Monthly Archives: November 2013

Salads and Appetizers

Red Romaine Lettuce With Almond Slices, Dried Cranberries, Gorgonzola Cheese And Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing

Red Romaine Lettuce with Almond Slices

A Head Of Red Romaine Lettuce Washed, Dried And Cut Into About One Inch Pieces
1/4 Cup Of Dried Sweetened Cranberries
1/4 Cup Of Almond Slices
1/4 Cup Of Crumbled Gorgonzola Bleu Cheese
A Minced Garlic Clove
A Tablespoon Of Finely Chopped Scallion
A Tablespoon Of Raspberry Wine Vinegar
1/4 Cup Of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/2 Teaspoon Of Sea Slat, Divided In Half
1/4 Teaspoon Of Ground Black Pepper, Divided In Half

Combine the garlic, the scallion, the raspberry wine vinegar, the extra virgin olive oil, half of the sea salt and half of the black pepper in a salad bowl. Whisk well. Taste and add more sea salt and/or black pepper, if needed.

Add the lettuce along with the remaining sea salt and black pepper to the bowl. Toss well. Top with the dried cranberries, the almonds and the gorgonzola cheese before serving.

Salads and Appetizers

Heirloom Tomato And Roasted Beet Salad

Heirloom Tomato and Roasted Beet Salad

A Medium Yellow Heirloom Tomato Cut Into About ¼ Inch Slices
Two Roasted Beets Cut Into About ¼ Inch Slices
A Minced Garlic Clove
A Teaspoon Of Finely Diced Red Onion
A Teaspoon Of Lemon Zest
A Teaspoon Of Raspberry Wine Vinegar
A Tablespoon Of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
½ Teaspoon Of Sea Salt, Divided
¼ Teaspoon Of Black Pepper, Divided
Six Basil Leaves, Torn In Half

Combine the garlic, the red onion, the lemon zest, the raspberry wine vinegar, the extra virgin olive oil, ¼ teaspoon of sea salt, and 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper in a mixing bowl. Whisk well. Taste and add more sea salt and/or black pepper, if needed.

Arrange the tomato slices and the beet slices on a plate overlapping them slightly. Sprinkle evenly with ¼ teaspoon of sea salt and 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper. Pour the dressing evenly over the top of the tomato slices and the beet slices. Garnish with the basil and serve. Note: you can serve this salad with roasted red peppers and assorted olives, if desired.

Seafood

Baked Shrimp Piccata

Baked Shrimp Piccata

This recipe has the great flavor of a piccata preparation but without the work.

A Pound Of Shrimp Deveined, Cleaned And Patted Dry
¼ Cup Of Panko Bread Crumbs
A Tablespoon Of Unsalted Butter
A Tablespoon Of Olive Oil
½ Cup Of Savignon Blanc White Wine
A Teaspoon Of Lemon Zest
A Minced Garlic Clove
A Tablespoon Of Capers
A Tablespoon Of Finely Chopped Italian Parsley
¼ Teaspoon Of Sea Salt
1/8 Teaspoon Of Ground Black Pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the olive oil, the garlic, the lemon zest, the parsley, the capers, the sea salt and the black pepper in a saucepan. Cook on medium heat for one minute. Add the white wine and stir well. Let the mixture cook until the wine has reduced by a half. Off the heat, whisk in the butter. Taste and add more sea salt and/or black pepper, if needed.

Place the shrimp into a ceramic baking dish and evenly pour the butter, wine sauce over them. Sprinkle the bread crumbs uniformly over the top of the shrimp. At this point, you can add a small amount of olive oil on top of the bread crumbs so that they become crispier when finished cooking, if desired.

Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Let cool and serve with lemon wedges.

Pasta

“Inside-Out” Ravioli

"Inside-Out" Ravioli

Traditional spinach ricotta ravioli filling is used as the sauce in this recipe for farfalle pasta.

1 And 1/2 Pounds Of Farfalle Pasta
A Pound Of Washed Fresh Spinach
A Minced Garlic Clove
A Tablespoon Of Finely Chopped Scallions
15 Ounces Of Part Skim Ricotta Cheese
1/2 Cup Of Grated Pecorino Romano Cheese
1/2 Cup Of Crumbled Feta Cheese
A Pinch Of Nutmeg
1/8 Teaspoon Of Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
1/8 Teaspoon Of Freshly Ground Black Pepper
1/4 Teaspoon Of Sea Salt

Steam the spinach in about an inch of water in a covered pot for two minutes on high heat. Drain the spinach and squeeze out as much water as possible. Finely chop the spinach in a food processor.

In a bowl large enough to hold one and one half pounds of pasta, add the chopped spinach, the ricotta cheese, the Romano cheese, the feta cheese, the garlic, the scallions, the nutmeg, the crushed red pepper flakes, the black pepper and the sea salt. Mix well until all of the ingredients are incorporated. Taste and add more sea salt and/or pepper, if desired.

Cook the pasta according to the package instructions in a pot of boiling, salted water. Reserve one cup of the pasta water before draining the pasta in a colander.

Add the pasta water to the ricotta spinach mixture and mix well. Add the drained pasta to the bowl. Mix well so that all of the pasta gets coated with the sauce. Serve with grated Pecorino Romano cheese.