg Strata Cups

Happy New Year!!

This is usually the time that people resolve to start a diet, exercise, eat healthier, give up sweets… Sounds great! I plan on keeping up with my morning walks, drinking more water, and snaking less. That doesn’t mean that I’m giving up eating yummy things! Moderation (maybe I should have picked that for my “word” of 2015!).

Anyway, that being said, I’ve also decided that I would like to try at least one new recipe every week this year.  Not just sweets.  All kinds of recipes.  That’s 52 recipes in a year.  Can’t be that difficult, right?  We’ll see!

I came up with the first recipe while wanting to use up some of the stuff we had left over from New Year’s… a French baguette, fontina cheese, and Canadian bacon.  It’s one of those “put together the night before” recipes so you have to plan ahead a little, but I think I’m off to a strong start with this one!

I give you Recipe #1, EGG STRATA CUPS!!

Egg Strata Cups

(makes 6)

Ingredients

4 eggs

1/4 cup milk

1/2 tsp dry mustard

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

salt and pepper

2 1/2 cups cubed bread (my baguette was a few days old and it was perfect!)

1 small tomato, seeded and diced

1 cup Canadian bacon, diced

1/2 cup fontina cheese, diced (left over from our cheese plate, so I just cut the slices into smaller chunks)

2 T chives, chopped

Instructions

In a bowl, whisk milk and dry mustard together until well blended. Add eggs, parmesan cheese and salt and pepper. In a separate bowl, combine bread, Canadian bacon, tomato, cheese and chives (I used my hands to mix it all up. Get in there and get messy!).  Spray a non-stick large muffin tin with cooking spray and load with the bread mixture. If you’re fancy-schmancy and have a pop-over pan, that would work too! Pour egg mixture over bread mixture until eggs are evenly distributed. Cover with plastic wrap and put in refrigerator overnight. In the morning, preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 20-30 minutes until eggs are set. Cool in pan for 5 minutes before serving.  They’re great at room temperature and they’ll keep in the fridge for up to 3 days, if you can keep from eating them all at once!  We couldn’t (so much for “moderation”)!

You could add just about anything to your stratas… bacon, sausage, veg, any kind of cheese.  They’re SUPER easy and SUPER yummy!!  This one’s a keeper!  Enjoy!