Rhonda
Chicken Salad Sandwiches
Yes, this is a very simple recipe and everyone has their own version of it, but the reason I’m putting it out there is because it’s the recipe that reminds me that if I think to change one seemingly little ingredient in a recipe, especially if I don’t have something that a recipe calls for and I need to substitute, it ends up adding a different twist to the same old thing. I have always made chicken salad the same old way, (chicken, celery, onion, once in a while, and mayonnaise) until I bought it at a grocery store and it had grapes and walnuts added to it. I made my own, with much less mayonnaise and I loved this new chicken salad! So, I have made chicken salad that way up until I tried this recipe from Ina Garten’s Barefoot Contessa At Home cookbook. Even just adding spinach leaves or lettuce as a bed to put the chicken salad on was a new thing for me. I love the added crunch and also the added vitamins. In this recipe, tarragon, is the one seemingly little ingredient that makes all the difference.
Leave a commentspaghetti Bolognese
This recipe also comes from Real Simple magazine (February 2012) slow cooker meals. I have found that meals made in a slow cooker really make a difference when it comes to getting dinner together at night. I just have to remember to have all my ingredients the day before for whatever I want to make. It’s great knowing that dinner is at least half made when you’re busy doing other things all day and then realize that it’s dinnertime. The sauce has subtle flavor notes, however, if you want to boost the flavor a bit, you could add red pepper flakes, more tomato paste and a very rich red wine. It’s a slightly chunky sauce which makes it perfect for spaghetti. Also, for me, it has come out a little watery than I like, so I drain a little of the juice from the tomatoes before adding them and I add a little more tomato paste. With a little (or a lot, if you’re like my husband) Parmesan and some crusty bread it’s a great simple meal. Oh, and a glass of wine.
Leave a commentShepherd’s Pie
When it’s chilly and rainy outside like fall weather, even if it’s the middle of spring, I think of homey comfort foods. One of my recent favorites is Shepherd’s Pie. I hated this dish when I was a kid and my mom made it. My mom is a great cook so I don’t know why I disliked it so much. I think it’s one of those older recipes that has made a comeback. And, literally, up until a year or so ago, I had never eaten it. Something suddenly made me think of Shepherd’s Pie and I wanted to try it again to see if I had changed my mind about it, and ,somehow, I came across Alton Brown’s recipe for it and tried it and have loved it ever since. He uses ground lamb, but I use ground round or sirloin. Since one of the days last week was a rainy, chilly day, I felt like making it, and, thankfully, my rosemary survived the “winter” in my garage and my thyme never really died in my herb garden outside, so I had the fresh herbs instead of having to buy them. I have used dried herbs before and they work perfectly well, but I like to use the fresh when I can.
Dried Cherry Scones
One of my very favorite flavor combinations is chocolate and orange. Another one is cherry and almond. I had never had this combination until I made these scones and from then on I was in love. I saw Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa, make them on her show and then found the recipe on the Food Network website (the recipe is courtesy of the Blacksmith Inn, Bailey’s Harbor, WI). The whipping cream and butter make a wonderfully textured scone and the sliced almonds on top give them that extra almond flavor and crunch. The dried cherries throughout are just tart enough to give a perky mouthful of flavor. Obviously, they’re great for breakfast, but also, for afternoon tea, or even with a scoop of ice cream for dessert. Continue reading
Leave a commentEmeril’s Chicken Cacciatore
This recipe, like good spaghetti sauce, takes a little time. Slow cooking time, but it’s worth it. I got this recipe from the Food Network website a few years ago and it is kind of involved but if you take your time with it you will be rewarded! The 1 hour simmering time, after everything has been added, really makes all the flavors develop into a rich and flavorful sauce. The recipe calls for thighs, drum sticks and wings, but sometimes I use boneless breasts cut in big pieces because I like white meat better and I just don’t like dealing with the bones and skin but then I miss out on the added flavor the bones give to the sauce. And, the recipe for Emeril’s famous Essence (from Emeril Lagasse’s Emeril’s TV Dinners cookbook) is included as well. Continue reading
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