Baked Manicotti

We are big fans of Cook's Illustrated/America's Test Kitchen in this house and when we're on the hunt for a REALLY good recipe, how to make something for the first time [complicated or simple] or that perfect blend of ingredients to make the best __________...we go there first.

So we were hankering for some good Italian food - like the kind of Italian we used to get back home in NJ that doesn't really exist here in New England [except maybe in the North End] - and I've never made manicotti before!  This is what we found and oh my was it good!

Here's the thing with these recipes, they have been tried and tested, if you've never made manicotti before, follow it!  Stick with whole milk ricotta cheese and fresh basil! Please?!

We really enjoyed this super meaty, flavorful dish! We have oven safe bowls and for leftovers I made sure to heat up the servings slowly in our toaster oven.  Garnish with a little more, freshly grated parmesan cheese and you are all set! Enjoy!

Butternut Squash Lasagna, two ways!

Okay, yum! I've already made this about three times and for the most recent adventure I used sweet potatoes instead of squash and super yum!! 

This recipe originated from a bridal shower I attended earlier in the year and once I tried it I HAD to make it! My parents came to visit soon after and it was a perfect lunch - and they are honest guinea pigs.  The backbone of the recipe is from Giada (host of Everyday Italian on the Food Network).  Her Butternut Squash Lasagna is delicious and combine a host of some of my favorite flavors.
An advantage to trying this recipe is that I've never cooked with squash before, it's not a huge hit in our house and I've never had a reason to go through the process of peeling, seeding & chopping - it's quite the chore!

Once you have diced the squash (or sweet potatoes) follow the directions in the recipe and consider using cracked black pepper and sea salt for the flavor.  It really goes a long way.  Once you have sautéed the veggies and mashed them all up the recipe calls for a crumbled cookie...a cookie that I couldn't find in the grocery store.  A good substitute: Stella Doro cookies with an almond flavor, it does the trick!  I forgot this step when I made it the last time and honestly, with sweet potatoes, you don't need it.

While the sweet potatoes and/or squash is sautéing consider starting your basil-cream sauce. So yum!  I bought a basil plant for this as it was past season for my basil plants outside.  If you're local to the Seacoast area I recommend using Olivia's Garden Basil, it has a great peppery flavor and will last a decent amount of time in your kitchen - away from moisture.
It's important to follow proportions when making a sauce that involves butter, flour and milk!  BTW, if you find yourself nearly out of milk, you can easily substitute your coffee's half & half to make up the difference, it actually makes a thicker sauce.

When blending the basil into your sauce, if you have a hand-held blender I highly suggest it (this one is similar to the one we have).  This way you can avoid having to dirty up another appliance and it's more efficient.
Be sure to use fresh mozzarella with this recipe, it really makes a difference in flavor and the moisture helps with the no-boil lasagna noodles (I love these!).  When you remove the foil for the last 15 minute bake, add some freshly shredded (not grated) parmesan cheese, it makes a nice crust and presentation on the top of the lasagna.  This would be a great meal for after Thanksgiving when you're sick of turkey but still in the mood for some fall flavors!
Last but not least, Enjoy! 

Wrapping up the summer...

Hello everyone, time to wrap up the summer.  I'm not that upset about it, I get really excited for pumpkin flavored anything, new cupcakes recipes to try and soups! We enjoyed a beautiful, sunny day here in New Hampshire, but it's getting cold enough outside that my basil plant is about ready to give it up.  I hate to see the flowers go so the only solution to partial-summer-blues is to have bruschetta for dinner! It's lite but the bread helps to fill you up so you don't go looking for Oreos and milk after dinner - unless your my SH, then there's not stopping that obsession....so, bruschetta!  

I highly suggest using a soft but crusty Italian bread, not toasted, with extra virgin olive oil drizzled on top.  The harder crust keeps the bread from collapsing and the soft center will easily hold the topping.  Sometimes, we also pull out some of the bread to create a "crater" to keep the topping in place.  
For two people, you'll need about 3-4 roma tomatoes, seeded and finely chopped.

We are basil fiends, so I chopped up about 15 leaves.  I rolled the leaves then sliced the leaves julienne.  Mix together the tomatoes, basil, garlic powder [I use garlic powder instead of crushed garlic cloves because the powder distributes much better....your friends will appreciate it too], some s/p and a little more olive oil.  

Pile the topping on your bread and sprinkle with some freshly grated parmesan cheese.  

Now it's time for the balsamic syrup.  I believe I have mentioned in other posts that we really enjoy a balsamic glaze for this recipe as opposed to regular balsamic dressing.  It's slightly thicker and the flavor is bolder.

Yum! This is one of our favorite, last- minute recipes.  Working at a bread bakery certainly has expanded this treat...use super fresh bread the next time you try this, the warm, soft bread will make a big difference!  Enjoy!

Bowtie Bolognese

A few weeks ago I had an Italian night with some of my lady friends.  I have to say I was a little more than embarrassed with how the food came out.  I made Bruschetta to start, Spaghetti Bolognese, Garlic bread, simple salad and attempted a Turtle Cheesecake - this did not turn out well at all.
I purchased noodles from Terra Cotta Pasta and I was less than thrilled with the fresh pasta.  I really do think it's time to start learning how to make my own.  I don't think I chose the right flavor/kind of noodle, either way I don't think it made a wise choice for the sauce.  
Well, we dined and somewhat enjoyed the meal, certainly enjoyed each other's company and a large bottle of red wine.  I have to say, it wasn't that bad, but certainly not up to par with what I expected of myself.  I made an awful lot of sauce so I had a chance to freeze the leftovers for a rainy day.
Imagine my surprise when we defrosted the sauce to use for an easy meal with Barilla, Bow-tie Pasta, and it was delicious!  We slowly defrosted the sauce in the fridge, dunked the container in a little warm water to loosen it and slowly heated the sauce on the stove until warm and bubbly.  We tossed the pasta and the sauce over a low heat, spooned into bowls and topped with fresh parmesan cheese. Excellent meal! Enjoy [see the link above for the recipe from Mario Batali]!

[more on my attempt with the cheesecake at another time, I think I should attempt regular cheesecake first!]

Linguine!!

Source: mariobatali.com

So, I was wandering through my bookmarked blogs and re-found Cupcakes and Cashmere on the day she posted Mario Batali's Bologonese sauce...mmmm. I have been avoiding trying to make this dish because my Uncle Mattar used to have a killer tortellini bolognese on his menu when Frank was the chef - I mean absolutely scrumptious, long before he became Mattar's bistro. Side trip: I've been eating at Mattar's since he opened so Tortellini Bolognese probably runs through my veins, along with his out of this world Calamari (I believe I drew him a picture when I was just a kid that said, "Best Calamari in the Universe." Pretty sure it was his first award. So, first real point is that I've been avoiding trying to make it because how can you beat the best? My sweet husband has been requesting Spaghetti Bolognese for quite some time and I finally decided that MB was probably a good source. Second side trip: Never trust a skinny cook. 
It was absolutely delicious. Quite a lot of work in the chopping and dicing category but after an hour of simmering in my saute pan the house smelled like Frank's kitchen = heaven. He had promised to show me how to make his coveted Bolognese sauce and decadent Key Lime Pie but the opportunity never arose. When he opened his own restaurant (he has since retired to the upper confines of some mountain) I would regularly make a trip to the kitchen to say hello and get a glimpse at the inner workings of a gourmet kitchen.  Imagine my excitement when Ratatouille hit the theaters...
So the linguine (apparently this was a compromise between tortellini and spaghetti) and bolognese sauce was a hit and probably the best thing I have ever made. Pair it with a nice red wine and sweet peas as a vegetable and you have yourself a wonderful, filling and delicious meal!

Pasta Carbonara

I've never had Pasta Carbonara before so we made it for dinner! Well that and we've been watching way too much Man v. Food and saw the simple dish made on one of his stops.

Considering his massive portions and food challenges you'd think it would be the worst thing to watch while trying to trim the waist line but actually if you watch it after dinner for an evening wind-down, it's tolerable. If I have to even make this point: don't watch in the middle of the day when you haven't made any plans for lunch and/or dinner because you will end up marching down to your local hole in the wall for something in the hamburger family.

Either way, this dish is extremely easy to make and you can actually lower the content of fat and cholesterol by using less bacon and egg yolks. The recipe I used called for 6 strips of bacon and 4 egg yolks for an entire pound of pasta. *Good tip here: Save the egg whites for an omlet the next morning, you'll feel a lot better about your choice over a whole egg breakfast sandwich* We had angel hair pasta with about 3/4 of the box left so in turn I only made 4 strips of bacon and used 3 egg yolks - oh and went super light on the bacon drippings when tossing the pasta - yea. It was like a refined breakfast at my favorite Italian restaurant.


Let's make something clear, my portion was enough to taste what I've been missing and I made a decent salad to pair with baby arugula - the best - splash of peanuts, tomatoes, carrots, craisins and balsamic vinegar dressing. So either way, this dish isn't exactly heart healthy but it was yet again fun to try something new and put my Real Simple binders to good use.


Oh and please use fresh parsley, you won't regret it.