My friend Angie came to my house and made this dish for my family (and hers) just after the birth of my third child. It was sooooo good - the nice firmness of the pasta, with the somehow creamily tamed zesty tomato sauce. Mmmm... I've made it for a number of large gathering occasions, to good reviews. I usually double the recipe.
1 lb pasta (ziti, penne)
1 large can or jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce
1 brick of cream cheese
1 lb of shredded mozzarella cheese (ok, start with 2 cups, go from there)
Look at the box of pasta, and follow the instructions to cook it to Al Dente.
Cut the cream cheese into cubes and add it to a saucepan along with the spaghetti sauce. Heat the mixture until the cream cheese is completely melted. Taste the sauce. If it's too rich for your taste, open another jar of spaghetti sauce and add a little at a time until it tastes good to you.
Mix together the pasta, sauce and two cups of shredded cheese. Top with more shredded cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to an hour, until the cheese is thoroughly melted.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
How I make my turkey
Every year at this time, there comes the question: who will make the turkey? In my family, the answer is now my husband and I. We are devoted fans of Alton Brown. We've gained copious amounts of cooking knowledge from his show Good Eats on Food Network. His turkey cookin recipe on FoodNetwork.com is famous - but it's not the one I use. My favorite of his turkey recipes comes from his book I'm Just Here for the Food: Version 2.0
I've modified it slightly.
15 ish lb bird thawed (smaller, bigger, the brine works either way...)
3 cups kosher salt
1 cup dark brown sugar (if all you have is light, go for it)
2 gallons water
12-oz container of orange juice concentrate
2 gallons of ice cubes
Canola Oil
A cooler big enough to fit your bird and two gallons of liquid
bleach (to clean the cooler when you're done. YES BLEACH!)
For the brine: dissolve the salt, sugar, and juice concentrate in 2 quarts of hot water. Cool the solution with 6 quarts of cold water.
Clean the turkey and place in the cooler. Pour the brine over the turkey. If it isn't completely covered with the brine, add some chicken or vegetable stock. (Don't add water - it will weaken the brine.) Cover the whole thing with ice, close the lid, keep the kids away and brine for 6 to 8 hours.
Pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees when there's about 30 minutes remaining in the brining process.
Remove the turkey from the brine, and dry it thoroughly with paper towels. Rub it liberally with canola oil (get it good - every little cranny.)
Put the turkey in a roasting pan on a roasting rack (if you disposable pans - use two.) Cover the wing tips with aluminum foil.
Roast the turkey at 500 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove the bird from the oven, reduce the heat to 350 degrees and cover the breasts with a double-layer of aluminum foil, folded in a triangle. Insert a probe thermometer into the thickest part of the breast (right through the foil) and set the thermometer to 161 degrees.
Depending on the size of your turkey, it will take about 2 to 2.5 hours.
Don't forget to let your bird rest before carving.
TO CLEAN THE COOLER: Take it outside if you can, or in your laundry tub. If you have to use the kitchen sink, clean it thoroughly when you're finished. Rinse the cooler several times with water, and then clean it with bleach (ok, I guess you could use lysol, but preferably BLEACH)
I've modified it slightly.
15 ish lb bird thawed (smaller, bigger, the brine works either way...)
3 cups kosher salt
1 cup dark brown sugar (if all you have is light, go for it)
2 gallons water
12-oz container of orange juice concentrate
2 gallons of ice cubes
Canola Oil
A cooler big enough to fit your bird and two gallons of liquid
bleach (to clean the cooler when you're done. YES BLEACH!)
For the brine: dissolve the salt, sugar, and juice concentrate in 2 quarts of hot water. Cool the solution with 6 quarts of cold water.
Clean the turkey and place in the cooler. Pour the brine over the turkey. If it isn't completely covered with the brine, add some chicken or vegetable stock. (Don't add water - it will weaken the brine.) Cover the whole thing with ice, close the lid, keep the kids away and brine for 6 to 8 hours.
Pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees when there's about 30 minutes remaining in the brining process.
Remove the turkey from the brine, and dry it thoroughly with paper towels. Rub it liberally with canola oil (get it good - every little cranny.)
Put the turkey in a roasting pan on a roasting rack (if you disposable pans - use two.) Cover the wing tips with aluminum foil.
Roast the turkey at 500 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove the bird from the oven, reduce the heat to 350 degrees and cover the breasts with a double-layer of aluminum foil, folded in a triangle. Insert a probe thermometer into the thickest part of the breast (right through the foil) and set the thermometer to 161 degrees.
Depending on the size of your turkey, it will take about 2 to 2.5 hours.
Don't forget to let your bird rest before carving.
TO CLEAN THE COOLER: Take it outside if you can, or in your laundry tub. If you have to use the kitchen sink, clean it thoroughly when you're finished. Rinse the cooler several times with water, and then clean it with bleach (ok, I guess you could use lysol, but preferably BLEACH)
Friday, November 19, 2010
Turkey Soup
One of the greatest things about cooking whole (or nearly whole) animals is that you can stretch them into multiple recipes.
Turkey Soup is a natural extension of thanksgiving.
1 Turkey Carcass with 2 cups cooked meat
2 tbsp canola oil
2 cups chopped onions
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp ground sage
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 1/2 cups chopped celery
2 cups sliced carrots
2 cups green beans
2/3 cup shell pasta
Chicken soup base
Remove meat from carcass. Chop meat into bit size pieces. Chop carcass into pieces small enough to fit into your stock pot.
Saute onions in oil over medium heat. Stir in carcass, seasonings, and 2 quarts of water. Increase heat to high and quickly bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for an hour.
Remove and discard carcass. Skim anything you wouldn't like to eat off the top of the water.
Stir in veggies. Cover and keep simmering 20-25 minutes.
Increase heat to high, bring mixture to a boil and stir in pasta. Lower heat to medium and cook 8-12 minutes until pasta and veggies are tender.
Stir turkey into soup. Heat over low heat 5-10 minutes until it reaches 165 degrees.
Taste the soup. Stir in chicken soup base mix if needed to taste (1/2 tsp at a time)
Turkey Soup is a natural extension of thanksgiving.
1 Turkey Carcass with 2 cups cooked meat
2 tbsp canola oil
2 cups chopped onions
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp ground sage
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 1/2 cups chopped celery
2 cups sliced carrots
2 cups green beans
2/3 cup shell pasta
Chicken soup base
Remove meat from carcass. Chop meat into bit size pieces. Chop carcass into pieces small enough to fit into your stock pot.
Saute onions in oil over medium heat. Stir in carcass, seasonings, and 2 quarts of water. Increase heat to high and quickly bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for an hour.
Remove and discard carcass. Skim anything you wouldn't like to eat off the top of the water.
Stir in veggies. Cover and keep simmering 20-25 minutes.
Increase heat to high, bring mixture to a boil and stir in pasta. Lower heat to medium and cook 8-12 minutes until pasta and veggies are tender.
Stir turkey into soup. Heat over low heat 5-10 minutes until it reaches 165 degrees.
Taste the soup. Stir in chicken soup base mix if needed to taste (1/2 tsp at a time)
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Pecan Pie
Whoever said making pecan pie is difficult, LIED. Make it for Thanksgiving. This my Aunt Mary's recipe ;)
1 cup corn syrup
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tbsp butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups of pecans
1 unbaked pie crust (9 inches)
Preheat over to 350 degrees. Mix the fix five ingredients together thoroughly. Stir in pecans. Pour mixture into pie crust. Bake for 55 minues to an hour.
1 cup corn syrup
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tbsp butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups of pecans
1 unbaked pie crust (9 inches)
Preheat over to 350 degrees. Mix the fix five ingredients together thoroughly. Stir in pecans. Pour mixture into pie crust. Bake for 55 minues to an hour.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Cranberries your kids will eat
I didn't grow up eating cranberries. My husband did; and when I overheard a version of this recipe on Food Network, I decided to try it. It's so good. The oranges and cranberries melt in your mouth and the pecans and an awesome crunch. Your kids (and my meat-and-potatoes brothers) will eat it.
14 oz can Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce
11 oz (small) can Mandarin Oranges, drained
1 handful of pecans (whole, half, pieces)
Dump the sauce, dump the oranges, stir. Just before serving, stir in the pecans. If you like to be fancy, put some more pecans on top.
This recipe serves a family of four comfortably. If you'll be having a table full at Thanksgiving, multiply the recipe. Roughly two cans of cranberries, one large can of oranges and two handfuls of pecans.
14 oz can Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce
11 oz (small) can Mandarin Oranges, drained
1 handful of pecans (whole, half, pieces)
Dump the sauce, dump the oranges, stir. Just before serving, stir in the pecans. If you like to be fancy, put some more pecans on top.
This recipe serves a family of four comfortably. If you'll be having a table full at Thanksgiving, multiply the recipe. Roughly two cans of cranberries, one large can of oranges and two handfuls of pecans.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Applesauce
This isn’t my recipe for applesauce. This is a process you can go through to try to create your “recipe” for applesauce.
Ingredients:
Apples
Ingredients to have on hand:
Sugar (brown or white)
Cinnamon
Nutmeg
Cloves
What kind of apples? Ask the person who grows your apples. Yes, that means going to an apple orchard. My favorites are Hillside Orchard near Casco, Wisconsin and Collegeville Orchards in Collegeville, Minnesota. My favorite applesauce apple is Macintosh. I recently did a batch using Paula Red, and it turned out well.
How many apples? As many as you have, or as many as fit in the pot. For your first batch, grab a peck (a small bag)
Begin your sauce by washing and polishing the apples. This removes any pesticides or anything else nature may have left behind. Please, don’t think peeling the apple removes all of this stuff. It removes a lot, but, in my opinion, if it’s on the knife, it could be in the pot. I feed this stuff to babies…
When they’re clean and dry, sit down and start peeling. You can use an apple machine if you have one, but a simple knife will do. (Well, two actually, one to peel and one to quarter and remove the cores from your apples.) While I don’t mind my applesauce turning a little brown, if you do, toss your apples into water with Fruit Fresh or lemon juice after you peel them.
Cooking the sauce: Cover the bottom of the pan with a little bit of water. Add the apples (drained, if you had them in water) and salt them. When I say salt, I mean, as if they were a helping of mashed potatoes or vegetables. Cook on medium low, stirring every few minutes. Apples can scorch, so keep an eye on the pot.
From here, the recipe becomes yours. How long do you cook the sauce? Until it’s the consistency that you like. What it thicker? Keep cooking. Like it lumpy? Cook it less. Like it smooth? You might want to whip it with an immersion blender or hand mixer in the pot, or in a blender or stand mixer just before canning.
As for sweetness, spiciness, etc. It’s up to you. When the sauce is nearing the consistency you like, taste it. Is it sweet enough for your taste? If not, add sugar, brown sugar or some splenda – about a quarter cup at a time. Stir until it’s well-incorporated, then taste again. If you like cinnamon, add it, a half or full teaspoon at a time. Nutmeg, try a quarter teaspoon at a time. Cloves, a pinch. Each time, stir until well-incorporated. IMPORTANT: you can always add a seasoning, you can’t take it away, so go slow.
To preserve: Applesauce freezes well, so if you have the space, pour into a freezer zip-top back, get rid of as much air as possible and freeze. Personally, I prefer to can it. Pour the sauce into jars, leaving a little headspace. Process pints in a boiling water bath for 20 minutes.
Every time I make applesauce, it tastes different, and that’s ok.
Ingredients:
Apples
Ingredients to have on hand:
Sugar (brown or white)
Cinnamon
Nutmeg
Cloves
What kind of apples? Ask the person who grows your apples. Yes, that means going to an apple orchard. My favorites are Hillside Orchard near Casco, Wisconsin and Collegeville Orchards in Collegeville, Minnesota. My favorite applesauce apple is Macintosh. I recently did a batch using Paula Red, and it turned out well.
How many apples? As many as you have, or as many as fit in the pot. For your first batch, grab a peck (a small bag)
Begin your sauce by washing and polishing the apples. This removes any pesticides or anything else nature may have left behind. Please, don’t think peeling the apple removes all of this stuff. It removes a lot, but, in my opinion, if it’s on the knife, it could be in the pot. I feed this stuff to babies…
When they’re clean and dry, sit down and start peeling. You can use an apple machine if you have one, but a simple knife will do. (Well, two actually, one to peel and one to quarter and remove the cores from your apples.) While I don’t mind my applesauce turning a little brown, if you do, toss your apples into water with Fruit Fresh or lemon juice after you peel them.
Cooking the sauce: Cover the bottom of the pan with a little bit of water. Add the apples (drained, if you had them in water) and salt them. When I say salt, I mean, as if they were a helping of mashed potatoes or vegetables. Cook on medium low, stirring every few minutes. Apples can scorch, so keep an eye on the pot.
From here, the recipe becomes yours. How long do you cook the sauce? Until it’s the consistency that you like. What it thicker? Keep cooking. Like it lumpy? Cook it less. Like it smooth? You might want to whip it with an immersion blender or hand mixer in the pot, or in a blender or stand mixer just before canning.
As for sweetness, spiciness, etc. It’s up to you. When the sauce is nearing the consistency you like, taste it. Is it sweet enough for your taste? If not, add sugar, brown sugar or some splenda – about a quarter cup at a time. Stir until it’s well-incorporated, then taste again. If you like cinnamon, add it, a half or full teaspoon at a time. Nutmeg, try a quarter teaspoon at a time. Cloves, a pinch. Each time, stir until well-incorporated. IMPORTANT: you can always add a seasoning, you can’t take it away, so go slow.
To preserve: Applesauce freezes well, so if you have the space, pour into a freezer zip-top back, get rid of as much air as possible and freeze. Personally, I prefer to can it. Pour the sauce into jars, leaving a little headspace. Process pints in a boiling water bath for 20 minutes.
Every time I make applesauce, it tastes different, and that’s ok.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Apple Pie Filling in a Jar
This is by far my most requested recipe. It is not mine. It comes from my mother. She got it from Angie Haen, mother of one of my dad's high school buddies. Where Angie got it, I don't know, but I do know that this recipe is best when two people work together at it. One using an apple machine to peel, core and slice the apples, and the other person doing the rest.
Enough Apples to fill 7 quart jars (ok, well, when I do, 9 jars)
4 1/2 cups of sugar
1 cup cornstarch
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp salt
10 cups of hot water
3 tbsp lemon juice
Peel, core and slice the apples into as uniform slices as you can. As you slice them, toss them into a combination of water and Fruit Fresh or water and lemon juice to prevent browning. I prefer Cortland apples for this, though I recently used Paula Reds with good results. Any strong baking apple with do.
For the syrup, combine all of the other ingredients except the lemon juice and cook until thick and bubbly, stirring frequently. Add lemon juice.
Tightly pack the apples into quart jars. Shake, twist and tap the jars to get as many apples in each as you can. Pour syrup over apples, leaving a little head space. Carefully clean the rim of the glass. Seal the jars and process for 20 minutes in a boiling water bath. (or at 5 lbs for 10 minutes in a pressure canner)
To make a pie, dump a quart of the pie filling into an unbaked pie shell. Slice a fresh apple or two on top, just to be sure there are plenty of apples. Top with another crust and slice a few holes, or do the whole crisp-pie thing. Bake at 350 degrees for an hour.
This recipe is also amazing over pork chops.
Enough Apples to fill 7 quart jars (ok, well, when I do, 9 jars)
4 1/2 cups of sugar
1 cup cornstarch
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp salt
10 cups of hot water
3 tbsp lemon juice
Peel, core and slice the apples into as uniform slices as you can. As you slice them, toss them into a combination of water and Fruit Fresh or water and lemon juice to prevent browning. I prefer Cortland apples for this, though I recently used Paula Reds with good results. Any strong baking apple with do.
For the syrup, combine all of the other ingredients except the lemon juice and cook until thick and bubbly, stirring frequently. Add lemon juice.
Tightly pack the apples into quart jars. Shake, twist and tap the jars to get as many apples in each as you can. Pour syrup over apples, leaving a little head space. Carefully clean the rim of the glass. Seal the jars and process for 20 minutes in a boiling water bath. (or at 5 lbs for 10 minutes in a pressure canner)
To make a pie, dump a quart of the pie filling into an unbaked pie shell. Slice a fresh apple or two on top, just to be sure there are plenty of apples. Top with another crust and slice a few holes, or do the whole crisp-pie thing. Bake at 350 degrees for an hour.
This recipe is also amazing over pork chops.
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