Just had to share it with you...

I just had to share this recipe with you. I found it on meals.com and it was a great way to use any leftover pork I had from the previous night. I just sliced it up and then added it to the recipe as it called for it. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Fettuccine with Creamy Pork & Asparagus Sauce

 

Ingredients:

12 oz. (3/4 lb.) dry fettuccine pasta, broken in half
2 teaspoons butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1 lb. ground pork
salt and ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups (about 1/2 lb.) fresh asparagus, tips and tender stalks cut into 2-inch pieces
1/2 cup white wine or chicken broth
1 can (12 oz.) NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk
3 oz. grated queso fresco or Parmesan cheese or more to taste
Chopped fresh parsley or cilantro (optional)

Directions:

COOK fettuccine according to package directions.

MEANWHILE, MELT butter in large skillet on medium low heat. Add onions; cook until lightly golden about 3 minutes. Add ground pork; cook on medium heat stirring constantly, until no longer pink; drain. Stir in asparagus tips. Season with salt and pepper. Add wine; bring to a boil and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes to reduce. Reduce heat to low; add evaporated milk. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes.

COMBINE pork and asparagus sauce with drained fettuccine. Serve immediately sprinkled with a little queso fresco and parsley, if desired. Remaining cheese can be served along with pasta and sauce.

Enjoy :)

This is so yummy... you've got to try it!

Okay maybe this isn't the most traditional summer meal but then again we haven't been experiencing the hottest summer either... In the freezer I had some beef shanks that were part of the Holy Spirit offering we had received from our local church a couple of weeks ago. It's quite the tradition for Azorean portuguese families. I found this great recipe for Osso Buco from Giada, made a few changes to it by using the beef shanks instead of the veal shanks indicated in the recipe and I was extremely impressed with how it turned out... I think you'll like it too!

Helena’s Take on Osso Buco

Ingredients:

1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 dry bay leaf
2 whole beef shanks (about 1-2 pound per shank)
1 lb of stewing beef, cubed
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup butter
1 onion soup mix
4 carrots, sliced
3-4 stalk celery, sliced
2-3 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon hot pepper paste
½ cup dry white wine
½ cup water
2 cups chicken stock
3 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 raw garlic clove, thinly grated

Directions

For the beef shanks, pat dry with paper towels to remove any excess moisture. Season each shank with salt and freshly ground pepper.

In a large Dutch oven pot, heat butter until melted. Add bee shanks and stewing beef to the hot pan and brown all sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove browned shanks and reserve.

In the same pot, add the onion soup mix, carrots and celery. The salt in the soup mix will help draw out the moisture from the vegetables. Saute until soft. Add the tomato paste and mix well. Return browned shanks and stewing beef to the pan and add the white wine, water, hot pepper paste and garlic, reduce liquid by half, about 5 minutes. Add rosemary, thyme, bay leaf and 2 cups of the chicken stock and bring to a boil.

Lay beef shanks and stewing beef at the bottom of the crockpot, pouring out all liquids, spices and juices from your pot. Set crockpot to high (4 hours) to ensure meat is tender and falls off the fork.

Once done, carefully remove the cooked shanks from the pot and place in decorative serving platter. Remove bay leaf, rosemary twig and oregano twig before serving. Pour all the juices and sauce from the pot over the shanks.

Garnish with traditional gremolada of: chopped parsley, lemon zest and grated raw garlic and serve with a saffron rissotto.

Enjoy!

Spinach leftovers...

As much as hubby and I are trying to be healthy and staying on our grocery budget for the month, salads and greens always seem to be items that we don't "get around" to using very often although we always include them in our weekly grocery lists :) But I was refusing to throw a pound of spinach away and came up with the following recipe. Although the base of this recipe was from a recipe on meals.com, I've included below my changes to it. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did...

Spinach Pie

Ingredients:

1 tsp olive oil
3 green onion, chopped
8 cups of loosely packed spinach
1 pie crust
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese
2 portobello mushrooms, chopped
1/2 orange sweet pepper, chopped
3/4 cup evaporated milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons fresh dill
2 teaspoons fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° F.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil until shimmering. Add the onions and sauté until tender. Stir in the spinach and then turn off the heat. The spinach will start to wilt down, but not much. Let cool slightly.

To the spinach mixture, add eggs, feta cheese, milk, flour, dill and pepper in medium bowl; pour into pie crust. Top with Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until set; let stand for 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

Mini Meat Loaves... what a perfect portion size too!

I've been making this recipe for years but for whatever reason never seemed to have written it down until today. I had some leftover ground beef from the tacos we made for the kids sleepover and this was the perfect and easiest recipe to use it in.

Note: Please don't mind the paper plates but I was determined to not do any dishes that night! LOL!

Mini Meat Loaves

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ chopped yellow onions
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 egg, beaten
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp red wine vinegar
1 pound extra lean ground beef
1/2 cup plain dry bread crumbs
1/2 cup ketchup

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a muffin tray with nonstick cooking spray.

Heat the olive oil in a medium saute pan. Add the onions, garlic, seasoning, salt, and pepper and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, until the onions are translucent but not brown. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.

In a bowl, add egg, worcestershire sauce and red wine vinegar.

In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, onion mixture, bread crumbs, and egg mixture, and mix lightly with a fork. Don't mash or the meatloaf will be dense. Divide the mixture into 6 muffin tins, filling the remaining muffin areas with water to prevent any burning. Spread about a tablespoon of ketchup on the top of each portion.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the meat is cooked through. Serve with mushroom mashed potatoes and steamed carrots

Enjoy!

Giada's Pork Chops

Today's dinner was a twist on Giada's Pork Chops with Sweet Onion Marmellata. It was absolutely yummy, especially when served with couscous and a side salad or green beans and steamed baby carrots.

Pork Chops with Sweet Onion Marmellata




Onion Marmellata:
1/4 cup olive oil
4 large onions, thinly sliced (about 3 pounds)
1/4 cup quince marmalade
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme (or ½ tsp of dried thyme)
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon hot pimento paste
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar

Pork Chops:
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon garlic salt
2 tablespoons of hot pimento pepper
2 tablespoons of water
4 to 6 boneless pork loin chops

For the onion marmellata, place a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and the onions. Stir to combine and cook until starting to sizzle, about 2 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients. Reduce the heat to low. Cover the pot and cook over low heat for 2 hours, stirring every 30 minutes to scrape up any brown bits. The onions should be a soft, jam-like consistency and a deep mahogany color.

Meanwhile, for the pork chops, combine the garlic, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Using your fingers, work all the ingredients together until well combined. Rub the mixture over the pork chops. Cover with plastic wrap and reserve in the refrigerator.

About 20 minutes before the onions are finished, remove the pork chops from the refrigerator. Place a grill pan over medium-high heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Grill the pork chops to medium, about 7 minutes a side depending on thickness. To serve, spoon the onion marmellata over the pork chops. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Mexican Birthday Party (cont'd)

Our main dishes included a Taco Bar & Chili con carne.... We did serve the chili with sweet corn muffins but the recipe needs some tweaking so I'd rather not post it...

Our Taco Bar included the following:

Soft Tacos
Hard Tacos
Ground beef
shredded chicken
bell peppers
tomatoes
lettuce
sour cream
cheddar cheese
onions
olives
jalapenos

Chili Con Carne

Ingredients

1 tbsp oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tbsp ground cumin
2 lb ground beef
12 ¾ oz can of crushed tomatoes (400g)
1 cup beef stock
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tsps of sugar
2 tbsp tomato paste
12 ¾ oz can of red kidney beans, rinsed and drained (400g)

Directions

Heat the oil in a large pan and add onion. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes or until soft and golden. Add the garlic, chilli and cumin, and cook for 1 minute.

Add the meat and cook for 5 minutes, or until browned, breaking up any lumps with a fork as it cooks.

Stir in the tomato, stock, oregano and sugar. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Stir in the tomato paste and beans and season. Cook for 5 minutes to heat the beans, then serve with cornbread to mop up the juices.

Heat the oil in a large pan and add onion. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes or until soft and golden. Add the garlic, chilli and cumin, and cook for 1 minute.

Add the meat and cook for 5 minutes, or until browned, breaking up any lumps with a fork as it cooks.

Stir in the tomato, stock, oregano and sugar. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Stir in the tomato paste and beans and season. Cook for 5 minutes to heat the beans, then serve with cornbread to mop up the juices.

Another Successful Giada Recipe

It was girl's night and I had volunteered to bring dinner with me. With all the varying tastes, I wasn't sure what to bring but once again Giada came through. Our main dish included: Giada's Garlic & Citrus Chicken and our side dish was a take on Giada's Baked Penne with Roasted Vegetables.

Garlic and Citrus Chicken

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 50 minutes
Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

1 (3-5 pound) whole roasting chicken, neck and giblets discarded
1 lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 orange, quartered
1 lemon, quartered
1 head garlic, halved crosswise, plus 3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 can reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves
Kitchen string or butcher twine

Directions

Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.

Clean the chicken with water and the juice of a lemon. Pat the chicken dry and sprinkle the cavity with salt and pepper. Stuff the cavity with the orange, lemon, and garlic halves. Tie the chicken legs together with kitchen string to help hold its shape. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper.

Place a rack in a large roasting pan. Place the chicken, breast side up, on the rack in the pan and place in the oven with half of the chicken broth. Lower the oven to 375 degrees F. Roast the chicken for 1 hour, basting occasionally. Whisk the orange juice, lemon juice, oil, oregano, and chopped garlic in a medium bowl to blend. Brush some of the juice mixture over the chicken, after it has baked for 1 hour. Lower the oven to 350 degrees F and continue roasting and basting the chicken with the juice mixture about 30-45 minutes longer. Transfer the chicken to a platter. Tent with foil while making the sauce (do not clean the pan).

Place the same roasting pan over medium-low heat. Whisk in any remaining broth and simmer until the sauce is reduced to 1 cup, stirring often, about 3 minutes. Strain into a 2-cup glass measuring cup and discard the solids. Spoon the fat from the top of the sauce. Serve the chicken with the pan sauce.

Baked Ziti with Roasted Vegetables

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 6-8 servings

Ingredients

1 red pepper, cored and cut into 1-inch wide strips
2 zucchini, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1-inch cubes
10-12 mushrooms, halved
1 red onion, peeled and sliced into 1-inch strips
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 tablespoon dried Italian herb mix
340g whole wheat ziti pasta
2 cups marinara sauce
1 ½ cup grated mozzarella
1 cup frozen peas, thawed
1/3 cup grated Parmesan
1 tablespoon butter, cut into small pieces

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

On a baking sheet, toss the peppers, zucchini, squash, mushrooms, and onions with olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and dried herbs. Roast until tender, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook for about 6 minutes. Since you will be cooking the pasta a second time in the oven, you want to make sure the inside is still hard. Drain in a colander.

In a large bowl, toss the drained pasta with the roasted vegetables, marinara sauce, cheese and peas. Gently mix, until all the pasta is coated and the ingredients are combined.

Lower the oven to 350 degrees. Place the pasta into a 9 by 13-inch pan. Top with Parmesan and butter pieces. Bake until top is golden and cheese melts, about 30-40 minutes.

Enjoy!

Pasta and Vodka...yum!!!

Desperate to cook something without having to go to the grocery store to pick up anything, I had all of the ingredients at home to make the following dish...

Fettucine alla Vodka

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
¼ cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon hot pimento paste
200 grams frozen cooked shrimp
2 cups of diced tomatoes (with ¼ cup of liquid)
Garlic salt
1/3 cup vodka
1/2 cup heavy cream, room temperature
340 grams whole wheat fettucine (1 package)
Salt to season
2 tablespoons minced fresh basil leaves
Grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and tomato paste and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are light golden around edges, about 3 minutes. Add garlic and pepper flakes; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add shrimp (or ½ cup of diced sausage)

Stir in tomatoes and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Remove pan from heat and add vodka. Return pan to medium-high heat and simmer for 10-12 minutes. Stir in cream and cook until hot, approximately 2-3 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts water to boil in large Dutch oven over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon salt and fettucine. Cook for 9 minutes (al dente), then drain pasta (reserve ¼ cup of pasta water). Add sauce to pasta and toss over medium heat until pasta absorbs some of sauce, 1 to 2 minutes, adding reserved cooking water if sauce is too thick.

Divide among pasta bowls. Sprinkle with basil and parmesan cheese.

Serve with a Caesar salad and garlic bread.

Enjoy!

This was a really good recipe. Next time I’d like to try this recipe with 1 cup of diced chouriço instead of the shrimp…hmmm... now I'm looking forward to another chilly weekend :)

What's in our freezer?

Hubby and I are trying to use up all the food we currently have in the freezer so I found a beef roast and decided to cook it up for last night’s meal. I found this recipe on foodtv.ca and what a great one it was. I served it alongside sautéed spinach and steamed baby carrots.

Beef Tenderloin with Peppercorn Sauce

Ingredients

2 lb. beef tenderloin roast (900 g)
1 tsp dry oregano leaves, crushed (5 ml)
1 tsp coarse salt (5 ml)
1 tsp black pepper, crushed (5 ml)
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp dry thyme, crushed (5 ml)
1 tsp paprika (5 ml)

Peppercorn Sauce
1 1/2 cup marsala wine (375 ml)
1 cup chicken broth (250 ml)
1 clove garlic, crushed
10 x peppercorns, multicolored, crushed
1 1/2 cup whipping cream (375 ml)
1/2 tsp dijon mustard (5 ml)
Coarse salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

Beef Tenderloin
1. Heat oven to 425 F.
2. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Press combined ingredients evenly onto the surface of the beef tenderloin. Place beef on a rack in a shallow roasting pan.
3. Place a meat thermometer in the centre of the beef. Do not cover beef or place water at the bottom. Allow roast to cook for 35 to 40 minutes for medium rare.
4. When meat thermometer reads 135 F, remove roast from the oven, cover it with aluminum foil and allow it to sit for 10 to 15 minutes. The temperature will rise to 145 F degrees allowing meat to reach a medium rare state. Transfer roast to a carving board and allow it to rest for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting. Cut into ½ inch thick slices.
5. Arrange desired number of slices of beef on a plate. Spoon peppercorn sauce over slices of roast beef.

Peppercorn Sauce
1. Add wine, broth, peppercorns and garlic to the tenderloin roasting pan and cook for 20 minutes or until the liquids are reduced to half. Add cream and mustard and, stirring frequently, cook for 20 minutes or until liquid is reduced by half again. Season to taste and allow to cook for 1 more minute. Remove from heat and spoon sauce over tenderloin.
2. Garnish with a sprig of oregano if desired.