Category Archives: Dinner

Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Turkey Bolognese

21 Friday Nov 2014

Posted by in Dinner, Healthy

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, ,

Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Turkey Bolognese

I love spaghetti squash for its flavor and nutritional benefits over regular spaghetti.  (Did you know per cup spaghetti squash has only 31 calories and 7 grams of carbs, compared to 221 calories and 43 grams of carbs in pasta spaghetti??!  Plus, it makes for a nice alternative to a traditional pasta dish for those of you who need to follow a gluten-free diet.)  But I think in order for spaghetti squash to really shine as a dinnertime star, it needs a hearty bolognese sauce to accompany it.  Try this chunky turkey bolognese, and I promise you won’t be disappointed!

Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Turkey Bolognese
Time:  30 minutes active;  1 hour 30 minutes total
Yield:  Six dinner-sized servings

2 spaghetti squash
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 to 1½ lbs. ground turkey
½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
¾ tsp. oregano
½ tsp. salt, plus a bit more to sprinkle on squash
¼ tsp. pepper, plus a bit more to sprinkle on squash
4 carrots, peeled and chopped into rounds roughly 1/8 inch thick
2 onions, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 celery stalks, chopped
28 oz. crushed tomatoes
6 oz. tomato paste
20 oz. tomato sauce or marinara sauce
¼ cup fresh basil, chiffonade
1 cup shredded fresh Parmesan or Asiago cheese

1.  Cut each squash in half lengthwise.  (Be careful!  The skin is fairly thick and can be tough.)  Scoop out and discard seeds.  Drizzle with EVOO.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place cut side down on a greased baking sheet.  Roast at 425°F for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

2.  Meanwhile, place the chopped carrots in a large microwave-safe bowl.  Cover with water.  Microwave for 5-8 minutes, until they’re a bit softened.

3.  Place the ground turkey in a medium sauté pan with the crushed red pepper flakes, oregano, salt, and pepper.  Cook over medium heat until the turkey is cooked through (about 8 minutes), stirring occasionally.

4.  In a large sauté pan over medium heat, cook the onions, bell pepper, and minced garlic until tender, about 5 minutes.  Add the celery, softened carrots, and cooked turkey.  Stir in the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste and marinara sauce.

5.  Once the squash is fully roasted, allow it to cool enough so that you can handle it.  Transfer each half to a cutting board (I lift it with forks because I’m not patient enough to wait until it’s cool!) and scrape the squash with a fork, loosening the long spaghetti-like strands.  Top with bolognese sauce, fresh Parmesan cheese, and fresh basil.  Enjoy!
Note:  For a fancy presentation, serve this dish right from the hollowed out squash!

spaghetti squash 5 Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Turkey Bolognese

PDF to Print Recipe for Roasted Spaghetti Squash with Turkey Bolognese

Turkey Pear-ed with Bleu

13 Thursday Nov 2014

Posted by in Healthy, Lunch, Quick and Easy, Salad

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

,

Turkey Pear'ed with Bleu

I love mixing and matching ingredients to invent new seasonal salads.  This is one of my favorites right now because it contains great autumn flavors and a variety of textures.

Turkey Pear-ed with Blue
Yield:  1 salad serving
Time:  15 minutes total

2 cups baby arugula, rinsed
2 oz. roasted turkey, diced
1 oz. bleu cheese, crumbled
1 fresh pear, sliced
1 handful dried cranberries
your favorite salad dressing (I recommend a raspberry vinaigrette or Brianna’s Blush Wine Vinaigrette)

Combine all of the ingredients together in a bowl.  Toss to coat with dressing.  Enjoy!

PDF to Print Recipe for Turkey Pear’ed with Bleu

French Onion Soup

07 Tuesday Oct 2014

Posted by in Boozy, Dinner, Soup

≈ 2 Comments

French Onion Soup

With the fall chill coming a little stronger every day, this hot and savory soup ought to warm you up in no time!

When slicing the onions for this recipe, slice them with the grain.  This means cutting them from pole to pole, as opposed to against the grain which would be parallel to the onion’s “equator”.  Slicing with the grain will allow the slices of onion to retain their shape better after sautéing, giving you the characteristic strips of sautéed onion in the finished soup, instead of mushy bits and pieces of onion floating throughout.  I read recently that cutting onions with the grain produces a more mellow onion flavor, whereas slicing onions against the grain brings out a stronger flavor, but don’t worry–this soup is chock full of savory onion-y flavor!


French Onion Soup
Servings:  8
Time:  2 hours

4 tbsp. butter
4 sweet onions, thinly sliced with the grain (pole to pole)
4 Spanish onions, thinly sliced with the grain (pole to pole)
1 tsp. salt
1½ tbsp. flour
1/3 cup cognac (I use Hennessey)
1/8 oz. (about 1½ tbsp.) chopped fresh thyme
3 whole bay leaves
½ tsp. freshly cracked pepper
1 tbsp. lemon juice
3 cans (each 10½ oz.) Campbell’s beef consommé
3 cans (each 10½ oz.) Campbell’s beef broth
¾ cup chicken broth
3 cups shredded Gruyère cheese
1 baguette, sliced into ½-inch thick slices

1.  Melt the butter in a Dutch oven over low heat.  Add the onions, and sprinkle them with salt.  Gently toss to coat then place a lid on the Dutch oven and allow to cook for 1½ hours over low heat, stirring every 20 or 30 minutes.

2.  (Preheat oven to 375°F.)  Sprinkle flour over the onions and toss to coat.  Add the thyme, bay leaves, fresh pepper, and lemon juice.  Gently stir.  Turn the heat up to medium and cook for another 2 minutes.

3.  Stir in the cognac, beef consommé, beef broth, and chicken broth.  Simmer for 10-15 minutes.  Meanwhile, place the sliced of baguette on a lightly greased cookie sheet.  Spray the tops of the bread with cooking spray and bake at 375°F for 5 minutes, until lightly toasted.

4.  (Set oven to broil.)  Ladle the soup into serving bowls.  Float two or three baguette slices in each bowl of soup (enough to cover the surface) and top with shredded Gruyère.  Place the bowls under the broiler until the cheese is bubbly and begins to turn golden brown, about 2 minutes.  Serve immediately.

PDF to Print Recipe for French Onion Soup

Chicken Saltimbocca Florentine

24 Wednesday Sep 2014

Posted by in Boozy, Dinner

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

,

Chicken Saltimbocca Florentine

One of my favorite parts about cooking with wine is that it forces you to open a bottle that you can then enjoy as dinner is in the oven (…or with your meal if you’re the patient type!)  I love this dish paired with a nice bottle of Italian wine, such as Montepulciano, Sangiovese, or Chianti, and a side of sautéed fresh spinach with roasted garlic.  Yum!

Chicken Saltimbocca
Yield: 4 servings
Time:  15 minutes active, approximately 70 minutes total

4 chicken breasts
1 tsp. dried crushed sage
1 tsp. dried oregano
½ tsp. garlic powder
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
8 thin slices of prosciutto (or ham)
8 slices of provolone cheese
2 handfuls of fresh spinach
40 oz. tomato sauce
½ cup red wine
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
16 toothpicks

1.  Preheat the oven to 375°F.  Spread 4 tbsp. of tomato sauce into the base of a 9×13″ baking dish.  Set aside.

2.  Trim any visible fat off the chicken.  Cut each breast in half crosswise.  Pound to tenderize.*  (See bottom for note.)

3.  Lay the chicken on a flat surface, such as large cutting board.  Sprinkle with sage, oregano, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.  Top each piece of chicken with one slice of prosciutto, followed by one slice of provolone cheese.  Distribute the fresh spinach between all of the pieces of chicken.

Chicken Saltimbocca Florentine

 

 

 

 

 

4.  Next, you’ll need to roll each piece up, lengthwise.  Start at the skinny end (if one end is more narrow then the other) and work your way toward the wider end, rolling in a manner that is fairly tight and containing all of “fillings” (meat, cheese and spinach) within the roll.  Secure with two toothpicks and place in the prepared baking dish.  Repeat with all pieces of chicken.

5.  In a large measuring cup, mix together the remaining tomato sauce, red wine, and EVOO.  Pour over the rolled-up chicken.  Bake at 375°F for 45-55 minutes, until cooked through.

 

*I find the easiest and cleanest way to tenderize the chicken is to line a cutting board with plastic wrap, place the chicken down, and cover with another piece of plastic wrap.  Pound using a meat mallet or the base of an aluminum can, such as a can of black beans.  I know it’s probably not the best idea in the world to literally hammer plastic wrap into raw chicken (my graduate thesis focused on the endocrine-disrupting properties of BPA), but I figure that it’s safer then spewing salmonella all over my kitchen.  Life is full of tough decisions!

PDF to Print Recipe for Chicken Saltimbocca Florentine

Late Summer Harvest Pasta Primavera

04 Thursday Sep 2014

Posted by in Dinner, Healthy, Quick and Easy, Vegetarian

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

,

Late Summer Harvest Pasta Primavera

I am absolutely loving this year’s crop of fresh veggies from my local farm stand!  With corn, tomatoes, zucchini, and basil abundant this time of year, I created this fresh and healthy recipe for Late Summer Harvest Pasta Primavera.  It turned out so delicious that my husband ate FOUR plates of it!  One wasn’t enough so he went for seconds, followed by thirds because he said it was just so darn good that he didn’t want to stop eating it, then finally a small portion for round four to keep the flavors coming!  I’d say this is a winning recipe, one you’ll feel good about eating, and a great way to use up some of those last tomatoes and zucchinis from this glorious garden season!

Late Summer Harvest Pasta Primavera
Serves:  4 hungry adults
Time:  40 minutes total

4 ears of corn
2 cups red grape tomatoes
2 cups golden grape tomatoes
2 zucchinis
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced
½ cup fresh basil, thinly sliced into long strips (chiffonade)
¼ cup fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
8 oz. cherry sized fresh mozzarella balls, each cut in half
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
½ cup white wine
½ cup chicken broth (or vegetable broth if making the vegetarian version)
freshly ground pepper
salt
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 lb. pasta (my favorite for this recipe is campanelle but any loose spiral shaped pasta or even pappardelle would work wonderfully)

1.  Bring a large pot of water to a boil as you shuck the corn.  Once the water is boiling, add the ears of corn and cook for about 4 minutes, until slightly tender.  Remove corn from water and rest at room temperature.  Once cool enough to handle, cut the kernels off the cobs.

2.  Fill another medium to large sized pot with water and bring to a boil.  Cook the pasta according to the package’s instructions.  (Meanwhile, begin step #3.)  Once cooked, drain the pasta and set aside.

3.  Cut each of the grape tomatoes in half.  Place in a medium sized skillet with the EVOO and cook over medium heat until the tomatoes begin to slightly burst, about 3 minutes.  Add the minced garlic, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.  Cook for another 2 minutes over medium heat.  Pour in the white wine and cook for another 5 minutes.  Reduce the heat to low.

4.  Using a vegetable peeler, peel the zucchinis into thin ribbons.  Cut each ribbon to a length of about 2 inches.  Add the zucchini, corn, pasta, scallions, and ¼ cup of the basil to the tomato mixture.  Pour in the chicken (or vegetable) broth.  Toss to coat and bring to a light simmer over medium-low heat.

5.  To serve, top with the fresh mozzarella and remaining basil.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and freshly ground pepper.

PDF to Print Recipe for Late Summer Harvest Pasta Primavera