Sole and Bay Scallops Italiano

I've been trying to eat healthy after all the holiday's indulgence. The simple dinner I came up with tonight is only 314 calories a serving. With a side of couscous makes a total calorie dinner at 604, not too shabby!!! Here is what I did. It only took 20 minutes or so to put this meal together. 
for the baked fish:
1lb of flounder or sole
1/4 lb of bay scallops
20-30 grape tomatoes sliced
3/4 cup of sliced black olives sliced
2 tablespoons of capers in vinegar
2 tablespoons of chopped shallots
3 tablespoons of olive oil
a splash of white wine 
a squeeze of fresh lemon juice
a sprinkle of fresh parsley
salt and pepper to taste
Just layer all the ingredients, first fish, season with salt and pepper, next the tomatoes, olives, capers, shallots  and parsley. Drizzle with oil and re season. Set aside if needed, just before you put it in the oven add wine and lemon. Bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes.
for the couscous:
1 cup of tri color Israeli couscous
1 1/4 cups of water
1 tablespoon of butter
1 tablespoon of grated parmesane 
salt and pepper to taste
bring the water, butter, salt and pepper to a boil add the couscous and simmer until all the liquid is evaporated. Toss with parsley and cheese.

*you can use any fish of your choice it will all work perfectly!!

** any starch will work good too!!

***a nice salad and a good white wine makes a perfect Saturday night dinner!!!!

Pasta Aglio Olio and Alici with Bay Scallops and Spinach

     My favorite times in the kitchen are when I go in and just start grabbing ingredients, mixing and tasting and creating something original, this is what I came up with tonight. I took my go to pasta with anchovies, garlic and oil and added some things that I had to use up from my weeks groceries and it turned out delicious!!
For the sauce I used:
6 cloves of garlic peeled and smashed
1 can of black olives sliced
1 can of anchovies
1 lb of bay scallops
1 bag of baby spinach
1/4 cup of olive oil
2 big pinches of crushed hot red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons of butter
salt and pepper to taste
1lb linguine 
First I added the garlic, olives, anchovies, olive oil and red pepper flakes to a skillet, heated on medium heat for about 3-5 minutes. Next I added the scallops and butter and turned off the heat. I put a pot of salted water on to boil and cooked the pasta. When the pasta was almost cooked I turned the flame back on the sauce, added the spinach and some starchy pasta water until just heated, then I added the pasta to the skillet and just heat through for a few minutes.

Next I made a topping that I am sure I showed you before, it's just some panko bread crumbs mixed with seasonings. Tonight I seasoned them with parsley, lemon zest, red hot pepper flakes, salt and pepper tossed with enough olive oil to moisten but they stay crunchy.

*Start with a basic oil and garlic sauce in a skillet and the possibilities are endless, use left overs...
**A nice crunchy loaf of Italian bread, a tossed salad, and a nice bottle of wine and dinner is complete for a casual get together!!
***This dinner only took 15 minutes if that to put together!!! Quick, easy and yummy!!!!

Mozzarella en Carozza and Potato Croquettes

   Two of my childhood favorites, actually its Italian peasant food, hearty and filling for very little money. Two very easy dishes that go great with a nice homemade soup. The potato croquettes are always made with left over mashed potatoes that are doctored up with seasoning and a little surprise in the middle. The mozzarella en carozza is a cross between grilled cheese and savory french toast. No precise recipes here just methods. For the mozzarella en carozza, translated means mozzarella in a carriage, simply put sliced mozzarella between two slices of preferably italian bread, dredge in flour seasoned with salt and pepper, the coat with beaten eggs also seasoned and shallow fry in equal amounts of olive oil and butter until golden brown and the cheese is all melted and oozing. For the potato croquettes, mix the left over mashed potatoes with anything that is not too moist, left over veggies of any kind, fresh herbs ect., add a beaten egg and enough bread crumbs so they hold together nicely and you can form a patty. Now the fun part, tuck a nice surprise in the center of the patty, my favorite is ham and cheese. At this point I crust the patties in panko bread crumbs and shallow fry once again in oil only until golden and yummy. Well there you have it I hope you try one or the other next time you put a pot of soup on the stove, add a nice salad and your good to go.

Oven Braised Italian Style Pot Roast Over Creamy Polenta

It was a snowy day in Connecticut today so I thought a little comfort food would take the winter chill off. I decided on an Italian flavored pot roast in light of the fact that hubbs hates potatoes, who hates potatoes??? As I winged it, just made it up as I went along, this was to my surprise super easy and not messy at all to put together. So let's get to the recipe, I used:

1 3/12-4 lb bottom round beef rump roast (my favorite cut for a roast)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
3 carrots sliced into coins
3 ribs of celery sliced
1 medium onion diced 
4 cloves of garlic smashed
1 10 oz package of white mushrooms quartered
1/4 cup red wine 
2 14 oz cans of diced tomatoes
1 14 1/2 oz can of beef broth
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper to taste
Add the olive oil to a large dutch oven over high heat, season the meat with salt and pepper and shear on all sides. Next add the carrots, celery, mushrooms and onions to the pot, cook for about 5 minutes, deglaze the pot with the wine. Now add the tomatoes, beef broth, garlic and bay leaf to the pot. Cover and put into a preheated 325 degree oven for 3-4 hours or until fork tender but not quite falling apart.

When the roast is tender remove it from the pot and reduce the gravy on the stove top to your desired consistency,  I thickened mine up with a slurry because I like my gravies really thick.

 Next make the polenta:

It's a 3 to one ratio of liquid to corn meal, I used:
1 1/2 cups of chicken stock 
1 1/2 cups of cream
1 cup of corn meal
2 tablespoons of butter
1/4 cup parmesan
salt and pepper to taste
Bring the liquid to a boil and add the corn meal and whisk like crazy, this cooks very quickly, in a minute or 3 so make sure everything else is ready to go. 

*you might have to add more liquid to the polenta as I did to achieve the desired consistency, it's different every time
**always taste and re season as you go
***this would also be good over mashed potatoes, egg noodles or any pasta of your choice 
****a nice glass of red wine would top this meal off, I hope you try it and enjoy

Arancini AKA Rice Balls

    Last nights bacon and asparagus risotto turn into tonight's arancini, translated from Italian it means little oranges. Whenever I make risotto or rice I always make extra so I can enjoy these little crunchy and creamy treats. There is no "recipe" per say but a technique. All you have to do is add an egg, some bread crumbs to bind up the rice so you can roll it into slightly firm balls. If you have plain rice you can add anything you like as long as its not too moist, cheese and pepperoni is really good stuffed into the center like a little surprise, I always add some fresh parsley for brightness. You can even make these with boxed rice or left over rice from your Chinese take out, again the possibilities are endless.... Tonight I added some grated mozzarella to my risotto because it was what I had on hand in the fridge, once your rice mixture is the right consistency roll into small balls about the size of a ping pong ball, roll the balls into breadcrumbs and shallow fry on all sides until golden brown. They are a perfect little snack anytime of the day at room temperature. I love to make these and I make them often!!

Mushroom, Spinach and Goat Cheese Raviolo

    
    Tonight I was feeling a little creative so I opened the fridge and started pulling out ingredients I needed to use, this is what I came up with. I love using gyoza wrappers for a quick ravioli, it took me less than an hour to put these together, the filling possibilities are endless.
For the raviolo I used:
1 pkg gyoza wrappers (makes 24 raviolo)
1lb shitake mushrooms
1 bag baby spinach
1 3oz log of goat cheese (I used garlic and herb flavored)
1 cup shredded fontina cheese
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tablespoon of olive oil
2 tablespoons of butter
a splash of prosecco
salt and pepper to taste
Finely chopped the shitake mushrooms saute in the oil and butter mixture until all the liquid is evaporated and are slightly browned, season with salt and pepper and add the prosecco. Cook down again until all the liquid is evaporate, set aside and let cool. Now cook the spinach in the same method, squeeze dry and chop. Add the cooled mushrooms and spinach to a mixing bowl and add the rest of the ingredients, mix well. Add a 1/2 teaspoon the the mixture to the bottom half of the gyoza, wet the edges of the top half of the gyoza, press together to form the raviolo. When all are complete decide what kind of sauce you want, it can be as simple as a brown butter or a light alfredo sauce is what I used tonight. I also garnished it with a little bacon and parsley.

*this is a really impressive dinner to cook for friends with minimal effort, they can also be made ahead and frozen for a later use
**boil quickly about a minute or two is all you need so make sure the sauce is waiting for the raviolo
***like I said the filling possibilities are endless, let your imagination run wild and happy cooking!!!

Habanero Pepper Jelly

    Hubb's friend sent me these beautiful habanero peppers from his garden, but I was a little afraid to eat them straight up. I was thinking hot sauce but finally decided on a pepper jelly. I turned out way better than I expected and not blow you away hot at all to my surprise. I think this is such a versatile condiment, any where from over cream cheese or brie, on corn bread, even chicken, chicken wings, pork, fish, the possibilities are endless. This is the recipe I came up with, it is very easy to put together.

8 orange habanero peppers seeded 
1 yellow bell pepper seeded 
1 small poblano pepper seeded
4 cups of sugar
1 1/2 cups of cider vinegar
4.7 oz can of powdered pectin
a pinch of salt and pepper
orange food color (optional)
I pulsed the peppers in a food processor to a fine dice, and just added them to the pot with all the rest of the ingredients, brought it to  a boil and cooked it until thickened, about 10-15 minutes stirring occasionally. I let it cool a bit and put it in a large mason jar. I covered it and kept inverting it upside down and up right so that all the pepper would be evenly dispersed as it cooled. Simple as that!!
*I didn't care for the the color it was turning so I added the orange food coloring because you eat with your eyes first, but you can leave it out if you wish