Pesto and Pancetta Egg Sandwiches (Ckng Lght, ??) 4.5
I love homemade "egg mcmuffin sandwiches". These are currently my go-to meals when I get home late on Monday and Thursday from yoga class. However, this variation took the "egg mcmuffin" to new and delicious heights! I couldn't seem to find this in my Ckng Lght magazines or annual but Culinary in the Country posted the recipe here. This was our breakfast on Sunday morning with a side of fresh fruit, yogurt and a grapefruit.
Eggs are lightly poached in little ramekins; or in my case, a bit over poached. I don't quite have the timing down yet. Meanwhile, I deviated from the recipe and fried up a couple slices of pancetta instead of procuttio. A bit of pesto is spread on a toasted English muffin, then layered with the pancetta, egg and all sprinkled with a bit of salt and pepper. Delicious!
Fish en Palliote (CI, Mar/Apr, pg 22) 3.5
The Husband made this dish Sunday night for dinner. What a lovely presentation! I can't speak much about the preparation because I stayed out of the kitchen - I have a tendency to "take over" when trying to help. He sort of halved the recipe - some bits got halved and others didn't.
What I think occurred was lemon zest was combined with freshly chopped parsley and set aside. Carrots, green onions, and red onion were julienned and placed in on a sheet of aluminum foil. Butter was mixed with more lemon zest, dolloped on top and the fish placed over everything. Then the aluminum foil was folded up to make a couple of packets and placed in the oven.
I have to say, this bakes up wonderfully. However, with that said, our packets could have used another solid 5 minutes each.
Calzones (Culinary in the Country)4.5
This ended up being loosely based on the recipe linked to above. It was my initial intent to substitute mushrooms for the pepperoni, but when I started the recipe, I realized that I had forgotten the ricotta cheese AND the marinara sauce. Quick action was required as I had the dough rising in the oven and Star Trek on TV. Note to self - start dough BEFORE Star Trek comes on!!
I quick made a pizza sauce with some tomato puree I had on hand. I tossed in some sauteed onions, red pepper flakes, pepper, orgenano and a bit of fresh chopped basil. Sliced up the mushrooms - I didn't have time to saute them to remove excess liquid. Oh well.
Once the dough was done, I divided it into four balls, rolling each one into a circle and topping half with the sauce, mushrooms, red pepper slices and cheese. I sealed them up, attempted to poke steam vents, and tossed them into the oven for about 20 minutes.
These were super tasty. One was plenty for me, but I think the Husband would have been happier eating two. We did save two for dinner the next night, and both of us thought they tasted even better! I know I'll be making these again - I may even make some extra and freeze to have on hand.
Chili Pasta (Ckng Lght, Jan/Feb 09) 4.5
I made this the other night and want to say that this was indeed a super tasty and satisfying comfort food! I had a couple of modifications - I needed to add extra water, but didn't add any more chili powder as it was already plenty spicy (love that Penzey's medium chili powder!).
I subbed ground bison for the burger. Ground turkey or even TVP would work well.
I forgot to buy beans (two weeks in a row actually) and I forgot to soak some of my own beans (again, two weeks in a row), so I quick subbed some corn. I think I liked that better!
And I used campanelle pasta because that's what I had on hand. I needed to cook it for just tich longer. Not a biggie. Gave me time to clean up the kitchen.
I served it with the yogurt scones from the same issue. Very tasty combination.
Chili Pasta with Beans (modified)
Since this cooks in one skillet, prep and cleanup are a snap. This dish is easy on the budget, too, since it serves six using less than a pound of meat. Top it off with sliced green onions and a shower of reduced-fat shredded cheddar.
Yield
6 servings (serving size: about 1 1/3 cups)
Ingredients
1 tablespoon canola oil
3/4 cup chopped onion
3/4 pound ground sirloin (SUBBED GROUND BISON)
4 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 cups water
3/4 teaspoon salt
6 ounces uncooked ruote (about 2 1/4 cups uncooked wagon wheel–shaped pasta)
1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added pinto beans, rinsed and drained (SUBBED CORN)
1 (14.5-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes with green chiles (such as Muir Glen), undrained
1 (8-ounce) can no-salt-added tomato sauce
Preparation
1. Heat oil in a LARGE nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion and beef to pan; cook 4 minutes or until onion is tender and beef is browned, stirring to crumble. Stir in chili powder, cumin, and oregano; cook 1 minute. Stir in 2 cups water and remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 18 minutes or until pasta is done.
Yogurt Scones (Ckng Lght, Jan/Feb 09)
Just as Ckng Lght says: These scones are terrific with chili, or you can split them in half lengthwise and serve with sloppy joe sauce.
Yield: 12 servings (serving size: 1 wedge)
Ingredients
6.75 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 cups)
2.375 ounces whole wheat flour (about 1/2 cup)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions
3/4 cup fat-free plain yogurt
1 large egg white
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 425°.
2. Weigh or lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl; cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in onions. Combine yogurt and egg white, stirring with a whisk. Add to flour mixture, stirring just until moist (dough will be sticky).
3. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead lightly 4 times with floured hands. Pat dough into an 8-inch circle on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cut dough into 12 wedges, cutting into but not through dough. Bake at 425° for 15 minutes or until golden. Serve warm.
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