Recipe Review from 12/31/12

Happy New Year!

A new project to begin the new year:  The Man Barn!

For my Warm Weather Readers: it's about 15*F (-9.5*C) at time of photo

This post also starts the new recipe count for 2013!  2012 heralded 100 new recipes.  I don't have a goal, per se, just a desire to see how many new recipes I can comfortably make in a year.  Why?  I think it's because I like the variety, it keeps meals interesting, helps with meal planning from week to week which in turn keeps the grocery bill down, and it's improved my overall cooking skills.

So, to start 2013, I give you:

Sausage and Rice Stuffed Squash     (Ckng Lght Dec 2012)   GF/Vegetarian with substitute
Only one alteration to this recipe - I used the bottom half or so of a large butternut squash because that's what I had in my fridge.  You can also omit the sausage in this or substitute tempeh or seitan crumbles to make it vegetarian.  GF if you watch the sausage ingredients.  This turned out really good!  I loved the sweetness of butternut squash with the tang of the (hot) Italian sausage.  The brown rice added a nutty backdrop to all the flavors. This made three dinners for us. 

An aside - I used my favorite Cooks Illustrated Fool Proof Baked Rice recipe, starting the rice well before putting the squash into the oven.  To save time, make the rice the day before if you can.

Photo from CookingLight.com

• 4 small acorn or sweet dumpling squashes (about 10 ounces each)  (I used the bottom 1/2 of a large butternut squash)
• 2 (4-ounce) links sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 1/3 cup chopped celery
• 1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 1/2 cups cooked brown rice
• 1/3 cup dried cranberries
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated (about 1/4 cup)
• 1 ounce Swiss cheese, shredded (about 1/4 cup)  (I grated up some leftover cheese I had in the fridge)

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 425°.
2. Place whole [halved and seeded ] squash in a roasting pan. Bake at 425° for 30 minutes or until just tender. Let stand for 15 minutes. Halve squashes. Scoop out seeds; discard.
3. Preheat broiler to high.
4. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add Italian sausage to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Remove sausage from pan; drain on paper towels. Wipe drippings from pan with a paper towel.
5. Return pan to medium-high heat. Add oil; swirl to coat. Add onion; sauté 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add celery; sauté 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in sausage, rice, and next 5 ingredients (through Parmesan). Divide rice mixture evenly among squash halves. Sprinkle evenly with Swiss cheese. Arrange squash halves on a baking sheet; broil 4 minutes or until golden and cheese is melted.

Julianna Grimes, Cooking Light
DECEMBER 2012

Egg and Hashbrown Casserole (Ckng Lght Dec 2012)   GF if watching hash brown list/Vegetarian if omit bacon

While we probably enjoy eating breakfast out more so than any other meal, it's not realistic to do it on a regular basis.  One thing we've started on the weekend is Pancake Sunday.  Usually the Husband makes us a batch of pancakes or waffles Sunday morning to be enjoyed with real maple syrup from Duluth and a cup of hot tea. If I'm lucky, I can pursuade him to put a mashed banana in whatever he's making.   But even I like to change things up and this was a result.  

I thought it was a bit putzy for "the night before" assembly.  Now, part of this was because I was super tired and started this at 9p at night, part of this was because I baked my thick-cut bacon rather than trying to fry 6 large pieces in my skillet.  Actually, baking was the easy part.  I took some of the bacon grease from the pan and used it to flavor the onions and mushrooms.  I also wondered, as I'm trying to get my spinach to wilt and the liquid to reduce, why not just use a box of thawed frozen spinach?  It really would have speeded up the assembly process. 

So, hands on certainly wasn't 35 minutes.  And cooking time took longer that 28 minutes - closer to 1 hour - and that was letting the pan sit out while the oven was pre-heating.   

But, by the time I got it to the table, it was well received and a nice change from pancakes and quiche.

Photo from CookingLight.com

• 8 center-cut bacon slices  (I used 6 thick-cut slices)
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
• 8 ounces sliced shiitake mushroom caps
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cups shredded hash brown potatoes (such as Simply Potatoes)
• 1/4 cup no-salt-added chicken stock (such as Swanson)
• 5 cups fresh baby spinach (recommend using 1 box frozen spinach, thawed and drained)
• 2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
• 3 ounces reduced-fat Swiss cheese, finely chopped
• Cooking spray
• 1/2 cup 1% low-fat milk
• 6 large eggs, lightly beaten

Preparation

1. Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp.  I cooked the bacon in the oven until crisp (~30 minutes at 400*).  Remove bacon from pan; crumble. Put 1/2-1 tbsp drippings into a pan,  heat to medium-high. Add onion, mushrooms, and garlic to drippings in pan; sauté for 6 minutes. Add potatoes and stock; cook 6 minutes, stirring frequently. Add spinach, basil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; cook 2 minutes or until spinach wilts. Remove from heat; let stand 10 minutes. Stir in crumbled bacon and cheese. Place mushroom mixture in an 11 x 7-inch broiler-safe glass or ceramic baking dish coated with cooking spray. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 350°.
3. Uncover dish. Combine remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, milk, and eggs in a medium bowl. Pour egg mixture over mushroom mixture. Bake at 350° for 28 minutes.
4. Preheat broiler to high; remove dish while broiler preheats. Broil 3 minutes or until top is browned and just set. Let stand 5 minutes.

David Bonom, Cooking Light
DECEMBER 2012

Vegetarian Slowcooked Baked Beans  (Vegetarian Slowcooker by Judith Finlayson)  GF/Vegan

In honor of the Viking/Packer rematch this past weekend, I decided to cook up some brats, make a batch of baked beans and have some chips and queso for supper.  The author touted these beans as good on their own for a main dish, but I used them as a side. 

1/6/13 - I'm coming back to add that I decided I detested this dish.  As in I tossed it...and the Husband didn't complain that I did so.  If I did this dish again, I would completely omit the mushrooms.  I wouldn't even substitute anything.  

 ...still not sure I cared for the flavor of this one.  We all have our idea of what baked beans "should" taste like, be they VanCamps or Bushes or how Grandma used to make.  In this case, the beans turned out perfect, the sauce was beautifully thick (glad I used a puree instead of crushed tomatoes), the veggies a nice addition to the beans.  It was the flavor and smell of the porcini mushrooms that turned me off.  To much earthiness or something.  I would make baked beans in the slowcooker again, but perhaps with a different recipe. 

1 pkg (1/2oz) dried porcini mushrooms   (After making the dish, I would skip the mushrooms or use a different kind)
1 cup hot water  (I used boiling)
1 onion, finely chopped
4 stalks celery, diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp minced gingerroot
salt to taste
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 cinnamon stick
1 14 oz can crushed tomatoes   (I used 1 14oz can tomato puree)
4 cups drained white beans, such as navy (I used pinto) 
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 tbsp dark miso   (I used 1 tbsp molasses)
1 - 2 tsp smoked paprika

**Note, author prefers to saute all the vegetables prior to slow cooking. Directions below are my modifications. 

1) If using dried beans, pre-cook the morning or day before.

2) Reconstitute the mushrooms in hot (boiling) water for 30 minutes.  I drained and chopped the mushrooms, tossing the liquid. 

2) I sauted the onion until lightly caramelized, and then added the garlic and sauted till just brown.

3) Combine all ingredients in slow cooker.  Cook on low 6 hours or high 3 hours.  Add maple syrup, miso (or molasses in this case) and smoked paprika.  Cook another 20+ minutes.