Making up for Lost Time

Last night David pointed out that our weekend lacked veggies. Pizza toppings don’t count? So tonight I’m making up for lost time with roasted cauliflower and vegetarian minestrone.

The cauliflower is pretty tasty. I tossed the florets with olive oil, salt, and pepper and baked it at 425 degrees for about 15 minutes. A sprinkle of parmesan finished things off.

The soup mixture comes from my mother-in-law. Basically you sauté onions, add the mix plus water and a can of diced tomatoes. I love that it’s all natural and healthy, but offers the convenience of being stored in the pantry. Check out Sierra Soups.

Life-changing Chevre and Other Goat Cheese Discoveries

Last night I sampled some fancy – but very easy – food, inspired by the NASFT’s Winter Fancy Food Show. I’ll share my favorites from Food Fete here, starting with a life-changing chevre called “Rivers Edge,” from Three Ring Farm in Oregon.

For once, those of us who play it safe with goat cheese don’t have to feel slighted. This chevre is smoky, rich and smooth. I can’t wait to pair it with an Old Vine Zin!

I also enjoyed sampling harder, crystallized goat cheeses and chatting with a gentleman from Tumalo Farms, a gourmet goat cheese producer in Bend, Oregon. PS – Do yourself a favor, and check out the adorable, cuddly goats on their homepage.

There will be Breadcrumbs

I’m always in search of fresh, handmade pappardelle, so when I found it at Bi-Rite Market, I was excited to get to work on a new recipe. With leeks on hand, I searched around and found this recipe.

I enjoyed the process of cleaning and prepping the leeks – they’re such a gorgeous color. And the rosemary smelled delightful.

But things took a turn for the worse when I (ignored the recipe) and dumped the entire breadcrumb mixture into the finished pasta. Those thick, buttery ribbons got lost in the sandy coating.

Lesson learned: treat breadcrumbs like salt, unless you’re making Mac & cheese or gratin.

Lazy Friday Night Pulled Pork

Normally we have pizza on Friday nights, but we’ve yet to find a place that will deliver to Redwood Shores (minus Roundtable which is always a half hour late or more). So tonight, I was a lazy gourmet.

I started with one can of diced tomatoes in a large saucepan, with three cloves of garlic, brought to a boil. Next I added 3/4 bottle of old chardonnay (hey, why not it’s Friday after all).

In went the pork, and I covered and simmered it on medium for about 30 minutes. Meanwhile I cooked the rice in the rice cooker. When the pork was done. I shredded it with forks and returned it to it’s sauce.

Serving the pork in bowls over rice with plenty of broth added lots of juiciness and a decent amount of flavor. Et voila.

Goat Cheese Nachos

In a desperate attempt to eat up leftover black beans, I made nachos with goat cheese, salsa and lettuce. Not bad and super healthy!

Rosemary’s Gravy

Tonight I searched around for ideas to use the fresh rosemary in my fridge, along with the frozen chicken breasts that made up my last remaining supply of meat. The menu? Chicken breasts baked with red wine, olive oil, fresh chopped rosemary, and salt & pepper – inspired by a Foster Farms recipe.

I baked the chicken at 400 degrees for nearly an hour, but it was too dry. I also sauteed spinach in butter, fresh chopped rosemary and salt & pepper, inspired by this recipe; and mashed potatoes (with butter and almond milk).

I sprinkled some of the juices from the pan over mashed potatoes. My only regret is that I didn’t make gravy out of the tempting golden bits at the bottom of the pan. Maybe next time!

Pork Tenderloin in Semillon

Tonight I simmered pork tenderloin in one inch’s worth of semillon. It produced a pretty golden color and delicious broth. Easy!

Winter Produce Experiment

Salad: romaine lettuce, oranges and pecans in homemade dressing (orange juice, olive oil, semillon, salt and pepper)

Pasta: Turkey meatballs with pear; bok choy sautéed in pecans and pear, plus chicken stock added towards the end. Add cooked meatballs to bok choy mixture, then combine with cooked angel hair.

Veggies & Pasta

Night 1: boiled spaghetti in low sodium chicken broth; added spinach towards the end. Meanwhile, sautéed sliced zucchini in olive oil. Served zucchini over pasta with Parmesan.

Night 2: sautéed broccolini and bok Choy (cut into 1-2 inch slices) in olive oil; covered and steamed until slightly tender. Added soy sauce and leftover noodles from night 1 and cooked until warmed through. Voila!

Healthy Soup

When I see kale in my fridge, I immediately think of soup. It’s the easiest way to tame the beast – those tough and rough leaves. So, tonight I made a satisfying, hearty and healthy soup.

First, I sauteed one chopped onion in 2 tablespoons of olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper. Next I added diced Yukon Gold potatoes, and chopped kale (stripped off the spine). Once kale was sufficiently wilted, I added two cups of chicken broth and two cups of water. I brought it back to a boil for a few minutes, then added two cans of white beans.

Delicious and I didn’t feel guilty about having multiple seconds!