elly says opa

Brownie Roll-Out Cookies (with Cherry Buttercream)

February 11, 2013 · 9 comments

I’ve started taking a shine to chocolate cookies lately, which is sort of weird given that I’ve never been a huge fan. By that, I mostly mean a chocolate base – anything mixed or topped with chocolate has pretty much always been fair game. Something that also makes chocolate cookies appealing? When they have the word “brownie” in the title.

These are some of the easiest cookies I’ve ever made. You don’t even have to wait till after the butter and sugar are creamed together to add extract, eggs, etc. All the wet ingredients and the cocoa powder all get mixed at the same time before you add the flour. The dough then gets refrigerated until it’s firm enough to roll out (and would freeze easily, too). Cut out, bake, eat brownie-flavored cookies, repeat.

Like most roll-out cookies, these are very versatile. You can eat them as-is, decorate them with royal icing, frost them with ganache or buttercream, or turn them into sandwiches with cherry buttercream, which is what I did for about 1/3 of them. (I recently decorated sugar cookies for a baby shower, so I already reached my limit for time spent doing that without ripping my hair out.) I love the combination of chocolate and cherries, so this was a no-brainer for me. Plus, I just picked up a jar of morello cherries from Trader Joe’s. How I didn’t just sit there and eat all of the cherries directly from the jar with a spoon is beyond me. That’s willpower, guys. If you don’t have a TJ’s or can’t find jarred morellos, you can use maraschino cherries instead (or of course fresh ones when they’re in season).

Brownie Roll-Out Cookies

From Smitten Kitchen

3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt*
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup (2 sticks) lightly salted butter*
1.5 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Whisk together the flour, salt, and baking powder and set aside.

In a large bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, and cocoa powder. Slowly add in the flour mixture, beating until smooth and just incorporated. Form the dough into a disc, then wrap in plastic and refrigerate 1 hour or longer.

Preheat the oven to 350º and line 2-3 large baking sheets with parchment or silicon baking sheets.

Roll the cookie dough out onto a lightly floured surface, about 1/4″ thick. Cut into desired shapes, brushing excess flour off the top, and place on prepared pans. Bake for about 8-10 minutes, until the edges are set and the centers are slightly soft and puffed.

*Note: Deb uses a stick of salted butter and a stick of unsalted. I don’t really buy salted butter, so I used 2 sticks of unsalted and increased the amount of salt to a heaping 3/4 tsp.

Cherry Buttercream

(my recipe)

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1.5 – 2 Tbsp. morello or maraschino cherry juice (from the jar)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
12-15 finely chopped morello or maraschino cherries

In a medium bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter until smooth. Slowly beat in the sugar until combined. Beat in the vanilla and cherry juice. If buttercream is too thick, add a little more juice. If too runny, add a bit more powdered sugar. Fold in the cherries.

{ 9 comments }

44-Clove Garlic Soup

February 5, 2013 · 14 comments

in soups and stews,vegetarian

Sometimes, I wonder if my taste buds have developed an immunity to garlic because I eat it so often. I always tend to double the amount of garlic in a recipe and I find that “too garlicky” is not a phrase in my lexicon (much like “too sweet”). I’ve been meaning to make this soup for ages because it’s pretty much pure garlic. In two forms! About half the garlic is roasted, giving it a mellow, sweet flavor, and the rest is quickly sauteed and then simmered with the stock to make a slightly more noticeable garlic flavor but nothing overwhelming. I know that 44 cloves of garlic sounds like a whole lot for one little batch of soup, but trust me on this.

Normally, I’m not a huge fan of soup without some…stuff…in it (which is why I’ve never warmed to tomato soup). It stands to reason that this wouldn’t really be my thing, but since I love garlic—especially roasted—so much, I knew I’d like this soup. And I was right (as I always am. Ahem.) As an added bonus, because there are no carbs in this soup, you can pair it with a super cheesy & delicious panini, which I always want to do when I eat soups but typically avoid since the soup tends to already have pasta or potatoes or croutons or what have you.

Tom liked this recipe so much that when he went grocery shopping the following week, he asked what ingredients he needed to make it himself (of course, he didn’t actually go through with it but, you know, it still says something).

I made this soup up to the point of blending it, but then I refrigerated it. The next day, I just heated it on the stove, added the cream, and it was ready to go. The soup is easy enough to make (incredibly easy, actually), but since the garlic needs time to roast, making it in full on a weeknight isn’t really feasible for us. Soups, thankfully, are great as leftovers or when they’ve been sitting, so this is a perfect make-ahead recipe if you want to enjoy it on a weeknight.

Roasted Garlic Soup with Lemon and Parmesan

Serves 4
From Bon Appétit, via Smitten Kitchen

26 cloves garlic, unpeeled
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 Tbsp. butter
2 small-medium oni0ns, diced
1.5 tsp. minced thyme
18 cloves garlic, peeled
3.5 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1/2 cup heavy cream or half and half
2 oz. grated Parmesan cheese
Lemon wedges, for serving

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Place the 26 garlic cloves in small glass baking dish or pie pan. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper; toss to coat. Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake until garlic is golden brown and tender, about 40 minutes. Set aside until cool enough to handle, and then squeeze garlic between fingertips to release the cloves into a bowl.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan or small Dutch oven (I used a 3 qt. pot) over medium-high heat. Add the onions and thyme and cook until onions are translucent, about 6 minutes. Stir in the roasted garlic cloves, and the 18 raw garlic cloves; cook 3 minutes. Add the chicken stock; cover and simmer until garlic is very tender, about 20 minutes. Use an immersion blender or regular blender to puree the soup until smooth. Return soup to saucepan (if using a regular blender), add the cream, and bring to simmer. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Divide grated cheese among 4 bowls and ladle soup over the top. Serve lemon wedges alongside, and squeeze as much juice as desired into the bowls.

{ 14 comments }

Skillet Shepherd’s Pie

February 1, 2013 · 7 comments

in beef,healthy,potatoes

Our “mild” winter took a turn recently to subzero temps that have me wondering, once again, why I live in the Midwest. And yes, I know, it’s winter in Chicago so I shouldn’t expect mild temperatures to begin with, but the teasing is so not cool. Also not cool? A windchill temp of -19.

The cold winter blues definitely call for some warm comfort food. Shepherd’s pie is one of the most comforting dishes to me. I don’t make it often (though I’ve managed to Greek-ify it in the past), but when I eat it, I’m always reminded of how much I love it. First of all, mashed potatoes are one of my favorite comfort foods of all time. I don’t even need a main dish to make me happy when mashed potatoes are in the picture. Secondly, the meat and vegetables all simmer together in a really fragrant and hearty sauce. This makes it not only delicious, but also a one-pot meal. Score! We did have salads with this, just for something crisp and fresh – but since there are vegetables in the filling it’s not really a necessity. This is also a healthier version of this classic dish. Truth be told, there doesn’t seem to be much of a difference in the filling, which is fairly healthy to begin with (assuming you’re using a lean meat) but the potatoes aren’t butter and heavy-cream laden, and still manage to taste pretty damn good.

In addition to being a meal in itself, this is mostly made in one skillet. Sure, you need a separate pot to cook the potatoes but ultimately, you’re not doing a ton of dishes or spending a lot of time on this. It takes a little while to cook (close to an hour) but most of that is inactive cooking time, and since you really only have that potato pot to wash in the meantime, you can do other fun stuff, like read Curious George Goes to the Library approximately one billion times to your toddler.

Skillet Shepherd’s Pie

Adapted from The America’s Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook

Filling:
2 tsp. canola oil
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced 1/3″ thick
1 medium onion, diced
1 celery rib, sliced 1/3″ thick
1 lb. lean ground beef or ground sirloin
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
1/4 cup flour
1.5 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup beer*
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. freshly minced thyme
1 cup frozen peas
1 ear corn, kernels removed or 2/3 cup frozen corn

Topping:
1.5 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 2″ chunks
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup lowfat milk, warmed
1/4 cup lowfat sour cream or Greek yogurt at room temperature

Adjust an oven rack to the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 375º.

To make the filling: Heat the oil in a large oven- and broiler-proof skillet (I used a 12″ cast iron pan) over medium heat until shimmering. Add the carrots, onion, and celery and cook until the vegetables are softened, about 6-8 minutes. Stir in the ground beef, breaking it up as you cook, until browned (about 5 minutes). Add the garlic and tomato paste, stirring until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the broth, beer, Worcestershire, and thyme.

Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-low heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened but still saucy, 20-25 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the peas and corn. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

To make the topping: Meanwhile, bring 2 qts. water and the potatoes to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Drain the potatoes and return to the saucepan. Mash the potatoes with the butter and milk, and then the sour cream until smooth. (Note: I like to melt the butter and heat the milk in a measuring cup, in the microwave. Easy to do, just uses 1 cup, and easy to pour into the potatoes.) Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Dollop the potatoes over the top of the filling, and then smooth into an even layer, making sure to spread to the edges of the skillet. Bake until the filling is bubbling, about 15 minutes. Heat the broiler and then broil the casserole until the top is golden brown, about 3 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before serving.

*We used a mild, sort of fruity lager which worked well. ATK actually recommends a nonalcoholic beer, for its sweetness and discourages the use of stouts/strong beers, which may overpower the dish and make the filling taste bitter.

{ 7 comments }

Roasted Sweet Potato and Chorizo Lettuce Wraps

January 29, 2013 · 12 comments

in mexican/tex-mex,misc.,pork,potatoes

For the longest time, I (thought I) didn’t like sweet potatoes. It really had more to do with common preparations—like dousing them in everything from brown sugar to cinnamon to marshmallows—that turned me off. When made savory, I actually love sweet potatoes, and that probably holds truest in Tex-Mex type meals. I am also a firm believer that chorizo makes just about everything better, which is why I pinned these wraps so long ago. And I’m so sad it took me this long to make this meal, because it was pretty awesome.

I loved these. Loved them. The only bad thing was that they were *really* messy, but a lot of that has to do with the lettuce we used, which didn’t make particularly good wraps (blame it on my grocery store, which has a million bizarre and harder to find produce items, but not much in the way of lettuce varietals). I’m not normally a lettuce wrap kinda gal, but I really like it in this application because you already have the starchy potatoes. I see a lot of sweet potato burrito recipes and, while they sound good, it also sort of sounds like carb overload. These strike a nice balance.

Rather than serve these with the cilantro cream sauce (because, as you probably know, I hate cilantro), I made the same avocado cream sauce I use with my black bean patties (which, as a bonus, Zachary will shovel into his mouth like any ol’ yogurt). This complemented the wraps beautifully—a nice, bright counterpart to the slightly spicy filling. We had some leftover goat cheese so half the wraps got the goat cheese treatment and the other half the feta treatment. Personally, I was a bigger fan of the goat cheese, I think, but both work really well. All the components of this dish make it a little spicy, a little sweet, a little salty, a little crispy, and a lot of awesome.

Roasted Sweet Potato and Chorizo Lettuce Wraps

Adapted from Perry’s Plate

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2″ cubes
2.5 Tbsp. canola oil, divided
ground cumin
chili powder
salt
1 cup corn (fresh or thawed from frozen)
1 small onion, diced
3/4 lb. Mexican chorizo, casings removed*
Juice from 1/2 lime
Cilantro to taste

1 head leaf lettuce (butter, Bibb, etc.), leaves separated
1 cup crumbled feta or goat cheese
1/2 batch Avocado cream sauce

Preheat the oven to 450. Toss the sweet potato cubes along with oil, cumin, chili powder, and salt to taste on a rimmed baking sheet. Roast for 10 minutes, then stir in the corn and roast for an additional 10 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are tender and the rice is slightly golden.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1/2 Tbsp. oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the onion until tender, and then stir in the chorizo. Crumble the chorizo and cook until done, about 5 minutes.* Add the sweet potato mixture, lime juice, and cilantro to the skillet and stir until well combined. Place in a serving bowl.

To assemble, put about 2 Tbsp. of the filling into a lettuce leaf and top with a little bit of avocado cream and feta or goat cheese.

*Mexican chorizo is not cured like Spanish chorizo. It’s typically found uncooked in bulk or sold in a casing. However, there is pre-cooked Mexican chorizo that looks very much like regular sausage. I used uncooked chorizo, which tends to be a bit greasier, so I drained the chorizo/onion mixture on paper towels before proceeding with the rest of the recipe. Pre-cooked chorizo can usually just be diced, rather than crumbled into the skillet, and just needs to brown, since it’s already cooked thoroughly.

{ 12 comments }

Garlic-Rosemary Roast Chicken

January 24, 2013 · 7 comments

in chicken/poultry

I’d like to say I’m wise for my age but, really, the only thing “old” about me (other than my early bedtime) is my memory. It’s awful. Truly, truly awful. And if it weren’t bad enough to begin with, pregnancy makes it even worse. I swear, pregnancy brain is a real thing, and it’s terrible. Anyway, the reason I’m telling you this is that we’ve had a small chicken in our freezer for ages. You’d think, with it being a whole chicken and all, I’d notice it from time to time and actually remember to stick it on the menu one of these days, but nope. Or, sometimes I WOULD plan to make it, and then forget to take it out to thaw.

But, this little bird finally got made recently. I needed rosemary for a meal, and since I can never make it through an entire rosemary bunch, I sought out some recipes. Annie recommended this one to me. And then I was like, “THERE IS ALREADY A CHICKEN IN MY FREEZER!”

Roasted chicken is one of my favorite things. I grew up eating it easily once a week and I truly wouldn’t have an issue doing the same now. This particular roast chicken is very reminiscent of the kind with 40 cloves of garlic, but, like I mentioned, it’s made with rosemary—which I really adore with chicken. This was actually the first time I’ve ever brined a chicken and it was really great. I’ll admit to already noticing a huge difference in both the tenderness and taste of our chicken since switching to a local rancher, but I also know that the brining definitely seemed to help with keeping this even more moist than usual. Of course, to make sure this happens, you have to be sure you don’t overcook your chicken.

In addition to the standard size, our rancher also provides smaller chickens, of about 2.5 lbs. which is what I used, so while I adjusted my cooking time a bit, I’m leaving the original recipe below. Roast chickens always go over well with this family, and this one was certainly no different. The chicken was packed with flavor and the roasted garlic sauce was a great complement to both the chicken and mashed potatoes. Between the 3 of us, we polished off our small chicken (with Zachary eating thirds, by the way).

Garlic-Rosemary Roast Chicken

Adapted from The New Best Recipe via Annie’s Eats

Brine:
½ cup table salt
10 cloves garlic (unpeeled)
3 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 cups hot water
1.5 qts. cold water

1 whole chicken (3.5-4 lbs.), giblets discarded

Garlic-rosemary paste:
2 tsp. minced fresh rosemary
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/8 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
2 Tbsp. olive oil, divided

Sauce:
10 cloves garlic (unpeeled)
1/2 tsp. olive oil
1.75 cups chicken broth, divided
½ cup water
¼ cup dry white wine
1 spring fresh rosemary
Salt and pepper, to taste
To prepare the brine: Combine the salt, garlic and rosemary in a resealable plastic bag. Seal the bag, pressing out the excess air. With a meat mallet or a rolling pin, pound the garlic cloves until smashed; transfer the mixture to a large bowl or stockpot. Stir in the hot water; let stand 10 minutes to release the flavors. Mix in the cold water and stir to dissolve the salt. Immerse the chicken in the brine, cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Remove the chicken from the brine and pat dry with paper towels. Preheat the oven to 450˚F and place an oven rack in the lower-middle position. Place a rack inside a roasting pan, and spray lightly with cooking spray.

To make the garlic rosemary paste: Combine the rosemary, garlic, salt, pepper, and 1 Tbsp. of the oil in a small bowl. Mix well. Rub about 1½ tsp. of the paste inside the cavity of the chicken. Gently loosen the skin over the breast and thigh on each side of the chicken. Divide the remaining paste between the two sides of the chicken, slipping it underneath the skin and rubbing some over the surface of the skin. Tie the drumsticks together with kitchen twine if desired. Brush the surface of the chicken with 2 tsp. of the olive oil. Season with freshly ground pepper. Place the chicken breast-side down in the roasting pan and bake for 15 minutes.

While the chicken is cooking, toss the garlic cloves with the 1/2 tsp. oil for the sauce. After the chicken has roasted for 15 minutes, toss the garlic cloves into the roasting pan and bake 15 minutes longer.

Remove the pan from the oven and lower the oven temperature to 375˚ F. Rotate the chicken so it is breast-side up. Brush the remaining 1 tsp. of oil over the breast. Add 1 cup of the chicken broth and water to the roasting pan. Return the pan to the oven and continue roasting until the chicken is golden brown and an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part reads 160˚ F. Transfer the chicken to a large serving platter and cover loosely with foil.

Transfer the roasted garlic cloves to a cutting board. Pour the liquid from the roasting pan into a liquid measuring cup; let sit a few minutes, then skim the fat off the surface. You should have about 2/3 cup of liquid (add water if needed). Peel the garlic and mash the cloves into a paste with a fork. Combine the roasting liquid in a small saucepan with the mashed garlic, the remaining ¾ cup broth, wine and rosemary. Heat over medium-high heat until simmering. Reduce heat and continue to simmer about 8 minutes, until partly reduced. Discard the rosemary sprig and adjust seasonings with salt and pepper to taste. Carve the chicken and serve with the sauce.

{ 7 comments }

Italian-style Sloppy Joes (“Sloppy Giuseppes”)

January 20, 2013 · 8 comments

in beef,burgers and sandwiches,italian,quick and easy

These popped into my Reader recently, and got made very quickly—quite the feat for most recipes I save (sadly). Whenever a recipe takes less than 20 minutes to make from start to finish, I’m down. Plus, anything with hot peppers or giardiniera catches my attention. I mean, giardiniera is pretty much the only acceptable way to consume cauliflower. Besides, I seem to have atrocious heartburn whether I’m eating hot peppers or the blandest food possible, so I might as well stick with spicy stuff I love so much, right?

At their most basic level, these are sandwiches filled with a thick Italian-style meatsauce. Then, you top them with provolone and giardiniera to make them a little more special and flavorful. Any sort of roll you want to use will work, really (and I bet these would be really, really awesome with garlic toast). Zachary actually ended up eating his in a pita pocket.

There are no doubt a million variations to suit these to your liking, including different types of cheese or toppings. These were a hit with everyone, particularly me, since they were so quick and easy to prepare.

Sloppy Giuseppes

Adapted from The Chicago Tribune

1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 lb. ground beef
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
1/2 cup red wine
1 (14.5 oz.) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
1.5 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
4-6 rolls (ciabatta, sourdough, garlic, etc.), toasted
4-6 slices provolone cheese
Giardiniera

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, and then add the olive oil. Stir in the onion; season with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to soften.

Add the ground beef, stirring it into the onions and breaking it up; cook until browned. Add the garlic and tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the wine, diced tomatoes, oregano, red pepper flakes, and salt to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened.

Serve on rolls, topped with a slice of provolone and a generous helping of giardiniera. (I put a slice of cheese on the rolls and popped them under the broiler for a minute so the cheese could melt.)

{ 8 comments }

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

January 17, 2013 · 14 comments

in breads and muffins,breakfast/brunch

There were many great things about our first Christmas morning at home, and these cinnamon rolls were high on that list. I’d never made cinnamon rolls from scratch before and I was really excited to give them a try. Although I usually have success with yeast doughs, there are still times I don’t—and in general, I’m still a little intimidated by them. I figured if I messed this up, we’d just have a cinnamon quickbread or something instead. I know I can handle that. :)

These cinnamon rolls have their first rise and are filled & cut the night before you want to bake them. The morning of, you let them rise for about 30 minutes before they can be baked and iced. So, you do still need to plan a little extra time, but obviously it’s much quicker than making a standard yeast recipe the same day (just not as quick as making the canned kind, obviously). I don’t think mine rose quite as much as they should have, but I also was getting a little impatient. Also, because I’m still a yeast novice, I don’t totally know the difference between instant and rapid rise/quick rise yeast (even with googling) – and my grocery store does not sell instant, so, I just went with rapid rise. At any rate, they turned out pretty great. And I’m especially excited we still have about half a batch in the freezer.

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

From Alton Brown

Dough
4 large egg yolks, room temperature
1 large whole egg, room temperature
2 oz. sugar (approximately 1/4 cup)
3 oz. unsalted butter, melted (approximately 6 Tbsp.)
6 oz. buttermilk, room temperature
20 oz. all-purpose flour (approximately 4 cups)
1 package instant dry yeast (approximately 2.25 tsp.)
1.25 tsp. kosher salt
Vegetable oil or cooking spray

Filling
8 oz. light brown sugar (approximately 1 cup, packed)
1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
pinch of salt
3/4 oz. unsalted butter, melted (approximately 1.5 Tbsp.)

Icing
2.5 oz. cream cheese, softened
3 Tbsp. milk
5.5 oz. powdered sugar (approximately 1.5 cups)

For the dough: in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, sugar, butter, and buttermilk. Add about 2 cups of the flour, the yeast, and salt; whisk until moistened and combined. Replace the whisk attachment and with a dough hook. Add all but 3/4 cup of the remaining flour and knead on low speed for 5 minutes. Check the consistency of the dough, and add more flour if necessary (dough should feel soft and moist but not sticky). Knead on low for 5 minutes longer, or until the dough clears the sides of the bowl (for me it only took about 2-3 minutes).

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead by hand forabout 30 seconds. Lightly oil a large bowl. Transfer the dough to the bowl, lightly oil the top of the dough, cover and let double in volume, about 2-2.5 hours.

For the filling: Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Mix until well incorporated. Set aside until ready to use.

Butter a 9×13″ glass baking dish. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently shape the dough into a rectangle with the long side nearest you. Roll into an 18×12″ rectangle. Brush the dough with the melted butter, leaving 1/2″ border along the top edge. Sprinkle the filling mixture over the dough, leaving a 3/4-inch border along the top edge. Gently press the filling into the dough.

Beginning with the side of the long edge nearest you, roll the dough into a tight cylinder. Firmly pinch the seam to seal and roll the cylinder seam side down. Very gently squeeze the cylinder to create even thickness. Using a serrated knife, slice the cylinder into 12 rolls. Arrange the rolls cut side down in the baking dish; cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight or up to 16 hours.

Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and place in a turned-off oven on a high rack. Fill a shallow pan 2/3-full of boiling water and set the pan on the rack below the rolls. Close the oven door and let the rolls rise until they look slightly puffy, about 30 minutes. Remove the rolls and the pan of water from the oven.

Preheat the oven to 350°. Place the rolls on the middle rack and bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes.

While the rolls are cooling slightly, make the icing by whisking the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer until creamy. Add the milk and whisk until combined. Sift in the powdered sugar, and whisk until smooth. Spread over the rolls and serve immediately.

{ 14 comments }

Lasagna Soup

January 14, 2013 · 15 comments

in italian,soups and stews

This soup has definitely made its way around the blogosphere (and Pinterest). I debated posting it, assuming you’ve already seen it, but we really loved this soup so I not only wanted to share it with you in case you hadn’t seen it, but also make sure it’s in my archives, so I remember to make it again!

This soup is precisely what it purports to be—lasagna in soup form. The base is made with Italian sausage, herbs, tomatoes, and pasta. Then you put a dollop (okay, maybe like 3 dollops) of a ricotta-parm-mozzarella mixture in each bowl to make this truly lasagna-y (<—very technical culinary term). The soup is both flavorful and hearty, and is easy and pretty quick to make, too.

As with all pasta soups, the pasta will continue to absorb the broth even after it’s done cooking. To combat this, you could either cook the pasta separately and add it to the bowls before serving (I would reduce the amount of broth by a bit in this instance), or stir a little extra broth into your leftovers. I went that route – I just love that the pasta takes on the flavor of the soup when you cook it altogether, which is why I did it that way (not to mention it’s one less pot to clean). The leftovers are thick, but I guess that makes them even more like lasagna. :)

Lasagna Soup

Adapted from Carla Snyder’s 300 Sensational Soups, via A Farmgirl’s Dabbles

2 tsp. olive oil
1.5 lbs. Italian sausage, casings removed (I used turkey sausage, a combo of mild & hot)
2 medium onions, diced
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
1 (28 oz.) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
2 bay leaves
1 qt. chicken broth
2 cups beef broth
8 oz. dry mafalda, fusili, gemelli or other curly pasta
1/3 cup finely chopped basil

8 oz. ricotta (I used part-skim)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (I used part-skim)
freshly ground black pepper

Heat the olive oil in a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat. Add sausage, crumbling as you stir, and brown (about 3-5 minutes). Add onions and cook until softened. Stir in garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes, and tomato paste. Cook for about 2-3 minutes or until fragrant and the tomato paste starts to turn a little brown.

Add the diced tomatoes, bay leaves, chicken broth and beef broth; stir to combine. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 20-30 minutes. Add the pasta and cook until al dente. (Alternatively, you can reduce the amount of broth by a little, and cook the noodles separately, adding them to individual bowls before serving.) Season the soup to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and stir in the basil.

While the pasta is cooking, combine the ricotta, Parmesan, mozzarella, and pepper in a medium bowl.

To serve, place a large dollop of the cheese mixture in each soup bowl, and ladle the hot soup over the cheese mixture.

{ 15 comments }

Goat Cheese Potato Gratin

January 10, 2013 · 7 comments

in goat cheese,potatoes

This Christmas, for the first time in over 10 years, I woke up in my own bed. It was glorious. We still had to do a lot of traveling for the holidays (including a trip to Michigan in a snowstorm that took over 9 hours), but I was happy to finally begin Christmas traditions in our own home. Now that Zachary is old enough to “get” things, it was really exciting to see Christmas through his eyes. On Christmas Eve we baked cookies for Santa, and left them near the chimney. I asked him if he thought Santa would eat our cookies and in true Zachary fashion (aka, being the bottomless pit that he is), he replied, “I think he’s just going to eat 1 cookie, and then tell us to eat the rest.” Of course. The next morning, he ran to the cookies to see if they were gone, and then started tearing into his stocking and presents. It was so much fun.

Since we usually travel for Christmas, I rarely get to make anything other than cookies or something similar. This year I wanted to make a nice meal, even if it was just going to be the 3 of us. On Christmas Eve Zachary and I took a trip to the butcher and picked up some filet mignon, which I turned into au poivre the following day. So good, I’m still thinking about it. You know what else was so good I’m still thinking about it? This gratin.

I’ve had this gratin saved forever, but was looking for a special occasion to make it (or at least having more people in my house to eat it, since it’s pretty indulgent by our standards). Christmas seemed like the perfect time. This is a fairly straightforward potato au gratin recipe, but it uses goat cheese in the mix. In case you didn’t know, I’m a pretty big fan of goat cheese (I mean, it even has its own category on my blog). That said, if you’re one of those crazy goat cheese haters, this might be your gateway recipe. Honestly, the goat cheese flavor is not very prominent at all. It lends more of a creaminess than it does a distinct flavor. I promise you’ll love it.

I halved the recipe, since it was just the three of us and we were going out of town the next day (plus, my toddler is a complete weirdo who doesn’t really like potatoes. I mean, what?). I’m putting the full recipe below though because, trust me, I will have no qualms about making the whole recipe next time.

Goat Cheese Potato Gratin

Barely adapted from Bon Appétit, via Pink Parsley

1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 heaping cup crumbled soft fresh goat cheese (about 5 ounces)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1.5 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 400°F and grease a 2 quart baking dish.

Whisk the first 7 ingredients together in a medium bowl to blend. Arrange 1/3 of potatoes in bottom of prepared dish, overlapping slightly and covering the bottom of the dish completely. Pour 1/3 of cream mixture over the potatoes. Repeat layering potatoes and cream mixture 2 more times.

Bake uncovered until potatoes are tender and top is golden brown in spots, about 1 hour.

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A Perfect Pair: Sausage-Cheese Biscuits for Josie

January 8, 2013 · 15 comments

in breads and muffins,breakfast/brunch,pork

If you follow my friend Josie’s blog, Pink Parsley (which you should!), then you know she’s expecting twins pretty much any day now. I really couldn’t be happier for her, and I can’t wait to see pictures of her new baby boys. Josie is a great mom, so I have no doubts she will be able to handle four kids under 5 (!) just fine.

Rather than do the big virtual shower thing, those of us who recently hung out in CT decided to just do a surprise mini-shower for Josie. Annie came up with the idea for “A Perfect Pair” as a play on the twins and foods that go together. Make sure to check out everyone else’s post!

Annie – Paloma Cocktail
Tara – Shrimp and Grits
Courtney – Chocolate Cake with Coffee Buttercream

For my part, I’m offering up these sausage biscuits. For some reason, I had a really hard time coming up with a food pairing (don’t ask me why!), but then I thought of sausage and biscuits. Rather than do biscuits and gravy, I opted for a recipe I’ve had saved for a while where the sausage is actually inside the biscuits. A perfect pair, indeed. These biscuits are essentially scones, but whatever you want to call them, they’re pretty awesome (and I think Josie would like them, too).

The original recipe calls for an optional pizza dough flavoring, which I didn’t have, so I decided to add some Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, and oregano. The dough came together very quickly, and these really don’t take very long to bake, even though the baking time felt like an eternity to my kid. These were so good that I don’t even want to talk about how many we ate straight out of the oven. And it’s a good thing they were worth it, too, because the entire time I was prepping and baking them, Zachary kept asking, “Are they done yet? Are they done yet? Are they done now? Are they done cooking? IS IT TIME TO EAT?”

Sausage Cheese Biscuits

Adapted from King Arthur Flour

3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 cup very cold butter, cut into pats
1 cup buttermilk (or a little more)
2 cups cooked sliced or crumbled breakfast sausage links
1 cup diced cheddar cheese
3 Tbsp. grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 425.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, garlic powder, and oregano. Add the butter and, using a pastry cutter or two knives, work the butter into the dough until mixture is crumbly (you can also do this by pulsing with a food processor).

Stir in the buttermilk, sausage, and cheeses, mixing evenly to distribute (but not overworking the dough). If dough seems very dry or crumbly, add another tablespoon or two of buttermilk.

Transfer the dough to a piece of parchment paper or a lightly floured work surface. If not using parchment, lightly grease or line 2 baking pans with silicone baking sheets. Pat and roll the dough into a rectangle about 3/4″ thick. Cut the dough into 20 squares using a sharp knife, or use a biscuit cutter to cut out the pieces. If you’ve been working on parchment, spread the pieces around so there is approximately 1″ between each biscuit (you will probably need to transfer some to a second parchment sheet). Place the biscuits (with parchment, if using) on baking sheet(s) or stone(s).

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until medium to deep golden brown.

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