Vegetable and Pasta Skillet Dinner
Vegetable and Pasta Skillet Dinner
If you are trying to get your family to eat more vegetables this is a great way to do it. Lots of veggies with pasta, this is a simple dish that can be a side dish or a vegetarian main dish.
Vegetable and Pasta Skillet Dinner
1 (16 ounce) package whole wheat rotini pasta, cooked
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
3 T. oil
3 cups chopped broccoli
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
2 cups chopped fresh mushrooms, use whatever mushrooms you can find
1 cup shelled edamame (green soybeans) I use organic
3/4 cup cashews
In a small bowl, mix the 2 tablespoons sesame oil, soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar. Heat the 3 tablespoons of oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the broccoli, carrots, pepper, mushrooms, shelled edamame, and cashews. Sauté 5 minutes. Mix in the sesame oil sauce. Cover skillet, and cook 5 minutes longer or until vegetables are tender but crisp. Serve over the cooked pasta or toss the pasta right in the skillet and heat through. Serves 4-6.
Potatoes and Ramps
Potatoes and Ramps
I really enjoy ramp season. They aren’t around for long so I try to cook with them often. I’ve had them with eggs and asparagus and pasta and cheese. I decided today to pair them up with potatoes. It’s a great combination. I started with about 5 cups of diced red-skinned potatoes and 2 cups of chopped ramps. I had some chicken stock so I simmered the diced potatoes in the stock until tender- about 10 minutes. I had also just sauteed some chicken. The skillet I had cooked the chicken in had some chicken fat and all the tasty brown bits you get from cooking chicken. I decided to just cook my potatoes and ramps in the chicken pan. I heated up the skillet and added the ramps and the potatoes, plus a little of the chicken stock. I cooked them over high heat until the stock had evaporated and the potatoes had started to brown. I turned the heat down a little and let the potatoes brown some more. Added some salt and fresh ground pepper and they were ready. The taste of the potatoes with the ramps was really good. The flavor from the chicken drippings was an added bonus.
Chicken with Pasta
Chicken with Pasta
Simple can be so good. When I am pressed for time I often go to skillet meals. Something I can make quickly with plenty of flavor and not too much clean up afterwards. This chicken and pasta dish is one of my favorites. Great when I have company for dinner and I need a nice dinner- pronto.
Chicken with Pasta
8 ounces dry penne pasta
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 c. chicken broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves – cut into cubes
1 onion, sliced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes- I had home-canned tomatoes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 cup medium-dry white wine
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the penne pasta and cook until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain, and reserve pasta Whisk the cornstarch and chicken broth together in a bowl until smooth. Set aside until needed.
Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and chicken; stir and cook until the chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear, about 10 minutes. Stir in the onion, and pepper; cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken broth mixture, oregano, basil, and wine, if desired. Stir in the cooked pasta, and simmer over medium heat until thoroughly heated through, about 5 minutes. Serve garnished with Parmesan cheese. Serves 4-5.
Cherry Vanilla Jam
Cherry Vanilla Jam
I have some frozen cherries I got from King Orchards. They are neighbors of my sister in Central Lake, Michigan. I wanted to use some of them for cherry vanilla jam which is one of my all time favorites.
Cherry Vanilla Jam
4 1/2 c. chopped pitted sour cherries including any juice
2 T. lemon juice
2 T. pure vanilla extract
1 box powdered pectin
5 1/4 c. sugar
Wash jelly jars and lids and keep warm until ready to use. Place a large pot of water, with a rack, on to boil for the water bath. In large saucepan combine cherries with lemon juice, vanilla and pectin. Bring to a rolling boil, stirring often. Add the sugar and bring mixture back to a rolling boil, stirring often. Once the mixture gets to a full, rolling boil, constantly stir for one minute longer. Remove jam from heat and skim off any foam. Ladle hot jam into hot jars, filling to about 1/4 inch from the top. Wipe off rim and screw on the lids. Repeat with remaining jam. Process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes. Remove from water bath and allow jars to cool. Yield: about 7 half pint jars of jam.
Blue Pike Farm Open House
I will be vending at the annual Blue Pike Farm Open House this Saturday, May 3, from 10-2. This is a great chance to see an urban farm. I will have my cookbooks, herb seasoning mixes and assorted baked goods for sale including chocolate beet cake and apple cake. I’ll also have a batch of cherry vanilla preserves. There will be fresh eggs and honey for sale, horse-drawn carriage rides, plants for sale and more. Hope you can stop by and say “hello”. There will be food for tasting, too.
Blue Pike Farm is located at 900 E. 72 Street- just 1/2 mile south of the Shoreway.
Smoky Pasta with Asparagus
Smoky Pasta with Asparagus
Since I have been lucky enough to have some fresh asparagus from Blue Pike Farm I have been eating it in all sorts of dishes. Made this for lunch today and it was really good. I started by cooking some chopped bacon in a skillet. I spooned out most of the fat and added about half a cup of chopped shallots and a cup of chopped asparagus. I cooked the veggies with the bacon for a few minutes and then added a cup- maybe a bit more- of sliced mushrooms. Once the mushrooms were cooked I added a couple of cups of cooked pasta and cooked the dish until the pasta was heated through. I also added some fresh cracked pepper and a bit of hot sauce. Sprinkled with some grated Parmesan cheese when serving. Making this one again for sure.
Asparagus and Ramp Frittata
Asparagus and Ramp Frittata
There is something about having really fresh, seasonal ingredients that makes cooking more fun. I got some beautiful purple asparagus and fresh eggs from my friend Carl at Blue Pike Farm. I decided to pair them with some fresh ramps and had a great dinner last night. I also added some home canned tomatoes and some cheese to finish the dish. I started by chopping the asparagus into 1/2-inch pieces and cooking the asparagus in butter until tender. Then I tossed in about a cup of chopped ramps and half a cup of parsley. I had an open jar of home canned tomatoes so I added about a cup of the tomatoes to the pan. I cooked the mixture until most of the liquid was gone. I added a sprinkle of salt and some fresh ground pepper and hot sauce the to mixture in the skillet. I then beat together 4 eggs and poured them in the pan over the veggies. I turned the heat down and put a lid on the skillet. Once the eggs were set- about 10 minutes later- I topped the eggs with some cheese and replaced the lid for a few more minutes so the cheese would melt. My friend Sue stopped over and we had a great and simple dinner.
Asparagus and ramps cooking
Simmering the veggies
Ready for the cheese!!
Slide onto a plate before cutting and serving
Candied Violets
Candied Violets
I love to make candied violets. It’s an easy way to enjoy these delicate flowers throughout the year. I recently posted a lemon cake decorated with candied violets. Several people asked me how to make them so I thought I would share the directions. I like to use them to decorate baked goods. Lovely on a cake they also add a sweet touch to cupcakes.
Candied Violets
Powdered egg whites (see note)
Water
Superfine sugar (see note)
Fresh violet flowers, rinsed and drained on paper toweling- Not African violets
Following package directions reconstitute egg whites to the equivalent of one or two egg whites. You can dilute them a little to make them easier to brush on. Place sugar in a shallow bowl. With a food-grade fine brush coat a violet with the egg white and press into the sugar. Place on wax paper and repeat with remaining flowers. Allow to dry for about a week. Store in a container with a tight fitting lid in a cool place. I like to store them in the freezer.
Superfine sugar, egg whites and violets
Violet brushed with egg white
Dip in superfine sugar
Let violets dry about a week before storing
Note: While some people use raw egg whites in these it is a better idea to use powdered egg whites which will have been pasteurized and therefore not a risk for salmonella.
Note: You can use regular granulated sugar if you do not have superfine or you can pulse granulated sugar in a processor a few times to make superfine sugar. Don’t over process or you will end up with powdered sugar.
Lavender Liqueur
Lavender Liqueur
I enjoy making homemade liqueurs and cooking with flowers so I decided to combine the two in lavender liqueur. I often bake with lavender and use it in savory cooking, too. I thought I’d try to use the lavender in a different way and see what happened.
I started by combining 2 cups of lavender blossoms with about 4 cups of vodka in a large Mason jar. These were dried blossoms from last year’s harvest. I put the lid on the jar and let it steep together for a few weeks. After a few weeks I strained out the blossoms. Then I poured the mixture through a strainer lined with a coffee filter to get out any fine particles so my end product would be clear. I had expected the mixture to be a lavender color. It ended up a pretty honey brown color instead. It also had a very strong fragrance and flavor of lavender. Quite pleasant.
After tasting the lavender vodka I decided to add sugar to the mixture. I made a cup of sugar syrup by combining one cup of sugar with 1/2 cup of water in a small pot and brought it to a boil. This gave me a cup of sugar syrup. Once the sugar syrup cooled to room temp I added it to the lavender vodka and allowed this to mellow for another week.
The odd thing was that at first the sugar syrup and lavender vodka would not blend. The sugar syrup settled to the bottom of the bottle. No amount of stirring and shaking seemed to matter. I’d all but given up when a friend was over and tipped the bottle a few times. Amazingly it finally combined. On the advice of another friend I decided to add a couple of vanilla beans as well. The flavor is pretty interesting. Not quite sure what I will do with it yet. Perhaps a lavender martini. I am open to suggestions.
Easy Onion-Pepper Relish
Easy onion and pepper relish
Tasty doesn’t have to be difficult. I was attending a friend’s birthday party and wanted to take along something to add the the appetizer table. I looked at what I had and came up with a simple fresh relish. I started with onions and sweet peppers and rounded it out with apple cider vinegar, a little brown sugar, smoked paprika and hot sauce. It went very well with the crackers, cheeses and smoked meats that were being served. Everyone liked it and I promised to post the recipe-so here it is. Happy Birthday, Tom!!!
Tom’s Birthday Onion-Pepper Relish
oil
1 sweet onion, diced
1 sweet pepper, seeded and diced
2/3 c. apple cider vinegar
1/3 c. brown sugar
2 t. hot sauce
2 t. dried parsley
1/2 t. smoked paprika
salt and pepper to taste
Heat oil in skillet and cook onion over medium heat until tender. Add peppers and cook another couple of minutes. Add vinegar, sugar and seasonings and cook over medium heat until most of the liquid has cooked off. This will take about 10-15 minutes. Adjust seasonings, if needed. Serve with bread or crackers, cheeses and smoked meats. Makes about 2 cups.
