To make the noodles:

• soba noodles
• rice vinegar
• garlic powder
• sesame oil
• low sodium soy sauce

Boil a pot of water and add noodles. Cook until al dente (about 5-7 minutes). Drain immediately, and rinse with ice cold water. Add soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic powder, and sesame oil to taste. Toss and enjoy!

Other options: 

• Stir fry peeled, deveined shrimp with garlic and sugar snap peas. Toss with noodles or serve on the side

• Julienne carrots, toss with noodles.
• Chop some snow peas, boil with noodles and mix together with noodles and sauces.
• Top noodles with sauteed green onions and/or toasted sesame seeds before serving.

For the dough:

• 3 1/2 c. flour (plus more for dusting)
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp yeast
• 1 1/4 c. warm water

For the topping: 

• 4 tsp olive oil
• 1 large leek, white & light green parts only – thoroughly washed & finely sliced (about 1 1/4 cups)
• 2 bunches Swiss chard, washed – leaves chopped, stems minced
• 1/4 c. pine nuts (or substitute other nuts – such as sliced almonds)
• 1/4 c. golden raisins
• 1 tbsp finely minced sundried tomato
• zest of one lemon
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• salt & pepper to taste

Heat oil in a large saute pan. Add the leek and garlic, cook until leek has softened (about 7 min). Add the minced chard stems and cook until tender (about 5 mins). Add chard leaves and stir until wilted. Turn heat to low, mix in remaining ingredients and season with salt and pepper. Set aside

To assemble the flatbread:

Preheat oven to 450F. Punch dough down and divide into halves. Pat each half into a long oval (about half inch thick) and place on an oiled baking sheet. Spread topping evenly on dough and bake until crust is golden and topping is toasted (about 20 minutes). Slice and enjoy!

This past Friday, we took a class together at the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts as a double date with two of our friends. The theme of the night was Spanish tapas. I made a flatbread topped with toasted pine nuts, raisins, and sauteed swiss chard. He made delicious saffron clams with potatoes.

There was sangria. There was laughter. And of course, a ton of great food.

Looking forward to more great nights in 2012.

Recipe for the flatbread coming in the next post, stay tuned!

A couple days ago, I decided that it would be fun for my husband and I to make some dumplings together. This recipe came together fairly easily – all of the filling ingredients are ground together in the food processor, and then we folded each handmade dumpling (this part was a learning process). We cooked them in two variations: pan fried, and steamed. I was a fan of both – although this dish would probably be more fun for a dumpling making party where you have more hands on deck to fold the dumplings!

Pan fried dumplings:

Steamed:

recipe makes about 50 dumplings

• 1 pkg premade dumpling wrappers (50 total)
• 2-3 cups spinach
• 12 oz shrimp – peel, deveined
• 1 can water chestnuts (whole)
• 1 small knob ginger (about the size of a garlic clove), peeled
• 4 scallions (green parts only)
• 2 tsp sugar
• 2 tsp white wine
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground pepper

Simmer 1 inch of water in a large pot and cook spinach until wilted. Drain and rinse under cold water. Squeeze out excess water.

Add water chestnuts and ginger to food processor and pulse until roughly chopped. Add spinach and scallions and pulse until incorporated. Add shrimp, sugar, wine, salt and pepper. Pulse & scrape the sides of the food processor until the filling is uniform and looks like:

To make dumplings – add 1 tsp of filling to each wrapper and pleat. Seal each dumpling by wetting the wrapper with water.

To cook: either steam dumplings for 8-10 minutes until filling is cooked, or pan fry about 2-3 minutes per side, until golden and crispy. Serve with a simple dipping sauce of soy sauce and rice vinegar.

Smoked Wild Salmon Asparagus Spears

Spicy & Sweet & Herby roasted nuts (these were quite a hit)

Cookies! Cranberry Pecan pinwheels, cake balls, and macarons from TJs

Carmelized Onion and Goat Cheese Pizzettes

This pasta dish is delectably simple – a buttery sauce with notes of garlic and bursty cherry tomatoes. Tossed with tiny pasta, fresh spinach, and a dusting of parmesan to finish.

2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved

1/2 medium red onion, diced

1/4 c. crushed tomatoes (optional)

a few cloves of garlic, minced

a few sprigs fresh thyme – leaves minced

2 tbsp butter

pinch of red pepper flakes

salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

1/2 c. grated parmesan

1/2 lb. pasta

Heat butter until melted and bubbly – add onion, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Saute until fragrant, add cherry tomatoes and thyme. Season with salt and pepper, cook until tomatoes break down into the sauce. Stir in crushed tomatoes and simmer.

In the meantime, cook the pasta until al dente. Drain, and add to the simmering sauce. Turn off heat. Add cheese and spinach, toss and let the heat of the pasta and sauce wilt the spinach.

Take a break and enjoy.

Tonight’s dinner was lovingly prepared by my fiance – I can’t take credit for any of the cooking. The finished chowder was marvelous – toothsome bits of potato, parsnips, carrot, and celery nestled in a silky, butternutty soup. I topped my chowder with a scoop of herbed pearl couscous and a sprinkle of fresh grated parmesan.

It was so good that I went back for seconds … and then thirds.

Butternut Squash Chowder  (originally from Food and Wine)

1 medium butternut squash – halve, rub with olive oil and season with salt & pepper. roast at 425F for 40 mins, cool and scoop out the flesh and rough chop

Diced: 1 large leek, 1 yellow onion, 4 celery ribs, 1 large Yukon gold potato, 2 parsnips, 2 carrots

1 tsp fresh thyme, rough chop

Melt 1 tab butter into 2 tbsp olive oil in a large pot. Add leeks and onions, cook until onions are translucent.

Add all other vegetables, with 6 cups organic chicken broth, 1/2 cup marsala wine, and thyme.

Bring everything to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Add the butternut squash and simmer for another 10 minutes.

Ladle a third of the soup into a blender, puree until smooth. Add puree back to soup pot, and mix well, seasoning with salt and pepper. Add 1/2 c. of chopped flat leaf parsley and simmer for 5 more minutes. Serve and enjoy.

Having worked up an appetite and inspired by this tantalizing post, I pulled together the ingredients that I had in my kitchen and whipped up this meal. Started with an assortment of mushrooms (lobster, oyster, and shiitake – very appropriate for Boston!) …

…sauteed with a smidge of garlic and a squeeze of lemon. Creamy, buttery polenta finished with fresh cracked pepper and parmesan. Topped with a perfectly poached egg (the first one I’ve ever made!)  Simple and soul satisfying. It is an infinite comfort to be able to let everything else fall away, if just for a moment, and immerse yourself in the act of putting together and eating a meal.

1 egg (organic, pasture-raised is best)

1 cup assorted mushrooms (lobster, oyster, shiitake) – cleaned, coarsely chopped

1/2 c. yellow corn meal

organic chicken broth

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 lemon

butter, olive oil

salt & pepper, parmesan

For the polenta: Simmer about 2 cups chicken broth and add cornmeal. Stir frequently until the cornmeal absorbs all the liquid and the polenta thickens. Add shaved parmesan (more or less to taste) and a pat of butter. Season with salt and pepper.

Make the mushrooms: Heat a fry pan with a scant tablespoon of olive oil with a pat of butter. Add chopped mushrooms and garlic, saute until browned and aromatic. Squeeze the juice from the half lemon over the mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Add about a quarter cup of chicken broth, and simmer mixture until liquid is mostly evaporated.

Poach the egg: Bring salted water to a boil on high heat in a shallow and wide pan. Using a wooden spoon, swirl the boiling water and add the egg. Turn the heat to medium/low and cook for 3-4 minutes until the whites are opaque.

This was my first time ever poaching an egg – it’s so intriguing to watch the egg swirl and dance around in the water like a small ghost, only to emerge minutes later as a soft oval of delicious eggy-ness.

Put it all together: Ladle the polenta onto your dish, top with mushrooms and egg. Finish with cracked pepper and a fresh grating of parmesan. Sit. Eat. Enjoy.

I don’t know why red onion is called red onion, since they are clearly purple. I used to dislike eating raw onions, until I learned a little trick at culinary school. To take the bite out of the onion, all you have to do is soak the chopped onions in water for about 15 minutes and then drain them before adding them to your salad! You get the sweet onion flavor, without the oniony-ness that lingers afterwards. Try it and you’ll see what I mean.

I mixed a very basic vinaigrette for this salad – with a secret ingredient: orange juice! People always think of lemon juice for salads, but I like adding a splash of orange juice for the citrusy flavor with a little bit of sweetness. For the dressing, I mixed orange juice, balsamic vinegar, grain mustard, and whisked all of this with olive oil. I adjusted all of the ingredients by taste, so taste the dressing as you mix it and add more or less of each ingredient depending on what you like!

After that, just mix everything up in a big bowl and enjoy!

Gnocchi is always one of those things that can be incredibly finicky to make. I usually use the store-bought kind, boil them, and then toss them with some pesto for a super quick and low brow meal. However, I find that if I boil them for just a tiny bit too long, they immediately become a sticky, chewy mess instead of the light and fluffy pillows that you get when the gnocchi are cooked just right. But … who says that you have to boil the gnocchi? In this recipe, I first pan fry the gnocchi in a bit of canola oil until they are browned and puffed before cooking the sauce. This way, the gnocchi get a nice sear on the outside and stay light and fluffy on the inside when they are tossed with the wonderfully cheesy vegetable sauce.

1 package store bought gnocchi (17.5 oz)

1 can diced tomatoes with Italian seasonings (15 oz)

1 can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

1 medium onion, diced

a few cloves of garlic, minced (I used 4)

1/2 c. part skim mozzarella cheese, grated

1/4 c. parmesan cheese, grated

2-3 c. baby spinach

canola oil

salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat up about 1 tbsp. canola oil in a skillet. Add the gnocchi, tossing often. Cook until gnocchi are browned and puffed (about 8 minutes). Remove gnocchi and reserve in a separate bowl.

2. Add another tbps of oil to the pan, then add onion & garlic. Saute until onion becomes translucent. Add beans and tomatoes. Bring to simmer, season with salt and pepper to taste.

3. Stir in gnocchi and spinach. Top everything with mozzarella and parmesan. Cover and cook until cheese is melted.

4. Serve and enjoy!