Pumpkin Gnocchi

Gnocchi:

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 cup ricotta cheese

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

3-4 cups flour

1 egg

2 pinches of salt

Mix ingredients, roll into 12 inch ropes, cut into 1/2 - 1 inch pieces.  Once cut, boil water and cook through.  Once they are floating add to sauce.

Pumpkin Sage Butter Sauce:

1/2 - 1 cup pumpkin puree

5-6 Tablespoons butter

1/4-1/3 cup fresh chopped sage leaves

In a large pan add all ingredients.  Add gnocchi, fry up, serve with Parmesan cheese!  Enjoy :)

Sweet Potato and Shaved Brussel Sprouts

A healthy tasty side dish to any meal!  I served it with breaded chicken breasts :)

1 sweet potato (heat in microwave for  2 min; peel and cut into cubes)

1 cup shaved brussel sprouts

cilantro or cilantro paste

garlic

2-4 tsp olive oil

salt and pepper

In a frying pan add olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper and shaved brussel sprouts.  Cook until heated through and brussel sprouts are bright green.  Place aside in a bowl.  To frying pan add another tsp of olive oil, sweet potato cubes, salt, pepper and cilantro.  Cook until heated through and begin to crisp up.  Add brussel sprouts to pan again 5 min before you serve to heat through and mix flavors. 

Lemon Artichoke Soup

I tried to replicate one of my favorite soups I order in a local restaurant.  I think this came out pretty good if not better!  

2 cups artichokes; quartered

1 1/2 lemons

mirepoix (chopped onions, carrots and celery)

2 cloves of garlic; minced

about 3 cups chicken stock (I used broth, but would change to stock for the next time)

2 cups heavy cream

salt and pepper

In a pot saute mirepoix, garlic, salt and pepper until onions sweat.  Add chicken stock and half of the artichokes.  Once heated through, blend the mirepoix and artichokes with emulsifier.  Add the juice of 1 lemon and cream.  Add the other half of the artichokes and half of lemon to the pot.  Let simmer on low for 10 minutes to blend flavors.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy with fresh bread on the side :)

Dijon Chicken

2 chicken breasts; pounded fairly thin

3 Tablespoons Dijon mustard

3 Tablespoons maple syrup

1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar

handful fresh rosemary

salt and pepper

Mix all ingredients.  Marinate chicken for at least 1-2 hours in refrigerator.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Flip chicken and bake for another 10 minutes.

Enjoy :)

Soft Pretzel Bites with Cheese Sauce

Oh, how I love Pinterest! I am always looking for a good homemade cheese sauce, and this one is great with these pretzel bites!  With the leftover cheese sauce I also made nachos, yum!

Pretzel Bites:


1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp kosher salt
2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups
2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil
10 cups water
2/3 cup baking soda
2 tbsp butter, melted
Pretzel or Kosher salt


In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the water, sugar, yeast, and salt on low speed for 10 seconds.  Switch to the dough hook and add the flour and butter.  Mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl and transfer it to a well-oiled bowl. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and set it in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an wide 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.
In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Slice each rope into 1-inch pieces.  Place a lightly damp towel over the pretzel pieces to prevent them from drying out while you roll and cut the other pieces.
Using a slotted spoon lower a handful of the pretzel pieces into the boiling water and boil them for 30 seconds, flipping them around in the water with the spoon a couple of times. Remove the pretzel pieces from the water using the spoon, drain as best you can, and place them on the baking sheets. Brush the top of each pretzel with the melted butter and sprinkle with the pretzel/Kosher salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 10 – 12 minutes. Brush with remaining melted butter before serving. Serve warm.

For the Homemade Cheese Sauce Recipe Click HERE!

Enjoy on a cool fall afternoon :)

Butternut Squash and Corn Soup

SOUP for 2!  Here is a great fall soup recipe for the soul :)  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

20 oz. pre cut butternut squash

4 cups of chicken stock

1 cup water

1 1/2 cups cream

1 cup frozen corn

1 small cooking onion; diced

handful of fresh sage leaves; cut into thin strips 

3 tablespoons butter

In a medium pot bring the stock and butternut squash to a slow boil.  

In a skillet, add butter onions and sage leaves.  Cook until sage is crispy.  Add corn and cook through. Add cream to warm up before adding to pot.

Once the squash is soft, use an emulsifier to make the soup smooth. Add the corn and sage mixture.  Let flavors blend together and serve!

ENJOY :)

Bacon and Pea Risotto

1 1b thick cut bacon; cut into 1/2 inch pieces

2/3 cup frozen green peas

1 cup arborio rice

2 cups chicken broth

1 cup dry white wine

1 small shallot finely chopped

2 cloves garlic minced

thyme

salt and pepper

1 Tb butter

1 - 2 Tb olive oil

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

In a pot cook bacon until crispy.  Set bacon aside.  Remove half of the bacon fat, add peas and cook in bacon fat :)  Remove peas when cooked through.

In the same pot add shallot, garlic, thyme salt and pepper (additional oil if needed).

Add rice,  heat through about 3 minutes over medium heat.

Add 1 cup of chicken broth.  Stir often.  

Add  next cup of broth once the liquid is soaked up in risotto.

Keep stirring!

Add 1 cup white wine.

Once all liquid is about all absorbed, add cheese.

Add bacon and peas, mix well, ENJOY :) 

Stuffed Pork Chops

I love stuffing pork chops, they always come out juicy and flavorful.  Here is a new tasty recipe!

2 boneless pork chops (about an inch thick)

3/4 bag baby spinach

1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes

1/2 cup feta cheese

1/2 cooking onion; chopped

1 clove garlic; diced

salt and pepper

olive oil

2 toothpicks

In a pan saute onions, garlic salt and peper.  Add spinach and cook down little by little.  Add sun dried tomatoes.  Place a in a bowl to the side to cool down.  Once cooled down, mix in feta cheese.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Heat a cast iron skillet with a a tablespoon of olive oil.

Cut a pocket in the pork chops almost to the other side to stuff with the spinach mixture.   Stuff  chops with mixture and  thread a tooth pick along the opening to keep mixture in pocket.  Lightly salt and pepper both sides of the chops.  Brown in skillet for 1-2 minutes on each side.

Place skillet in oven and back chops for 6 minutes, then flip the chops and bake for another 6 minutes to cook evenly.

Enjoy :)

Eggplant Fries

As I having been exploring Pinterest and finding new recipes to try...this was one of them.  I would not recommend frying them as eggplant are full of water and they just became mush.  Baking them will get them nice and crispy on the outside and save you calories :)  When I bake them...I coat with olive oil and toss in bread crumbs.  Bake for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees.

Click HERE for the recipe for eggplant fries, if you want to try the recipe or let me know what you did differently so they weren't so mushy and greasy...

Pizza with Zucchini and Sausage

Ok, maybe another zucchini recipe or two....then I won't be cooking with it for at least a month! AH!  This was a spur of the moment Wednesday night meal that turned out fabulous, flavorful and different...a great combination all in 30 minutes :)

Preheat Oven to 400 degrees.

 Pizza Dough..on the go!

3 cups flour

1 tsp. sugar

1 packet yeast

1 cup warm water

1 Tbs. vegetable oil

Mix Ingredients and knead for a minute or two in mixer.  Brush olive oil on pizza pan and roll out dough.

After

Before

Bake dough for 6-8 minutes.

Pizza:

tomato pesto sauce (I cheated, shh)  oh how I love Wegmans!

1 small zucchini; sliced thinly

3 links of Hot Italian Sausage; cooked through and sliced

mozzarella and provolone cheese

Top with tomato pesto sauce, zucchini, Italian sausage and cheese.  Bake for another 15 minutes, or until cheese is browned and bubbly.

ENJOY!

Zucchini Bread

Do you see the trend?? Yes, I have had zucchini coming out my ears!  This is also the first recipe I have adapted from PINTEREST!  It turned out great...I did double the recipe because the crazy amount of zucchini I have...AND did not add nuts.  I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did :)

Here is the link on pinterest if you're interested :)

Vegetable Stew Over Couscous

As I picked the last of the veggies from the garden and the temperature has cooled WAY down, all I want is a hot comforting meal and this does does just the trick on a cool fall night.

3 cloves garlic; finely chopped

1 small onion; finely chopped

1/2 bell pepper; chopped

1 tablespoon basil

1 teaspoon oregano

4 medium tomatoes; cubed

1 medium zucchini; cubed

1 medium eggplant; cubed

1/3 cup tomato paste

1-2+ cups water (depending how thick you want your stew)

salt and pepper to taste

couscous 

Parmesan cheese

In a large pot add the first 3 ingredients.  Cook until the onion is browned.  Add basil, oregano and tomatoes.  Cook for 5 minutes.  Add tomato paste and desired amount of water; I used about a cup and a half.  Mix.  Add eggplant.  Cook for another 5-8 minutes.  I add the zucchini last because I like them a little under cooked.  Cook on low for 5-8 minutes.  Serve over couscous and top with Parmesan cheese.  Enjoy!

Note:  Couscous takes less than 10 minutes to cook:)  I started the couscous when I put the zucchini in the stew...

Pasta with Zucchini Sauce

When you have an abundance of zucchini, you make sauce!  Here is a new zucchini creation....

2 medium zucchini; cubed

1 onion; diced

5 cloves garlic; chopped (yes 5!)

1/1/2 cups chicken stock

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 tsp. parsley

1tsp. basil

salt and pepper

1/2 -1 cup heavy cream

orecchiette pasta

fresh Parmesan cheese 

Boil water. In another large pot add the first 8 ingredients.  Cover and cook for about 15 minutes.  Once zucchini is soft, use an emulsifier blender to puree the sauce.  Add heavy cream. Boil pasta.

Mix with orecchiette pasta.  Top with Parmesan cheese. Enjoy :)  I also recommend adding sweet Italian sausage to sauce.