Although I am a jewelry designer and not a foodie, this blog will be about cooking adventures with my friends who are true foodies! They always bring the best to a recipe and I am grateful to be able to learn from them.
Thursday, January 6, 2011
TMT - Penne with Spinach and Ricotta
My first Thirty Minute Thursday post! I decided to join the group yesterday. Today I looked in the refrigerator and didn't see much. I have been stuck at home for most of the week because of construction and the larder was quite bare. There was some frozen spinach in the freezer, so I looked up spinach in the index of Giuliano's Hazan's Thirty Minute Pasta and found Penne with Spinach and Ricotta. I had some ricotta left over from the cannelloni I recently made for Cooking Italy - bingo!
A simple recipe - saute diced onion in a little butter, added chopped spinach and cook about 5 minutes. Add the ricotta, a little heavy cream, some nutmeg and S&P. Add spinach sauce to cooked penne, toss with a little parmigiana cheese and enjoy!
Okay, that's how it's supposed to go. I added about twice as much spinach as called for, well, just because we like spinach! As you can see in my photo, no penne, so I had to make do with rotelli pasta. I must also confess, I did not have heavy cream. So as a workable substitute, I made a quick little bechamel, with a pat of butter, a tbs. of flour and 1/2 c. non-fat milk. We never missed the cream and probably won the cholesterol toss up between the pat of butter and the heavy cream.
There you have it, a wonderful meal in about 30 minutes. My husband and I both enjoyed this - he even suggested adding some pignoli nuts next time - great idea!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Cooking Italy! Chicken Fricassee with Porcini Mushrooms, White Wine and Tomatoes
This was a simple dish to make, with few ingredients, but delicious results. The recipe called for a whole chicken, cut into quarters; I used breast quarters instead. The dried porcini mushrooms were not inexpensive, but the sauce and taste were fabulous, so you get what you pay for. Simple roasted potatoes and a green salad went well with this earthy dish. We all enjoyed this meal, even my son who is not a fan of mushrooms.
Below is an adaptation of the recipe, found on p. 332 of Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. I would advise getting the book, as I give only bare basics! All you need are:
chicken, cut in quarters
S&P
1/2 c. dry white wine
1 oz. dried porcini mushrooms
1/4 c. canned imported Italian plum tomatoes, coarsely chopped, with juice
1 tbs. butter
- Soak the mushrooms in 2 c. tepid water for 30 minutes. Reserve the water, remove the mushrooms, rinse them well and chop coarsely. Filter the reserved water through a strainer lined with a paper towel.
- Saute the chicken pieces on both sides until browned. Add S&P and the wine and scrape the pan.
- Add the mushrooms, filtered water and tomatoes. Cook for about 50 minutes, turning the pieces occasionally, until chicken is tender.
- Remove the chicken to a platter, reduce the sauce if necessary, then swirl in the butter and pour over chicken.
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