Veal Stew with Potatoes

Hearty, fork-tender veal stew with potatoes and other veggies.

Perfect one-dish dinner for these chilly and rainy fall days!

Here is an authentic Italian recipe for an unbelievably tender and savory veal stew with potatoes. It's a one-dish meal perfect for a cozy family dinner. You can serve it with a big green salad on the side, if you like. Or simply with a slice of your favorite bread.
This recipe is easy and approachable for everyone. It's made using few, simple, wholesome ingredients. No crazy ingredients or too many spices. Just the mouth-watering aroma of the rosemary makes this stew fragrant and delicious.

Ingredients: serving 4

• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 rosemary sprig
• 4-5 sage leaves
• 3 tablespoons of olive oil
• 1.5 lb (680 gr) of veal (2 shoulder chops)
• 2 tablespoons of flour
• 1 qt (950 ml) vegetable broth (I used Trader Joe's organic, low sodium)
• 3 medium potatoes, about 1 lb (450 gr)
• salt

Preparation time: 10 minutes to prepare, about 90 minutes to cook
Directions:
1. In a large pan, saute' the chopped onion and carrot, with the olive oil over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes. Add the rosemary and the sage.

2. Add the meat cut in pieces to the pan and cook for a few minutes, turning the meat around until most of the pink is gone.

3. Stir in the flour, and add the broth. As soon as the broth starts to boil, reduce the flame to medium-low, cover the pan and cook for about one hour. Check and stir once in a while.

4. Peel and cut the potatoes in cubes and add to the pan. Cook for about 30 minutes covered, or until the potatoes are soft. Add more broth or water if necessary. Salt to taste.

5. Serve hot with a few slices of French or Italian bread, and a green salad if you'd like.

Buon appetito!

Creamy Pasta with Butternut Squash and Mascarpone Cheese

A delicious combination of sweet butternut squash, creamy mascarpone cheese, crispy crumbled bacon, and sage infused butter sauce, makes this pasta worth a try!

This pasta has it all: a balanced, nutrient-rich dish that will make you feel happy and satisfied.
It has sweet and nutty butternut squash, which is a great source of vitamin C, fibers, magnesium and potassium. It has all the calcium and proteins that you need, from the mascarpone and the parmesan cheese. And the carbs and fibers form the pasta.
And then, there is bacon. Sinfully crispy bacon.
You can always make this pasta without it. But, what can I say? Dinner should not only be wholesome and balanced, but also fun and tempting. And bacon is an amazing addition to the taste.  The sweet and rich flavors of the squash and cheese is really only complete with the crunchy and smoky  aroma of the bacon.
And note, this recipe is fast and quite easy. A bowl of this pasta will leave you full and happy, so make sure to add it to your list of one-dish dinner recipes.

Ingredients: serving 4

• 1 lb (450 gr) of butternut squash, cleaned, peeled and cubed
• 5-6 leaves of sage
• 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter
• 4 oz (110 gr) of mascarpone cheese
• 4 tablespoons of freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 3 slices of bacon, thick cut (optional)
• salt and pepper
• 12 oz (340 gr) of pasta, I used Barilla casarecce pasta

Preparation time: 35 minutes
Directions:
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Peel, clean and cut in cubes the butternut squash. As soon as the water boils, cook the squash for about 5 minutes.

2. In a large skillet, melt the butter with the sage. After the 5 minutes remove the squash from the water. Don't throw away the water - you will use it to cook the pasta! Add the squash to the skillet and saute' for another 5-10 minutes until soft.

3. Cook the pasta in the boiling water, using the same water you cooked the squash in. And cook the bacon in a separate pan until crispy. Cut the bacon in pieces.

4. Mash some of the squash with a fork, and add the mascarpone to the skillet. Add several tablespoons (a few at the time) of the boiling water to help the cheese melt, and make a creamy sauce. Adjust with salt if necessary.

5. Drain the pasta and toss in the skillet with the mascarpone and squash sauce, adding the Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle with pepper.

Serve immediately with crumbled crispy bacon on top. Enjoy! 

Quiche with Asparagus and Speck

Perfect recipe for this Sunday brunch: savory, rich and creamy quiche with asparagus and speck

This recipe is not only great for Sunday brunch, but also for your next picnic, or a light family dinner next to a big green salad. And assuming there are any leftovers, a slice of this quiche is great for your kids lunch box. Or to pack and take with you to the office on Monday.
For this quiche, I used frozen puff pastry which is one of those things that I always have in my freezer. I promised some of my friends to write a post of  things-you-should-always-have-in-your-freezer/fridge/pantry. Ok, this is one!
It's not complicated to do a pie crust, but it's definitely more time consuming. What's not to love about frozen puff pastry anyways? It's easy. It's quick. It's mess-free. And it's consistently delicious.
This quiche is really fast to assemble. And if you don't find speck, you can always substitute with thin-sliced pancetta, prosciutto or ham.

Ingredients: to make an 11 inch pie

• 1 sheet of puff pastry, thawed (I used Pepperidge Farm, frozen)
• 4 eggs
• 1 bunch of asparagus (12 oz, 350 gr)
• 3 oz (85 gr) of speck or pancetta
• 3.5 oz (100 gr) gruyere cheese
• 2 tablespoons of parmesan cheese
• 12 fl oz (350 ml) whipping cream
• salt

Preparation time: 60 minutes (15 minutes to prepare, 45 minutes baking)
Directions:
1. Thaw the puff pastry if you haven't done it yet.  Remove the bottom part of the asparagus breaking the bottom with your hands (as close to the end as possible). Wash, cut in pieces about an inch in length, leaving longer tips (about 3 inches). Boil for about 5 minutes in slightly salted water.

2. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease the quiche or tart pan with butter and flour. On a clean counter, sprinkled with flour, stretch out the dough to fit into a 11 inches quiche pan. Cut the edges. Using a fork, poke holes to the bottom of the crust.

3. In a large bowl beat the eggs with the cream and salt. Drain the asparagus, and add to the bowl, saving most of the tips for decorating.

4. Sprinkle the bottom of the pie with the gruyere cheese and the speck cut in strips.

5. Pour the egg mixture on the pie crust. Decorate with the asparagus tips. And sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese.

6. Bake for about 45 minutes until golden on top.

Enjoy! 

THIN MINT CHRISTMAS COOKIES

It is time to start planning your Christmas cookie list, isn't it? Today's cookie is truly a five star keeper!!

These festive cookies taste just like Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookies(only better!!) and they only take TWO INGREDIENTS to make!!! People will think you've been working on them all day.

 

I drizzled some white chocolate
decoration on these, just for fun,

but it certainly isn't necessary. You
can use holiday sprinkles instead.

You will need some Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers and some Andes (creme de menthe) chocolates.....that's it!!
 

 

The chocolate wafers come in a 9 ounce package and I found the Andes Mints (those creamy little chocolate mints with the green center) in a 4.67 ounce package.  There are 28 mints in the package and one package will do a dozen cookies (I found the mint packages for $1.60 here in Alaska, so hopefully you can find them even cheaper.

I unwrapped and then melted the chocolates in my microwave for about 30 seconds...stirred and then microwaved them for another 10 seconds (stir until the chocolate is smooth and shiny). Dip the chocolate wafers in the melted chocolate (both sides) and place on some parchment paper (or waxed paper).

Stick them in the fridge (I used the freezer) for about 5 minutes to "set" the chocolate......that's it!!  

 

 

NOTE: If you are having trouble finding the Andes Mints, just use the Andes Mint baking chips (next to the chocolate chips) they will work just as well. 

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!



Cranberry Muffins

Enjoy the inviting aroma of just-baked cranberry muffins, fresh from your oven.

Moist and soft. Every delicious bite filled with the fresh flavor of cranberries and a hint of sweet oranges

Do you have half a bag of leftover cranberries in your fridge after making your Thanksgiving cranberry sauce? Yes, I'm sure at least some of you do. Just like me.
Cranberries are not the type of fruit you can have in the refrigerator and eat like that. They are a little rough on the palate when raw. But they are simply delicious when baked in muffins, scones or pies.
So this weekend I baked. I know. Only one day after cooking Thanksgiving dinner, I baked some more. That shows you how much I love cooking, and well... eating sweets. Anyways, I used all the cranberries left and made these soft, moist and buttery muffins, with a hint of orange zest and juice. Cranberries and oranges are really perfect together.
And to make you feel better about these muffins, did you know that cranberries are super healthy? With their vibrant red color, cranberries don't just make these muffins look beautiful. They are considered superfruits, packed with tons of nutrients and anti-oxidants, and very low in calories. After all the eating this holiday weekend, I should not really be counting calories. But anything helps!
I almost forgot. Here is a picture of me enjoying one of these muffins.

He clearly had his eyes on me :-)

Ingredients: to make 12 muffins

• 4 tablespoons (half stick, 55 gr) of unsalted butter, melted
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup (100 gr) of white sugar
• 1/4 cup (50 gr) of brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1 orange, zest and juice (about half cup)
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup  of milk
• 2 cups (300 gr) of all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 1.5 cups (150 gr) of fresh cranberries
• 1 tablespoon of pure cane, raw sugar, for decoration

Preparation time: 45 minutes (20 minutes, plus 25 minutes baking)
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375º F (190º C). Melt the butter cut in pieces in the microwave checking every 10 seconds. In a large bowl, blend the melted butter with the eggs, brown and white sugar.

2. Blend in the salt, vanilla extract, milk, orange zest and orange juice - no seeds please :-),

3. Whisk in the flour and baking powder until all well combined.

4. With a spoon, fold in the cranberries. If you'd like, save a handful of cranberries to place a couple on top of each muffin before baking (so that the muffins will look beautiful).

5. Line a 12 muffin pan with cupcake liners, or grease with spray or butter. Spoon the batter evenly in the 12 cups. Add a couple of cranberries on top of each, and sprinkle with raw sugar. Bake for about 25 minutes.  Check with a toothpick. If inserted in the middle should come out clean 

 Enjoy!