Zuppa Tuscana

 

For my 176th posting and final posting of 2014, I made Ryan's favorite meal, Zuppa Tuscana from Olive Garden. When we go to Olive Garden for dinner Ryan always gets all you can eat Zuppa Tuscana and spaghetti and meatballs. Ryan's strategy is to have 4 bowls of soup with bread sticks and take home the spaghetti and meatballs and have for lunch and dinner the next day. We all really like this soup and I think I'll be making this many more times.

Ingredients:

1 pound ground sweet Italian sausage

4 pieces of bacon cooked and chopped into bits

1 medium yellow onion

1 glove garlic

4 medium size Yukon gold potato's

6 kale leaves

1 - 32 ounce fat free, reduced sodium chicken stock

16 ounces water
Pinch red pepper flakes

1 cup heavy cream

 

Preparation:

Take a 12" sauté pan and heat to medium high. Add the ground sausage and cook thoroughly. When done, drain off the fat in a colander and discard the fat. Take the sausage and add to a large stock pot you're going to use for the soup.

 

Fry the bacon until crispy. Drain the bacon slices on pepper towels. Discard all but one tablespoon of the bacon fat from the sauté pan. You will use this to sauté the onion and garlic. When the bacon is cool, dice into 1/4" x 1/4" pieces and toss into the stock pot.

 

Dice the onion to 1/8" x 1/8" pieces and mince the garlic. Sauté the onion and garlic on medium heat until translucent, about 10 minutes. Don't be in a rush and burn the onions or garlic. Add the cooked onions and garlic to the stock pot.

 

Cut the potato's into large bite size pieces and add to the stock pot. Remove the stem from the kale leaves and cut the leaves into ribbons and add to the stock pot.

 

Add the chicken stock, water and pinch red pepper flakes to the stock pot. Heat the soup on medium high to just below a boil, reduce to simmer and cook 15 minutes. After 15 minutes the potato's should be fork tender. Lastly, stir in the heavy cream and you're done.

One thing I would recommend time permitting, make this soup mid-day, cover and just let sit on the stove all day slowly cooling to room temperature. The flavors will be so much more rich. Re-heat and serve in the evening.

Asian Cucumber Salad

Crisp, crunchy and delicious!

Ingredients:
1 large cucumber
2 diced green onions
1/4 diced red bell pepper
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
sesame seeds

Preparation:
Peel the cucumber and cut in half lengthwise. Use a small spoon and scoop out the seeds. Slice the cucumber into 1/4" thick pieces. Place the cucumber into a 1 quart Ziploc bag and add 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar. Marinate the cucumber for an hour or more if possible.

Drain the rice wine vinegar from the cucumber and place into a bowl. Stir in the red bell pepper, green onions and cilantro. Place a portion of cucumber salad into a serving bowl or plate and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Roasted Chicken Breast Dinner

This is one of my favorite dinner combinations. I use Inglehoffer stone ground mustard to coat the chicken breast for roasting which brings a great flavor to the meat. I serve this over rice pilaf with a little chicken gravy. Lastly, I steam some green beans and then sauté with some garlic, butter, salt and  pepper.

 

Ingredients:

Chicken breast, bone in skin on 

Stone ground mustard

Trader Joe's savory broth chicken flavor

1 tablespoon Wondra flour

Rice pilaf

Green beans

1 minced garlic clove

1/2 tablespoon butter

 

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Take the chicken breast and cut off the thin portion with your poultry shears. There isn't really any meat on this part of the breast and this will make for a better plate presentation. Coat the chicken breast with a thick layer of stone ground mustard and place on a baking pan and into the over for 30 minutes.

 

When the chicken is done, remove from the pan to a cutting board and let rest 5 minutes. After 5 minutes use a fork and small knife to cut off the breast meat from the bone. This is actually very easy to do. Place the chicken breast on the cutting board and slice into 5 or 6 pieces for service.

 

While the chicken is cooking, prepare the rest of the meal. Cook the rice pilaf according to directions on the package. The rice pilaf takes about 20 minutes and will be ready when the chicken is ready.

 

Next, steam the green beans which should take about 15 minutes. When cooked, rinse in cold water, drain and set a side. Take a 10" sauté pan and add the butter and garlic and sauté 1 minute and add the green beans and sauté until heated.

 

To make the chicken gravy, put 1/2 cup cold water into a small microwavable bowl. Add 1 packet savory broth and Wondra flour. Mix well and microwave for 30 seconds, stir and repeat. As the gravy heats up it will thicken because of the flour.

 

To serve, place a portion of rice on the plate. Add the sliced breast meat and spoon on some gravy. Place some green beans on the plate and you're done.

 

 

  

Ground Beef Tostada

I used to love the .59 cent tostada at Taco Bell. I haven't had one in many many years, but I really had a craving for a simple tostada. To make the tostada I like the tostada shells from Guerrero and red taco sauce from La Victoria. The red taco sauce is mild and almost reminds me of enchilada sauce.

Ingredients:
Refried beans
Ground beef
Trader Joe's taco seasoning
Shredded iceberg lettuce
Chopped tomato
Diced yellow onion
Sliced black olives
Cilantro

Preparation:

To make a quick taco meat, fry your ground beef and add some Trader Joe's taco seasoning. Their seasoning comes in little packets and is very tasty. Mix the taco seasoning with the
cooked ground beef and your done.

 

To assemble your tostada, place a tostada shell on a serving plate. Spread some refried beans onto the tostada shell. Add ground beef, shredded lettuce, tomato, onion, olives, shredded cheese and chopped cilantro. Drizzle on some taco sauce and you're done. Avocado and sour cream are nice upgrades if available.

Eggplant & Zucchini Parmesan with Lemon Parsley Pasta

I didn't make this recipe up, but I wish I did. This is really one of the best meals I've made in a long time. This is not terribly difficult, but time consuming. You got to give this one a try! 

 

Ingredients:

1 large eggplant
1 large zucchini
2 egg whites
1 cup panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Marinara sauce
Mozzarella cheese
1/2 pound spaghetti
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/8 cup Italian Parsley
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon rind

Salt and pepper
 

Preparation:

Use a vegetable peeler and peel the eggplant and then slice into 3/4" thick pieces. Next, take the zucchini and slice at an angle about 1/2" thick.

 

Next, prepare the breading for the vegetables. Take a shallow dish like a glass pie pan and mix the egg whites. Take a second shallow dish and add the panko bread crumbs, parmesan cheese and salt and pepper.

 

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Take a baking pan and cover with aluminum foil. Take the eggplant and zucchini slices and dredge in the egg whites and then in the bread crumb mixture and place on the baking tray. Bake for 20 minutes turning once after ten minutes. After 20 minutes take some marinara sauce and cover the eggplant and zucchini. Put some shredded mozzarella on top of the sauce and bake another 15 minutes.

 

While the parmesan is baking, start the lemon parsley pasta by cooking your pasta in a large stock pot filled with salted water. Cook the pasta to al dente, firm to the bite. While the pasta is cooking, grate the rind of the lemon and then juice the lemon. Lastly, rough chop some parsley.

 

When the pasta is done, drain and place the pasta in a large sauté pan. Add the olive oil, lemon rind, lemon juice and parsley. Heat the pan to medium high and toss the pasta and prepare to serve.

 

To serve, place a portion of pasta on a serving plate. Take the eggplant and zucchini parmesan out of the oven and place two slices of eggplant and one zucchini on the plate. Garnish the dish with chopped Italian parsley and fresh ground black pepper.

Grilled Tomato's

Here's one of my favorite sides to serve with steak. I cook this on an indoor grill pan with a little olive oil and salt and pepper, perfect!

Ingredients:
2 beef steak tomato's
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Preparation:

Heat an indoor grill pan to medium high. Slice the top and bottom off the tomato's and then slice into 3 pieces about 3/4" thick. Brush on some olive oil, grind on some salt and pepper and place the tomato's on the grill pan. You want to grill the tomato's so they are cooked on the outside, but firm in the middle, this should take about 5 minute per side.

 

To serve, place the grilled tomato's on a serving plate and sprinkle with chopped Italian parsley.