Tag Archives: main dish

Jan 11 2012

Roasted Garlic Macaroni and Cheese

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We usually have some sort of pasta with red sauce with our Christmas dinner. When I was flipping through my bookmarked recipes, looking for some inspiration for this year’s pasta dish, I came across this one.  It wasn’t what I was planning on making, but it looked too good not to try anyway.

This was one of the Christmas dinner favorites. It’s perfectly creamy and cheesy and the roasted garlic really makes this something special. I roasted the garlic the day before so I’d have less prep time when I actually made it.

Roasted Garlic Macaroni and Cheese
(from Annie’s Eats)
Serves 10-12 as a side

1 head garlic
1 tsp. olive oil
12 oz. dry pasta
3 T. unsalted butter
3 T. all-purpose flour
3 c. milk
1/4 t. dried parsley
1/4 t. cayenne pepper
8 oz. white cheddar cheese, shredded
4 oz. crumbled garlic and herb boursin cheese, divided
Salt and pepper

Cut about 1/2 in. off the top of the garlic. Cut the roots so that the garlic will sit flat. Remove the papery skin for the garlic, but leave enough so that the cloves stay together. Put garlic into a small casserole dish or baking pan, drizzle olive oil over it and cover with a lid or foil. Bake at 325F degrees for 1 hour. Remove garlic and let it cool until you can handle it. Squeeze all of the garlic out of the skins and smash with a fork to make a paste.

Increase the oven temperature to 400F degrees. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Cook the pasta until about 2 minutes shy of al dente according to the package directions. Drain in a colander. Return the pasta to the pot and set aside. Meanwhile in a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Whisk in the flour and the roasted garlic paste and cook, stirring constantly, until light golden, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the milk, dried parsley, and cayenne. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce comes to a low boil and thickens noticeably. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cheddar and about 3 ounces of the boursin. Whisk until the cheese is completely melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Pour the sauce over the drained pasta and toss to coat well. Transfer to a lightly greased 2 quart baking dish and top with the remaining boursin. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the top is browned and the cheese is bubbling. Let cool at least 5-10 minutes before serving.

Jan 4 2012

Fig and Orange Glazed Ham

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I was still undecided about what to make for Christmas dinner the week before. The week before was also the annual Christmas party for my Mom’s side of the family. Her cousin, Suzie, gave us all jars of homemade fig jam. When I saw this recipe, it was a Eureka! moment.

Included below are the instructions for glazing a half ham. I took a shortcut and cut slices off our spiral ham, laid them in a baking dish and then spooned the glaze over. I preferred it this way for two reasons 1) it would heat up quicker and 2) every slice got more glazed goodness like this.

Fig and Orange Glazed Ham
(from Food Network)
Makes enough glaze for 1  Spiral Sliced Half Ham

1 c. fig jam
2 T. dijon mustard
Grated zest of 1 orange
1/3 c. fresh orange juice

Combine the jam, mustard, and orange zest and juice in a small saucepan over low heat. Cook, stirring, just until the jam melts (do not boil).

For ham slices, layer in pan and spread glaze over. Cover with foil and bake at 350F degrees until warmed through.

For a half ham, preheat the oven as directed on the ham package and follow the instructions for baking the ham. Remove the ham from the oven about 30 minutes before the end of the warming time. Spoon half of the glaze over the ham and bake for the remaining 30 minutes. Remove the ham from the oven and spoon the remaining glaze on top. Transfer to a cutting board and carve.

Aug 1 2011

Chicken Gyros

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Until recently, I’d never had Greek food. I made up a batch of tzatziki sauce for a recipe and sort of fell in love with it – now I end up starring almost every Greek-inspired recipe that shows up in my Google Reader.

Being new to Greek food, this was my first gyro. I know, it’s sad – but after this I’m sure I’ll be making up for lost time. We loved these and loved how easy they were to make.

Chicken Gyros
(from Prevention RD)
Serves 2

3/4 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast
2 cloves garlic, smashed
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 t. red wine vinegar
1 T. extra virgin olive oil
1 T. plain Greek yogurt
1 1/2 t. dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste
1 recipe of tzatziki
1 small tomato, chopped
1/4 small red onion, sliced thin
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 pocketless pitas

In a medium bowl, whisk together the garlic, lemon juice, vinegar, oil, yogurt, and oregano. Transfer mixture to a large resealable bag and add the chicken. Refrigerate for about an hour, turning occasionally.

Preheat grill on medium-high heat. Remove chicken from marinade. Grill chicken until just cooked through, about 5 minutes per side, or until meat thermometer inserted into the chicken read 160 degrees F. Allow the chicken to rest for a few minutes before slicing into strips.

Wrap pitas in aluminum foil and place directly on oven rack and heat for 6-8 minutes.

Divide chicken strips evenly among pitas; top each gyro with 1/4 cup tzatziki sauce, tomato slices, red onion slices, and 2 tablespoons feta. Wrap aluminium foil around gyro, cut in half, and serve immediately.

Apr 18 2011

Thyme Roasted Chicken and Vegetables

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A roast chicken seems like the perfect Sunday dinner to me. Not only is it an excellent meal, it makes enough leftovers for us to make several other dinners throughout the week – it’s a win-win.

This chicken was perfectly seasoned and roasting the vegetables alongside make for a delicious and easy side.

Thyme Roasted Chicken and Vegetables
(adapted from All Recipes)
Serves 4-6

1 (5-6 lb. pound) whole roasting chicken
1 T. butter, melted
4 medium red potatoes, quartered
4 medium carrots, cut into chunks
1/2 large white onion, chopped into 1″ chunks
1/2 t. dried thyme
1 c. chicken broth
1/2 c. orange juice

Brush the chicken with the butter. Place the chicken and vegetables into a roasting pan. Season with the thyme. Mix the stock and orange juice in a small bowl and pour half the stock mixture over the chicken and vegetables.

Roast at 375F degrees for 45 minutes.

Stir the vegetables. Add the remaining stock mixture to the pan. Roast for 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

Apr 6 2011

Chicken Spaghetti

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This recipe is from another recipe swap. One of the reasons I’m enjoying these swaps is because it’s making me try dishes I wouldn’t have otherwise – like this one. If I had seen this on a blog, I don’t think I would have given it a second look – Mark’s not a fan of casseroles and I try to cook healthier than pasta drenched in cream soup.

In the spirit of the swap, I made it anyway – and I’m so glad I did. We loved it. It’s a rarity that we both go back for seconds but we did with this dish. It’s a great, comfort food dinner and can be made ahead and frozen.

Chicken Spaghetti
(adapted from Pioneer Woman)
Serves 3-4

1 c. cooked chicken, cubed
1 1/2 c. dry spaghetti broken up into 2 inch pieces
1 cans cream of mushroom soup
1 1/2 c. cheddar cheese, grated and divided
1/4 c. diced onion
1/2 t. seasoned salt
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt and Pepper
 
Cook to spaghetti al dente. Mix spaghetti with the chicken, onion, cream of mushroom soup, seasoned salt, cayenne pepper and 1 c. of cheddar. Add salt and pepper to taste. 

Spread into a casserole dish and top with remaining cheddar.  Bake at 350 for 35-45 minutes, until hot and bubbly.

Linked up with Ingredient Spotlight: Chicken & Pasta at Finding Joy in My Kitchen.

Feb 28 2011

Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon

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In the interest of full disclosure, I feel like I should mention that this is the first time I’ve ever had beef bourguignon, so I don’t know how it compares to a more traditional version – but we both really enjoyed this.

I made this on one of the many snow days we’ve had recently and it smelled awesome all day while it was cooking. The meat came out very moist and tender and the carrots picked up a nice tartness from the red wine. We used the extra red wine sauce as a gravy to top everything off.

Despite being a nearly zero-effort meal, it seemed like a special dinner. It’s something I’ll definitely make again.

Slow Cooker Beef Bourguignon
(from A Year of Slow Cooking)
Serves 3

1 1/2 lbs. beef roast, or beef stew meat 
4 slices bacon, uncooked
2 T. olive oil
1/2 onion, sliced in rings
1 cup baby carrots 
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 T. herbs de provence
1 t. kosher salt
1/2 t. black pepper
1 T. tomato paste
2 cups red wine 

In the bottom of your stoneware, smear around the olive oil. Then lay down 2 slices of bacon. Add sliced onion and garlic. Put the meat into the pot on top of the onion and garlic and sprinkle on dried spices and herbs. Toss the meat to distribute the spices to all sides. Add tomato paste. Lay the other 2 slices of bacon on top of the meat, and throw in the carrots. Pour wine over the whole thing.

Cover and let cook on low for 8-9 hours, high for 4-5, or until meat has reached desired tenderness. If you are using a roast, you may want to flip the meat about an hour before serving so more liquid is absorbed into the meat.

Feb 21 2011

Eggplant “Gateau”

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When I’m making dinner for just Mark and I, I generally try to cut the recipe down to two or three servings. It usually works well. For this recipe, though, it didn’t work as well as planned.

The idea is that eggplant slices and a tomato mixture is layered into a cake pan to make a sort of vegetable cake. (Gateau is French for cake, by the way.) I halved the recipe without changing the cake pan size, so the ingredients were too spread out to actually make it cake-ish, but the flavor was fantastic. For the full recipe (and hopefully a more cake-like presentation), double the recipe below.

Eggplant Gateau
(from Gordon Ramsay Makes It Easy)
Serves 3

1 medium eggplant, thinly sliced
Olive oil to drizzle
2 T. butter
Quart of cherry tomoatoes (about 3/4 lb.)
1 clove of garlic, minced
Small handful of basil leaves
Salt and pepper
1 1/2 oz. parmesan, freshly grated

Heat the oven to 400F degrees. Thinly slice the eggplants and lay the slices out on a large, oiled baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and bake for 5-8 minutes, until softened and lightly browned.

Like an 8″ round cake pan with waxed paper. Melt the butter in a large saute pan and cook the cherry tomatoes with the garlic until soft and pulpy. Tear in the basil leaves and season with salt and pepper

Layer a third of the eggplant slices over the base of the prepared pan, top with half the tomato mixture, then sprinkle over some Parmesan. Add another layer of eggplant, then the remaining tomato mixture. Cover with a final layer of eggplant and sprinkle generously with parmesan.

Bake the gateau for 10 minutes until the topping is golden and bubbling. Let stand for 5 mintues, then turn out onto a warm plate.

Jan 19 2011

Penne with Cauliflower & Breadcrumbs

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I saw this recipe while flipping through the Sunday papers and it looked like a great comfort food dish. Mark was a little  hesitant to try it because of the cauliflower but he really liked it – we both did.  The cauliflower added a really nice creamy texture to the dish. 

 The recipe below was supposed to be for two servings but there was more than enough for me to take for lunch the next day.


 Penne with Cauliflower & Breadcrumbs
(from November 2010 dash magazine)

4 oz. penne
3 c. cauliflower florets
1 T. butter
1 T. dijon mustard
1/2 c. breadcrumbs
1/4 c. heavy cream
2/3 c. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Salt & pepper to taste

Boil pasta and cauliflower until pasta is al dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 c. cooking liquid. Return pasta and cauliflower to pot.

Meanwhile, melt butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Whisk in mustard. Add breadcrumbs and cook, stirring, until golden – about 7-8 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.

Add cream, parmesan and cooking liquid to pasta. Toss over medium heat until sauce simmers – about 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Top with breadcrumbs and serve with extra parmesan.

Oct 1 2010

Family & Food Fridays: Golden Pizza Fondue

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The Adventures of Miss V

When Mark and I got engaged, we moved into a little apartment that was an easier commute from both of our jobs. A few months before we moved out, Ruth moved in downstairs.  To say she was a fantastic neighbor was an understatement.

She was like another grandmother – always happy to chat and find out what was new. We’d stand in our doorways and swap stories for hours. And she was always happy to pass along bits of knowledge that she thought I should know about keeping a home.

This recipe is one she shared with me. She makes it frequently for her (9!) children and plethora of grandchildren – and we love it too.

Golden Pizza Fondue
(Originally from The Farmer’s Wife section of the Farm Journal magazine, circa 1970)

 Makes about 4 cups of fondue – serve with bread chunks
 
1 T. minced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T. butter
2 T. flour
1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes with no added seasoning
1/2 t. basil
1/2 t. oregano
1/8 t. cayenne pepper
1/8 t. black pepper
1/2 c. milk
1 lb. mild cheddar cheese, shredded
1 T. grated parmesan cheese
 
Saute onion and garlic in melted butter in a 3 qt. saucepan until tender. Stir in flour.
 
Stir in tomatoes. Add basil, oregano, cayenne pepper and pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring regularly for five minutes.
 
Slowly stir in milk.
 
Add cheese, a little at a time, stirring until melted. Add parmesan cheese.
 
Pour into fondue pot and keep warm. If mixture becomes too thick, stir in a little hot milk.