Romesco Sauce

My husband is OBSESSED with this sauce, so much so that I have to make a weekly batch.  The recipe is from Tyler Florence and can be found at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/oven-roasted-prawns-with-romesco-sauce-recipe/index.html

I'm reposting the recipe here so I can easily find it and let you know that even though the original recipe uses the sauce with prawns, I have found it especially delicious wiht artichokes or even with chicken.

For the artichoke usage, I cut off the bottoms to make them flat,  rinse them then boil in a large pot with lightly salted water and a few thin slices of lemon.  You don't need to fill the water all the way up, just until it covers about half of the artichokes.  Boil for about 40 minutes.

Now for the Romesco Sauce (again this is pulled directly from the Food Network's website, link above):

Ingredients:

•    3 tomatoes, halved
•    10 garlic cloves
•    2 slices crusty bread
•    1/2 cup whole almonds, with skin
•    1/2 cup pine nuts
•    1 roasted red pepper
•    1/2 cup red wine vinegar
•    3/4 cup olive oil
•    1 teaspoon paprika
•    2 teaspoons kosher salt

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Arrange the tomatoes, garlic, bread, and nuts on a baking sheet; roast for 10 to 15 minutes.

Transfer to a food processor and pulse to roughly break up. Add the pimentos, vinegar, oil, and paprika. Pulse again until well combined, add salt. This sauce is best if allowed to rest so the flavors can meld (may be made a day in advance).

Refrigerate unused portion and use within 5 days.

Infused Olive Oils

I was at the meat market the other day (Olympic on W. Randolph in Chicago - I love that place) and I've noticed they've got a little collection of upscale olive oils that they're now selling.  I picked up some Rosemary & Basil infused EVOO.

So far I've made this dressing with it (and it was delicious):

• 1/8 Cup Lemon Juice (freshly squeezed if possible)
• 1/2 Cup Rosemary & Basil infused EVOO
• 1 garlic clove pressed

That's it!  Whisk that together and dress your salad.  So easy and so delicious.


I plan to also try the oil like this:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

• Cut French bread on a diagonal into 1/2 inch thick pieces
• Bake in the oven until lightly toasted (about 5 minutes)
• Remove from oven and rub a whole garlic clove across the top of each slice of bread
• Sprinkle the infused olive oil over each slice of bread and top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese

The little toasts would make a nice accompaniment to a salad with the dressing listed above.

You're Either A Breakfast Person... Or You're Not

We've all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, pretty persuasive reason to partake in that morning ritual.

The reasons I love breakfast stem from the fact that (a) I'm a monster if I don't eat in the morning and (b) I truly love that a meal can center around sweet flavors and still be considered a meal and not a dessert.

When I was a kid I loved Strawberry Frosted Pop-Tarts, weekends when my Dad would make chocolate chip pancakes or bake cinnamon rolls with the gooey frosting dripping off the warm sides.  I also really enjoyed (and still do) Entenmann's Raspberry Danish.  These early morning treats are the result of my believing the sweets are a good way to start the day.   

I've got a couple go-to recipes for sweet breakfasts that I wanted to share.

The first is a Simple Stuffed French Toast. I like this one because you can make just 1 if you're cooking for yourself - or as you'll see, it can be easily adjusted for the number of mouths you're feeding.

What you'll need for 1 serving:

• 1 egg
• 1/8 tsp vanilla
• Pinch salt
• 1/4 tsp sugar
• Splash of milk
• 2 slices of white bread
• Strawberry cream cheese
• Blueberries
• Powdered sugar for sprinkling

Directions:

Spray griddle with non-stick spray and preheat on medium heat.

Combine the egg, vanilla, salt, sugar and milk in a shallow baking dish (or a plate).  

Dip both sides of the bread in the egg mixture and cook on the warmed griddle until golden brown (both sides).

To construct the final product, lay one piece of the cooked French Toast on a plate.  Spread strawberry cream cheese over the top of the toast (adjust the amount to your liking).  Sprinkle a layer of blueberries across the cream cheese.  Top with the remaining piece of French Toast.  Drop a few more blueberries across the top of the toast and around the plate.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar.  Enjoy.


The second recipe goes back to when I was in 2nd grade and did a recipe exchange with my class.  I got this recipe for Apple Puffed Pancake which has become a staple at our Christmas breakfast and has been shared with many friends and family throughout the years.

Preheat Oven: 425 degrees
Serves: 6

Ingredients:

• 6 eggs
• 1 ½ cups milk
• 1 cup flour
• 3 Tablespoons sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• ½ tsp. salt
• ¼ tsp. cinnamon
• ½ cup butter or margarine
• 2 to 3 apples peeled & thinly sliced
• 2 to 3 Tablespoons brown sugar

Directions:

Mix eggs, milk, flour, sugar, vanilla, salt and cinnamon in blender or large bowl until blended (If using mixer, batter will remain slightly lumpy).

Melt butter in 12” porcelain quiche dish of 9” x 13” baking pan in oven;  Add apple slices to pan.  Return to oven until butter sizzles – DO NOT LET BROWN

Remove dish from oven and pour batter over apples.  Sprinkle with brown sugar.  Bake in middle of oven 20 minutes or until puffed and brown.  Serve hot.

Note: The dish will lose some of it's puff when it starts to cool

I hope you enjoy these.

Thinking about food when I can't eat it...

I had my tonsils out yesterday and can't do or eat much for a while.  I've been watching the Food Network all day, and it's making me really hungry and want to get in the kitchen.

Since I can't cook or eat right now, I wanted to talk about a few of my favorite foods.

Tacos
I don't think I could ever git sick of tacos.  I grew up eating the regular homemade ground beef tacos with the mix-in seasoning packet.  As I started cooking for myself, I began using ground turkey instead and I like to add diced carrots and potatoes while the meat is cooking.  Sometimes I make my own seasoning, sometimes I use the mix.  The perfect taco (in my house) has a very thin line of low-fat sour cream on the bottom of a hard shell, a thin line of refried beans over the SC, topped with the meat/potato/carrot mixture, shredded lettuce, then a lot of shredded cheese (extra sharp yellow cheddar & jalapeno jack hand shredded and mixed together).  Lately I've been putting a couple drops of hot sauce on top, I'm learning to like this addition.

When I make Carne Asada Tacos, I marinate flank steak or skirt steak in the following mixture (found this at allrecipes.com posted by "STANICKS"):

• 1/3 cup white vinegar
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 limes, juiced
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground white pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon paprika

After the meat has marinated for at least an hour, I grill it.  Let it sit for a couple minutes, then cut the meat in thin strips to serve on small soft tortillas with homemade guacamole and shredded jalapeno jack cheese.  Delicious!


Pizza
Ever since I woke up after my surgery yesterday, I've had pizza on the brain.  I love to go out for pizza and lucky for me, living in Chicago, pizza is never too far away.  It's nice to make your own pizza at home too.  I've found that Naan bread is a simple, quick and healthy choice for the dough.  For my favorite homemade pizza, I'll sprinkle olive oil all over the Naan bread then add very thinly sliced white potato.  Top that with a bit of Italian seasoning and then sprinkle gorgonzola cheese all around it.  Top that with a little bit of mozzarella, I like the bit of stringier cheese on the pizza and finally, top that with a bit of grated parmesan.  I cook this on my pizza stone at 375 for about 12 minutes and out comes a salty, delicious white pizza.


Salad
I love arugula, but for some reason can't seem to find just arugula at the store, so I usually end up with a Spring Mix or something, still good.  I like to use a vegetable peeler to shave nice size pieces of cheese on top (like parmesan, manchego, romano, etc.)  I use my nut grinder for some almonds that I pour on top of the cheese/salad mix.   I've been really into lemon vinaigrette lately.  I like this mixture, which I whisk all together in a 2-cup mixing cup and use on the cheese/nut salad (to taste):

• The juice from 2 fresh squeezed lemons
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 clove garlic, pressed 
• 1/2 cup good quality EVOO (I find that quality makes a difference when you're using oil for dressing vs. just cooking with it) 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

 Looking forward to cooking again, maybe next week.