Gnocchi with Roasted Cauliflower and Pancetta in Balsamic Cream Sauce

Dan    Mains, Recipes     awesome, delicious, gnocchi, italian, pasta, recipes, sauce

What you’ll need…

Roasted cauliflower mixture:

2 1/2 cups cauliflower florets (loosely chopped)

1/2 cup pancetta (thinly sliced)

1/2 red onion (chopped)

1 TSP lemon juice

2 TSP sugar

salt and pepper

olive oil

Pasta and sauce:

1 TBSP butter

1 TBSP flour

2 cups cream

1/2 cup parmesan cheese (freshly grated)

1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes

2 TSP tomato paste

2 cups red swiss chard (chopped and blanched)

4 cups cooked gnocchi

2 TSP balsamic vinegar

So, I finally got a ‘real’ camera, a ‘big boy’ camera, if you will. Thank you for the golf claps (I imagined golf claps after the first sentence). It was an expensive purchase, slightly scary, but, I find, pricey times like these seem less real when you just close your eyes and hand someone your credit card. I approach the majority of life’s situations like this…Anyway, five days later, here I am with this ‘big’ camera and a couple different lenses that I don’t know how to deal with and all I’m thinking is: ‘Is this what puberty was like?’. Yes, yes it was. Except it didn’t cost me $1000.

End tangent.

I do realize that this recipe is going up on Valentine’s Day and, although, gnocchi doesn’t necessary lend itself to ‘romance’, I think eating this for dinner could be, at the very least, chalked up to a fun foodie fling.

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Place the first 5 ingredients in a medium-sized mixing bowl, season with salt and pepper, drizzle with olive oil and toss to combine. Put the cauliflower mixture into a prepared baking dish and let bake in oven, uncovered, for 20 minutes.

Remove from oven, give the dish a quick stir, turn heat to high broil, and let cook for another 10 minutes or until the cauliflower and pancetta really start to caramelize and crisp up. Remove from oven and set aside for now.

For the sauce, melt the butter in a large pan on medium-high heat. Add in the flour and whisk to form a rue. Pour in the cream. Once the liquid begins to simmer and thicken, stir in the grated cheese, sun dried tomatoes and tomato paste. Reduce to medium heat and let cook for 10 minutes.

Now you can add the cauliflower/pancetta mixture to the pan as well as the chard and cooked gnocchi. Toss a few times to coat everything in the sauce. Finally, add the balsamic vinegar and give the pan one last, solid toss.

Serve nice and hot to hungry dinner-mates!

Serves 4

Total cook time…40 min

Red Wine and Sriracha Marinated Steak with Coconut Lemongrass Risotto

Dan    Mains, Recipes     Alberta steak, Asian-inspired, coconut, dinner, recipes, risotto, steak

What you’ll need…

Steaks:

4 beef tenderloins

2 garlic cloves (chopped)

2 TSP freshly grated ginger

1 cup red wine

2 TBSP sirarcha

1 TBSP soy sauce

1 TBSP rice wine vinegar

1 TSP sugar

salt and pepper

Risotto:

5 cups chicken stock

1 13.5oz can coconut milk

1 lemongrass stalk (segmented into 2″ pieces)

1TSP freshly grated ginger

1 TSP chili flakes

1 yellow onion (finely chopped)

2 cloves garlic (minced)

1 cup green onions (finely chopped)

2 cups arborio rice (uncooked)

4 pieces Laughing Cow cheese (random, I know…In lieu, a 1/4 cup of cream cheese will do!)

salt and pepper

olive oil

grape seed oil

I recently dined at Mercato here in Calgary for the first time ever. I know, I’m a terrible, terrible foodie. If you’ve eaten there, you know their red meat claim to fame is the ‘Bistecca’ a steak of epic proportions served with prosciutto-wrapped asparagus of equal delicious monstrosity. Perhaps I’ll share a picture of the dish at the bottom of the post (‘perhaps’ = ‘will’). Needless to say, steak has been the object of my affection ever since. Thus, this dinner recipe was born.

Before starting on the risotto, you’ll need to marinate the steaks for a few hours (at least two). Place all of the steak ingredients into a large ziploc bag, sprinkle with salt and pepper, seal and swish the bag around a few times to mix the marinade nicely. Pop the bag of steaks into the fridge for the next while. In the meantime, watch an episode of Dawson’s Creek.

When it’s getting closer to dinner time, you can start preparing the risotto. Mix the first 5 ingredients together in a medium-sized pot. Turn to medium-high heat and let cook until the liquid is just about to boil. Reduce to low heat to stay hot. Next, in a large pan on medium-high heat, cook down the onions and garlic in some olive oil for 5 minutes. Add the chopped green onions and rice to the pan, give everything a good stir and let cook for another 3-4 minutes.

At this point, start preheating your oven to 400 degrees (for finishing the steaks).

Now, start adding the hot liquid to the pan, ladle by ladle. Each time you add some liquid, stir occasionally until the rice has just about absorbed all of it, then add some more. Repeat until all of the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is al dente, 20 minutes or so. Finally, add your Laughing Cow cheese (just because you had some in the fridge) and stir until it’s melted away into the risotto. Finish with some salt and pepper and reduce to low heat to stay warm while you cook the steaks.

Now to sear! Place a medium-sized pan (cast iron if you have one) on the stove with a bit of grape seed oil, and turn to high heat. Remove the steaks from their marinade and add to the hot pan. Let them cook for approximately 2-3 minutes on each side, then pop into the preheated oven for 6-8 minutes for a medium-rare cut. Remove and let sit for a few minutes on your cooking board before slicing.

When you’re ready to serve, portion out the risotto onto four plates followed by the (now) sliced steak. Everyone will definitely be full after this!

Serves 4

Total cook time…40 min (not including marinade time)

The Bistecca at Mercato. A thing of beauty!

Rustic Meatballs With Mandarin Orange And Fennel Sauce

Dan    Mains, Recipes     beef, Christmas, cranberries, mandarin orange, meatballs, pork, recipes

What you’ll need…

Meatballs:

1 yellow onion (finely chopped)

1 pound lean ground beef

1 pound ground pork

2 eggs

1/2 bulb roasted garlic (minced)

1 cup bread crumbs

1 cup fresh parsley (finely chopped)

2 TBSP ketchup

1 TSP chili powder

salt and pepper

olive oil

Sauce:

1 yellow onion (finely chopped)

2 cloves garlic (minced)

1 bulb fennel (thinly sliced, approximately 1 cup)

2 mandarin oranges (zest and juice)

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1 cup water

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup orange juice

1 TBSP red wine vinegar

2 TBSP brown sugar

1/4 TSP ground cloves

2 TSP flour

salt and pepper

olive oil

100% Santa approved meatballs for the holidays! I generally don’t use mandarin oranges for anything other than simply peeling and eating, but thought that adding them to a sweet and sour sauce for these meatballs would make things a bit more merry. Also, as I tell my Start From Scratch classes, I like to use the word ‘rustic’ to make things sound better. For example, putting the word ‘rustic’ before my misshapen, hand-formed meatballs in the recipe title makes them sound so much more beautiful, doesn’t it? It’s all smoke and mirrors folks. All smoke and mirrors…On a side note, if you’re feeding these to kids, feel free to tell them these are made of Reindeer. The look on their faces will be priceless.

Starting off with the meatballs…Place the onions in a medium-sized pan, drizzle with some olive oil and cook on medium-high heat until softened, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and let cool for a few minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients to the bowl and combine with a spoon or by hand (I say by hand! Come on, it’s comfort food!). Form into 20 2″ diameter balls and set aside for now. These can be made a day in advance, just leave covered in refrigerator.

Now, moving along to the sauce. First, preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Place the onion and garlic in a medium-sized pot, drizzle with some olive oil and let cook until the onion begins to caramelize, about 10 minutes. Next, aside from the flour, add all remaining ingredients into the pot. Once mixture comes to a bubble, reduce to low heat and let simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

While the sauce is simmering, you can brown the meatballs. Drizzle some olive oil in a large pan on medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, add the meatballs (in two separate batches) and brown on all sides, cooking them for about 6-8 minutes per batch. Remove and place into a prepared baking dish.

As a final step for the sauce, sprinkle in the flour to help it thicken a bit, then salt and pepper to taste. Pour the sauce over the meatball-filled baking dish and bake in the oven, uncovered, for 20 minutes.

Serve on some white rice with some fresh bread or crostini to soak up the sauce! Happy holidays!

Serves 5-6

Total cook time…1 hour

Butternut Squash Breakfast Hash with Poached Eggs

Dan    Mains, Recipes     bacon, breakfast, butternut squash, curry, recipes

What you’ll need…

6 strips bacon

1 small red onion (diced)

1 TBSP butter

1 TBSP brown sugar

2 cups butternut squash (peeled, 1/2″ cubed)

1 cup celery root (peeled, 1/2″ cubed)

1 TSP chili powder

1 TSP yellow curry powder

1 TSP cumin

1/2 TSP cayenne pepper

1/4 cup maple syrup

8 eggs (soft poached and waiting to be eaten)

salt and pepper

Not exactly the healthiest thing you could eat for breakfast, but everyone loves some bacon grease on the weekends, right? It looks kind of sexy too…just saying. Continuing on my quest of not just using squash for soups, I decided to try and cook it up in a breakfast hash. Maple and squash is a pretty traditional flavour pairing, so I tried to spice it up a bit with, well, some other spices. Definitely hits the spot on a weekend morning when you’re feeling a tad tired from last night’s escapades.

Start by cooking the strips of bacon in a large pan on medium-high heat until they’re nice and crispy. Remove from pan and place on some paper towel to absorb any excess grease. Once the bacon has cooled slightly, chop into small pieces and set aside. Next, add the red onion, butter and brown sugar to the pan and let cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In the meantime, place the next six ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and toss to combine. Add the squash mixture to the onions, stir to combine and let it continue to cook for another 10 minutes. Finally, return the chopped bacon to the pan and stir in the maple syrup. a healthy dose of black ground pepper, some salt, then you’re good to go!

For serving, place a generous scoop of hash on a plate, top with a couple poached eggs and a final drizzle of maple syrup.

As for poaching the eggs, don’t be afraid. It’s easier than it seems. There are approximately 12000 YouTube videos on how to do it successfully. You can do it, I believe in you. If you want to skip the poaching, fried eggs on top are just as tasty, but make sure to keep that yolk runny!

Serves 4

Total cook time…25 min

Savoury Spinach And Leek Pancakes

Dan    Mains, Recipes     curry, delicious, pancakes, quick and easy, recipes, spinach, vegetarian

What you’ll need…

1 TBSP butter

1 yellow onion (finely chopped)

1 leek (halved, thinly sliced)

4 cloves garlic (minced)

1 zucchini (diced or grated)

4 cups fresh spinach (chopped)

1 TBSP yellow curry powder

1 TSP dried oregano

salt and pepper

2 cups flour

3 TSP baking powder

1 TSP salt

1 egg (beaten)

1 cup water

canola oil

 I feel like these are a distant cousin of a green onion cake, or a latke…or something? At any rate, I experimented and made a vegan version of these at one of the Global Vegetarian Dinners I cook here in Calgary. They were so delicious that I decided to un-vegan them. Since we’re in the summer/autumn transition period right now, these would be good with a cool grain salad if the temperature is high, or a good bowl of soup if things are getting a bit chilly. I sometimes just eat them with ketchup, but don’t tell anyone I said that…it’s not very sophisticated…

Start by melting the butter on medium-high heat in a large pan. Add the chopped onion and garlic and let cook until the onion softens, about 5 minutes. Next, throw in the diced (or grated) zucchini into the pan and let cook for 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally. Then, add in the spinach, as well as the curry and oregano. Season with salt and pepper, then stir regularly until the spinach has wilted down and the spices have mixed in well with the vegetables. Remove from heat and set aside to cool for 5-8 minutes, or until it’s able to be handled.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Make a well, then pour in the egg, water and cooked vegetable mixture. Slowly mix with the dry ingredients until a chunky dough develops. Take the dough out of the bowl and place on a floured surface. Flatten to a thickness of approximately 1″ and cut into 12 equal pieces. Using your hands, roll them into small balls, then press down gently so that they’re circle-esque (is that a word?) in shape.

When you’re ready to fry up the pancakes, place some canola oil in a medium-sized pan on high heat. Once the oil is hot enough, place the pancakes into the pan, about 3 or 4 at a time. Cooking for about 2 minutes on each side. Place onto some paper towel to remove any excess oil.

Serve warm with garlic butter and a side of roasted vegetables (or the aforementioned options of salad/soup!) and enjoy!

Serves 3-4

Total cook time…25 min

Coconut Cream Poached Snapper With Daikon & Snap Pea Salsa

Dan    Mains, Recipes     curry, fish, recipes, summer

What you’ll need…

Poached snapper:

2 13.5oz cans coconut milk

1 cup half and half cream

1 stalk lemon grass (trimmed and cut into ‘fish out of the pot easily’ size pieces)

1/2 yellow onion (quartered)

4 cloves garlic

2 TSP yellow curry powder

1 TSP chili powder

4 red snapper fillets

 Salsa:

1 1/2 cups daikon (peeled and 1/2″ cubed)

1 cup fresh snap peas (pods removed, peas only)

1/4 cup red onion (finely chopped)

1 kiwi (1/2″ cubed, you can leave the skin on, it won’t kill you…)

1 TSP sugar

1 lemon (zest and juice)

salt and pepper

1 tomato (sliced, optional, I just wanted some colour variation on the plate!)

So here’s a story for you. I originally wanted to try poaching this fish in some red wine and spices, but while I was sitting at home contemplating about whether or not to use the wine to poach I accidently drank it all…and that’s my story. Well, not actually, but it definitely is something that could happen to me. I do like my wine. Anyway, life is always a little bit better when there’s some coconut curry involved, and this light dish is definitely perfect for a summer dinner date. My dinner guests seem to really like it when I poach things. Except pandas, they don’t like that.

Start off by combining the coconut milk and cream in a large pot. Whisk briefly to get rid of any lumps from the coconut milk. Add-in the remaining ingredients, aside from the snapper, and give a good stir. Let the mixture come to a bubble on medium-high heat, then reduce to low heat and let simmer for 20 minutes. While it’s simmering, give it a taste, and add some salt and pepper to your liking.

 For the salsa, simply place all ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and toss to combine. Season with some salt and pepper, then set aside until you’re ready for it. Feel free to give it a taste on its own. It’s oddly delicious.

When the poaching liquid has simmered for long enough, remove the pieces of lemon grass, turn up to medium heat and pop in the pieces of snapper. Let the fish cook for about 6 minutes, or until it is fully cooked through. Remove the fish from the pot and scoop some of the liquid onto each plate,  followed by a couple tomato slices, then a piece of snapper, and, finally, the daikon salsa! You should probably eat this on your patio…just saying…

Serves 4

Total cook time…30 min