Category Archives: Recipes

01

May. ’16

Spinach and Mushroom Lasagna

Spinach-and-Mushroom-Lasagna-040

This Spinach and Mushroom lasagna is a great vegetarian alternative to the classic meat lasagna.

Ingredients

12 lasagna noodles

2 T. butter

1 T. extra virgin olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

4 lbs. mushrooms, washed and sliced

2 lbs. spinach

2 T. butter

¼ c. flour

2 c. half and half

¼ t. nutmeg

1-16 oz. carton ricotta cheese

1 egg

½ c. grated parmesan cheese

¼ c. fresh basil, sliced thinly

8 c. grated mozzarella cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 350o F. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling, salted water until al dente. Drain. In a large skillet, melt butter and olive oil and sauté garlic, mushrooms and spinach until mushrooms are tender and spinach is wilted. In a sauce pan over medium heat, make the white sauce. Melt butter and stir in flour and nutmeg. Whisk in half and half until smooth, well-blended and cook over low heat until slightly thickened. In a small bowl, combine ricotta cheese, the egg, grated parmesan cheese and fresh basil and stir until well-blended. To assemble: Line a baking dish with one layer of lasagna noodles, slightly overlapping them. Spread one half of the spinach mixture over the noodles. Pour 1 c. of the white sauce over the spinach mixture. Sprinkle with half the grated mozzarella cheese. Dot with spoonsful of the ricotta cheese mixture. Place a second layer of overlapping lasagna noodles on top of the ricotta. Spread the second half of the ricotta over the noodles. Put the remaining spinach mixture over the ricotta and pour the rest of the white sauce on the spinach mixture. Sprinkle the rest of the mozzarella cheese on top. Bake for 30 minutes. Serves 8.

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26

Apr. ’16

Seafood Crepes

crepes

These seafood crepes are great for brunch too. Pair with a green salad and a crisp white wine.

Ingredients:

Crepes

¾ c. milk

¾ c. water

3 egg yolks

1 ½ c. flour

5 T. melted butter

Filling

2 T. butter

2 T. scallions, minced

½ c. sliced mushrooms

3 c. diced lobster, shrimp, crab, or scallops

Sauce:

3 T. butter

¼ c. flour

¾ c. milk

¾ c. chicken stock

1/3 c. sherry

Topping (Optional)

1 c. Swiss cheese

Paprika

Directions:

For crepes – Combine all ingredients for crepes in bowl and beat until smooth. Cover and refrigerate for one hour to allow flour particles to expand an soften. Spray an 8 inch skillet with nonstick coating and heat over medium high heat. Measure about ¼ c. of the batter into the skillet and tilt the skillet to spread the batter evenly in a thin film. Cook one minute or until golden. Turn and cook about 30 seconds. Remove from skillet and stack between wax paper or parchment paper.

For filling – Sauté scallions and mushrooms in butter. Gently stir in seafood and set aside.

For sauce – Melt butter in sauce pan and blend in flour. Whisk in milk, chicken stock and sherry. Cook and stir until mixture bubbles and thickens.

To assemble, blend half the sauce into seafood. Place ¼ c. seafood mixture onto each crepe and roll up. Arrange in buttered baking dish. Spoon the remaining sauce over crepes. Sprinkle with cheese and sprinkle with paprika. Refrigerate until ready to bake. Preheat oven to 425oF. Bake for 20 minutes or until bubbling hot. Serves 6-8.

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20

Apr. ’16

Lemon Tart

lemon tart

This lemon tart is a perfect ending to a summer meal!

Ingredients:

Tart Crust

1 1/3 c. all purpose flour

5 T. sugar

1/2 t. salt

10 T. butter, melted

Filling

4 eggs, room temperature

1 1/2 c. sugar

Pinch of salt

4 T. buttermilk

2 T. cornmeal

½ c. (1 stick) butter, room temperature

4 lemons

Directions:

Tart Crust

Preheat oven to 350oF. Whisk flour, sugar, and salt together in a bowl. Add melted butter and stir with wooden spoon until dough forms. Using your hands, press dough into a 9-inch fluted tart pan with removable bottom. Place pan on lowest rack in oven and bake 30-35 minutes until golden brown, rotating pan half way through baking. Remove from oven and let cool.

Filling

Using a fine grater or microplane, remove the lemon zest (skin) from the lemons, being careful not to include the bitter white pith. Squeeze lemons to make ½ c. lemon juice and set aside. In medium bowl, cream butter, sugar and lemon zest. Add the eggs, one at a time. Then add salt, and lemon juice and mix until well blended. Transfer the mixture to a medium saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is thickened, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and fill the tart crust with the warm filling. Cool at room temperature and then refrigerate until ready to serve. Garnish with whipped cream if desired.

 

 

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03

Apr. ’16

Brie Soup

soup

Ingredients:

¾ C. chopped onion

½ c. chopped celery

4 T. butter

2 T. flour

2 c. half & half

2 cups chicken stock

8 oz. brie cheese, cut in pieces

1-4 oz cans of chopped green chilies

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, sauté onion and celery in butter over medium heat until translucent. Stir in flour to form a roux or paste-like consistency. Slowly whisk in milk and chicken stock and continuing whisking until smooth and well-blended. Add brie and whisk until melted. Add chilies, salt and pepper. Cool slightly. If desired, puree in blender until smooth. Serve with crusty bread, a green salad and crisp, white wine. Serves 4.

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28

Mar. ’16

Shrimp Tacos

shrimp tacos

Ingredients:

¼ c. olive oil

1 clove garlic, minced

2 T. red onion, diced

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced

1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined

¼ c. cilantro, diced

1 ripe mango, peeled, seeded and cut in small cubes

¼ head of cabbage, shredded

8 flour tortillas

Directions:

Wrap tortillas in aluminum foil and place in oven preheated to 300 degrees F. In a large skillet, add oil and heat until it just begins to simmer (do not overheat!) Sauté garlic until tender and translucent, about 1-2 minutes. Add shrimp and toss with wooden spoon until opaque. Remove from heat and toss with cilantro, onions and jalapeno peppers.. To assemble, place cabbage on each tortilla, top with a large tablespoon of shrimp, add mango cubes and serve. Optional garnishes: guacamole, sour cream or plain, non-fat Greek yogurt, Sriracha.  Serves 4.

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11

Mar. ’16

Steak au Poivre

steak

Ingredients:

2 T. peppercorns, coarsely crushed

4 New York strip steaks

2 T. butter

2 T. olive oil

2 T. brandy

¼ c. beef stock

½ t. Dijon mustard

¼ t. Worcestershire sauce

Salt

Directions:

Sprinkle both sides of steak with crushed peppercorns. Press into steaks using fingers. Add the butter and olive oil to a skillet and brown the steaks on both sides. Steaks will be rare. Cook longer if you want them more done. Transfer to hot serving platter. To the juices in skillet, add remaining ingredients and simmer until thick. Serve over the steaks. Serves 4.

 

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01

Mar. ’16

Oven-Roasted Duck Breast with Port Wine Cherry Sauce

duck breast

 

Ingredients:

4- 8 oz. duck breasts

4 T. olive oil

Port Wine Cherry Sauce

1 can sour cherries, drained

2 T. honey

½ t. cinnamon

½ c. port

2 ¼ t. cornstarch, dissolved in cold water

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400oF. With a sharp knife, score the skin side of the duck breasts in a crisscross pattern. Season with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a heavy skillet. Sear the skin side of the duck breasts until golden and crisp. Remove from skillet and place in baking dish. Roast in oven for 10-15 minutes or until 140o internal temperature.

While duck breasts are cooking in oven, prepare Port Wine Cherry Sauce. Combine cherries, honey, cinnamon and port in small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to gentle boil. Add cornstarch and stir until thickened. Remove from heat.

Remove duck breasts from oven and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve drizzled with Port Wine Cherry Sauce. Serves 4.

 

 

 

 

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29

Jan. ’16

Cappuccino Cheesecake

cappucchino cheesecake

Ingredients:

Crumb Crust

1 ½ c. chocolate graham cracker crumbs (about 15 squares)

½ c. sugar

½ t. cinnamon

¼ c. melted butter

Cheesecake Filling

2 eggs

½ c. sugar

2 t. vanilla

1 ½ c. sour cream

¼ c. instant coffee

2-8 oz. pkgs. Cream cheese, cut into pieces

2 T. melted butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400o. Generously grease a 9 ½ inch deep dish pie plate with shortening. You can buy graham cracker crumbs already prepared, or break 3-4 whole graham cracker squares and put in blender. Blend on high to turn into crumbs. Dump them into bowl and repeat with remaining graham crackers. Add sugar, cinnamon and melted butter to the graham cracker crumbs in bowl and mix with fork until well moistened. Using the back of a spoon, press crust into pie plate. Bake at 400 degrees for 6 minutes. While crust is baking, wash out blender to remove any remaining crumbs and combine eggs, sugar, vanilla and sour cream in blender and mix until smooth. With blender running, & add cream cheese one piece at a time until blended. ( I just remove the handle and drop the cream cheese in the hole) Add melted butter and blend until incorporated. Pour into prepared crust. Reduce heat to 325 degrees and bake for 35 minutes. Cool & refrigerate.

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24

Jan. ’16

Pesto

pesto

Ingredients:

12 fresh basil leaves, washed
4 T. pine nuts
4 garlic cloves, minced
6 T. grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese
¼ c. olive oil

Directions:

In a food processor or blender place the basil, pine nuts and garlic. Grind. Then add cheese and dribble olive oil through the tunnel while turning. Scoop out processor and place into a bowl or jar. Pesto can be stored in a jar in the refrigerator for up to one week with a thin layer of olive oil over the top. Sealing the pesto with olive oil helps to retain a bright, green color. Use with pasta or as a base for pizza with a four-cheese topping (Parmesan, asiago, provolone and mozzarella cheeses).

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15

Jan. ’16

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Burritos

burritos

This combination may sound odd, but these burritos are delicious and they contain five superfoods!

Ingredients:

4-6 whole wheat tortillas

2 large sweet potatoes

1 T. olive oil

2 cans black beans, drained

1 clove garlic, minced

3 T. cilantro, diced

2 c. grated cheddar cheese

1 bunch scallions, sliced

2 avocados, diced

2 tomatoes, diced

Plain, nonfat Greek yogurt

Directions:

Bake sweet potatoes for 30-40 minutes or until tender in 350oF oven.  Cut in half and squeeze potato pulp from the skin into a small bowl.  Cut into small chunks or smash with fork.  In a saucepan, heat olive oil and saute garlic.  Add black beans and cilantro and heat through.  To assemble, place a tortilla on a plate, top with 2-3 T. of mashed sweet potato, add 3 T. black beans and sprinkle with cheddar cheese.  Heat in microwave for 40 seconds until cheese melts.  Remove from microwave and top with tomatoes, scallions and avocado.  Garnish with a dollop of yogurt and hot sauce.  Fold up the bottom and then the sides to form  burritos.  Enjoy!

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