Homemade Stromboli

16 10 2010

This is my favorite quick end-of-a-LONNGGG-day-at-work-and-I-want-something-tasty-and-filling-but-have-very-little-energy-or-motivation recipes. With premade dough for sale at most local supermarkets (or if you have the foresight to make your own pizza dough and have it at the ready in your fridge at all times), strombolis take a surprisingly little amount of time.

stromboli

Ingredients:stromboli 1

•pizza dough
•1/3 cup tomato sauce
•1/3 cup mozzarella cheese
•large pinch romano cheese
•your favorite pizza toppings
•extra virgin olive oil

Toppings included in picture above:

•Italian style Smart Sausages
•green bell pepper
•red onion
•black olives

Directions:

stromboli 21. Pre-heat oven to 450º F.
2. After letting the dough sit out to get to room temperature, divide into two equal parts and form 1 section into a ball. Stretch out to a 10-12” circle, using a plate or cutting board to help hold its form.
3. Spread the sauce in a rectangle shape along the middle and then add the toppings and cheese on top. The amounts listed above are for 1 stromboli and are only recommendations – I like mine pretty saucy and cheesy.
stromboli 44. Wrap the longer sides around the ingredients to connect in the middle. Fold the smaller ends up to close off the ends.
5. Lightly spread olive oil over the outside of the stromboli.
6. Place the stromboli on a baking sheet and bake 15 minutes, or until it is thoroughly cooked and the outside is golden brown.

Tips:

•While jarred sauce is quick and easy, this is still a great opportunity to use your homemade sauce (including my tomato sauce and basil walnut pesto). Also, if you like white pizza, try just using some melted butter, olive oil and tons of minced garlic.
•To zest up your stromboli, you can sprinkle various ingredients on the outside before you bake it. Think of it like a bagel – sesame seeds, poppy seeds, romano or asiago cheese, fresh cracked black pepper, garlic powder, dried onion, even mimic an everything bagel…
•This dish is definitely ideal for your pizza stone, if you have one. But if not, a nice dark cookie sheet works fine. It needs to cook fairly quickly on a high heat.


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Categories : All Recipes, American, Italian, Main Course

Vegetarian Garbage Plate (oh, yes I did!)

9 10 2010

I went to college in Rochester, NY, and if you are from upstate New York you are likely all too familiar with this unique regional dish. It usually involves a heap of mac salad, a heap of home fries, topped with 2 cheeseburgers, a hot chili meat sauce and then mustard and chopped onions. Since I realized I’ll never be able to go back and relive my college days with this dish (it’s pretty much meat and fat, through and through), I decided to create my own veg-friendly garbage plate. If you ever feel adventurous, give it a try!

garbage plate

Ingredients

•Alexia Foods Yukon Gold frozen french fries
•homemade mac salad (wheat macaroni, organic canola mayonnaise, red onion, green bell pepper, salt, pepper, garlic powder, parsley)
•2 homemade veggie burgers
•2 sandwich slices of cheddar cheese
•vegetarian chorizo hot sauce (see recipe below)
•red onion, finely chopped
•brown mustard

Directions:

garbage plate 11. Bake french fries according to directions.
2. Heat veggie burgers and top with cheese so it starts to melt.
3. Pile french fries and mac salad so they each take up half a large plate or bowl.
4. Top with the veggie cheeseburgers, spoon a hefty portion of the chorizo sauce on top, and then garnish with mustard and onions.

Sauce Ingredients:

•2 Tbs butter
•1 Tbs vegetable oil
•4 cloves garlic
•1/2 red onion, finely chopped
•12 oz chorizo style Smart Sausages, diced
•1 Tbs chili powder
•a pinch of kosher salt
•2 tsp fresh ground pepper
•cayenne pepper to taste
•15 oz can chopped tomatoes

Sauce Directions:

1. Heat butter and oil in a medium saucepan. Add garlic and onion and sauté until they become soft.
garbage plate 22. Add chorizo and cook over medium-high heat until thoroughly browned (about 5 minutes). The sausage will start to fall apart – this is a good thing considering original garbage plate sauce is made with ground beef. In the end, you want a chili-like consistency.
3. Add seasoning and brown another 2 minutes.
4. Add the tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes over medium heat. Adjust seasoning to taste, as needed.

Tips:

•A traditional garbage plate has lots of options. Instead of french fries and mac salad, you can replace one or both with home fries or baked beans. And instead of cheeseburgers, you can serve with hotdogs, Italian sausage, chicken tenders, grilled cheese or eggs. Try your own combinations!
•This meal is scientifically proven to cure hangovers.
•Most importantly, DO NOT EAT THIS OFTEN!


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Categories : All Recipes, American, Breakfast, Main Course, Sauce

Basil & Walnut Pesto

6 10 2010

pestoAfter a longgg summer of waiting, I finally grew enough basil (from seed – [cheer!]) to make a batch of homemade pesto. So, of course, I did! I used walnuts not just for their flavor (I do really like the flavor), but also because I always seem to have tons of walnuts on hand and pine nuts can be so darn expensive!

Ingredients:

pesto 1•4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
•1 cup compacted fresh basil
•6 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
•3 Tbs shredded romano cheese
•3 Tbs raw walnuts
•pinch of kosher salt
•1 tsp fresh ground pepper

Directions:
pesto 2
1. Place all ingredients in food processor.
2. Pulse to start chopping and incorporating the ingredients.
3. Blend until you have a fine, pesto consistency. May take a minute or two once it gets going.
4. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.

Recommended Serving Instructions:

Use this however you want! Great as a spread, on pizza, with pasta, mix with mayo for sandwiches or cream cheese for bagels, mix into your eggs… the options are literally endless!


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Categories : All Recipes, Italian, Sauce

Homemade Waffles

3 10 2010

Here is a simple recipe for delicious homemade waffles. It comes from Alton Brown, one of my favorite Food Network personalities. He turns food into a science, so you know you’ll get a perfect dish every time.

waffle

Ingredients:

•2 cups unbleached flour
•1/2 tsp baking soda
•1 tsp baking powder
•1 tsp kosher salt
•3 Tbs sugar
•3 large eggs, beaten
•1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted
•2 cups buttermilk, room temperature
•vegetable spray, for waffle iron

Directions:

waffle 21. Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl and mix wet ingredients separately in a medium bowl.
2. Combine wet and dry ingredients in large bowl until well mixed. Let stand for 5 minutes.
3. Heat waffle iron and cook according to the iron’s directions.

Recommended Serving Instructions:

These are great with some walnuts and maple syrup, but also with apple butter or fresh fruit.

Tips:

•The only thing I do differently is I use regular milk or almond milk in place of buttermilk. It’s healthier and still tastes buttery with the half-stick of butter you add anyway.


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Categories : All Recipes, Breakfast, Main Course

Homemade Veggie Burgers

3 09 2010

While MorningStar is pretty much a staple in my household, it’s always better to eat food that is minimally processed. That is why this veggie burger recipe is great – you see and taste all of the ingredients that go into them. Plus, they taste amazing! The only way to make them more natural would be to make your own beans…and maybe ferment some soy beans to make your own soy sauce…

burger

Ingredients:

burger ingredients•3 cups cooked brown rice
•15 oz. can of black beans
•15 oz. can of red kidney beans
•1 Tbsp unsalted butter
•1 medium cooking onion, finely chopped
•1 medium carrot, shredded
•1 cup breadcrumbs (preferably unseasoned)
•3/4 cup roasted unsalted sunflower seeds
•1/2 cup dried parsley
•4 large eggs, lightly beaten
•1/4 cup soy sauce
•1/4 vegan Worcestershire sauce
•garlic powder
•salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

burger 11. Make brown rice in advance. It works best in this recipe if you let it cool to room temperature or slightly warmer.
2. Rinse and drain the black and kidney beans. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat and add beans. Cook thoroughly until they are soft and then mash with a wooden spoon.
burger 23. Combine everything on the list from rice to parsley. Stir until everything is evenly combined.
4. Beat the eggs in a separate bowl and combine with the soy sauce and vegan Worcestershire sauce. Add to the main mixture and stir until fully incorporated.
burger 35. Form into 1/2-inch thick patties, roughly 4 inches in diameter.
6. Heat large skillet over medium-high heat. Coat with nonstick cooking spray and cook each patty about 4 minutes per side, until outsides are thoroughly browned and the insides are cooked through.

Recommended Serving Instructions:

Serve however you like to eat your burgers. I enjoy these with homemade guacamole, pepper jack, lettuce, tomato and red onion on sesame buns.

Tips:

burger 4•The burgers can tend to be on the fragile side. One thing you can do to help the cooking process is make the patties in advance and chill for 20-30 minutes (or up to 2 hours) before cooking.
•This recipe makes about 1 dozen burgers – way too many burgers for the normal dinner crew. I have found that the burgers last longer if you just cook them all at once and then freeze the leftovers. If you refrigerate the mixture to cook later, it tends to dry out.
•Another option for the excessive veggie burger mixture is to make however many burgers you want and make a vegetarian meatloaf with the rest. Sometimes I make 4 burgers and put the rest in a 2-quart square ceramic baking dish (spray with non-stick spray first). Pack the loaf into the dish and cover in foil. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 375º F. After about 20 minutes, remove the foil and cook an additional 5-10 minutes until the top is browned and the inside is cooked through (should be barely moist).


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Categories : All Recipes, American, Main Course

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