Meatless | I Can Cook That

Chocolate Mint Pudding

Chocolate Mint Pudding. Need I say more? This recipe is actually really easy, and it tastes amazing. I made a few changes to the original recipe depending on what I had on hand.

Ingredients:

3 cups fat-free milk
1/2 cup packed fresh mint leaves
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup dark chocolate chips

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Spinach with Pine Nuts and Golden Raisins

I am still on a Wilted Spinach with Garlic Vinaigrette kick, but my CSA gave me a bag of spinach about the size of my torso, so I thought I’d take this opportunity to branch out and try other spinach side recipes. I had all of these ingredients on hand, so this recipe from Cooking Light (August 2006) seemed like a good choice.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup boiling water
1/3 cup golden raisins
4 cups spinach
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 large garlic cloves, minced
Salt and pepper, to taste
4 teaspoons pine nuts, toasted

First place golden raisins in a bowl. Add 1/2 cup boiling water and let stand for 15 minutes or until raisins expand. Drain and set aside.

Place the pine nuts in a saute pan over medium heat. Shake the pan frequently to keep them from burning. When fragrant and browned, remove from heat.

Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the spinach and 2 tablespoons water.

Cook for 3 minutes or until the spinach wilts.

Remove from pot and wipe the pot dry. Add 1 teaspoon olive oil to the pan and add garlic. Cook for 30 seconds, stirring frequently. Add the spinach and raisins. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Cook for 1 minute or until heated. Stir in pine nuts and serve.

I would have never thought to put something sweet like raisins with spinach, but they really worked well together. The pine nuts added a bit of crunch, as well as some flavor from toasting the pine nuts. Although I’m not willing to shelve my go-to spinach recipe, this one will definitely be added to my recipe arsenal!

Summer Garden Salad

When I usually make salads, I tend to just throw in there whatever I happen to have in my fridge. I received romaine lettuce and radishes as part of my CSA this week, so I thought it was time to explore new salad recipes. I found one on myrecipes.com, originally from the May 2008 Cooking Light magazine. This one caught my eye immediately; look at those colors!

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice

2 teaspoons honey

½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

2 teaspoons olive oil

4 cups shredded romaine lettuce

1 container grape tomatoes, halved

1 sliced peeled cucumber

1 chopped orange bell pepper

2-3 larger, thinly sliced radishes

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

1 small yellow squash, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced

1 avocado, mashed

Combine the first five ingredients (lime juice through black pepper) in a bowl. Gradually add the oil, mixing with a whisk.

Prepare all your veggies.

Combine the lettuce and the next 6 ingredients (all but the avocado) in a large bowl. Drizzle dressing over the mixture and toss to coat. Top with avocado.

I somewhat unjustifiably feel like I’m eating healthier when there are a bunch of colors in my food, so this dish made me super happy. The key to this salad is to use the freshest ingredients possible. The dressing was very flavorful and the Dijon mustard gave a good amount of acidity to the salad so no vinegar is really needed in the dressing. The original recipe called for chopped avocado, but I failed miserably in my attempt so I mashed it up to save it. Feel free to use chopped avocado instead; it probably looks more aesthetically pleasing. The recipe also called for yellow pear tomatoes, but I wanted a pop of red in the dish so I substituted in grape tomatoes.

Parsley Hummus with Toasted Pine Nuts & Pita

Hummus is really easy to make and can be customized to whatever suits your tastes. I am still working through my parsley, so I decided to try a parsley hummus on Epicurious with a few adjustments.

Ingredients:
1 bunch of parsley leaves
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 can of chickpeas, rinsed
the juice and zest of 1 lemon
2 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons tahini
1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
1 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
pita bread
cooking spray
salt, to taste

Preheat the over to 450 degrees. Cut the pita into triangles and arrange on a cookie sheet coated with cooking spray.

Cook for 4-5 minutes and set aside. Place the chickpeas in a colander and rinse with water.

Roughly chop the garlic.

Put the parsley and the garlic in a food processor and process until thoroughly mixed, about 1 minute.

Add the chickpeas and process for another minute.

Add in the lemon juice, lemon zest, tahini, olive oil, cumin, cayenne pepper, and salt (to taste). Process until smooth.

Place the pine nuts in a saute pan over medium heat. Shake the pan frequently to keep them from burning. When fragrant and browned, remove from heat.

Take 3/4 of the pine nuts and finely chop.

Add the chopped pine nuts to the hummus and mix in with a spoon. Top the hummus with the remaining whole pine nuts.

The spices add great flavor but there isn’t enough in it to give heat. The pine nuts give the hummus some crunch. And for some reason, it makes me super happy that this hummus is such a pretty green color. If you’re not in the mood for toasted pita, tomatoes or sliced cucumber would be quite tasty with this.

Asparagus Risotto

I love asparagus. I love risotto. So I thought combining the two would be easy and delicious. I used a recipe from Bon Appétit, just to make sure I knew what I was doing. Well, my poor “asparagus risotto” ended up looking more like asparagus soup with rice. Sigh. It still tasted good though…

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds asparagus

5 cups (about) canned low-salt chicken broth

1 cup water

1 tablespoon butter

1 large onion, chopped

2 cups arborio rice or medium-grain white rice

1/2 cup dry white wine

2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup whipping cream

Fresh rosemary sprigs (optional)

Begin by prepping your asparagus. Trim off the tough ends from the asparagus and discard. Cut off the asparagus tips and place in a bowl. Cut the stalks into ¾ inch pieces and place in another bowl.

Place 2/3 of stalk pieces, 1 cup broth and 1 cup water in blender (note: I would only use 1 cup broth, no water).

Puree until smooth and set aside. Chop your onion. I used large pieces, but I think the smaller the pieces, the better. Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until tender, about 8 minutes.

Add rice and stir for 1 minute.

Add the wine and cook until absorbed, stirring often, about 2 minutes. Add ½ cup broth and the chopped rosemary. Simmer until liquid is absorbed.

Continue to cook for an additional 15 minutes, adding more broth by the ½ cupfuls and allowing liquid to fully absorb before adding more. Stir often.

Add remaining asparagus stalk pieces and reserved asparagus tips and continue cooking rice until it’s tender and creamy, about 10 more minutes. Add extra broth if needed.

Add reserved asparagus puree until absorbed, about 3 minutes. (Note: 3 minutes? Ha. After 12 minutes I just gave up.)

Asparagus soup?

Stir in Parmesan and cream. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with rosemary sprigs if desired.

So, I’m guessing that cutting out the water in the puree may help a bit. I also think it might work to slowly add the puree by the ½ cupfuls versus dumping the whole thing in at once. Despite how ugly it is, it did taste good. If anyone tries this out and manages to make it look aesthetically pleasing, please let me in on your secret!

Cucumber Salad with Radish and Dill

I Signed up for a CSA vegetable half share through the Lancaster Farm Fresh Cooperative. Once a week, I pick up a box of local, organic and (obviously) in-season vegetables. This week my bundle included pink radishes. I have never tried to make anything with radishes so I was excited to see what kind of recipes were out there for this ingredient. I decided to try a salad recipe from Martha Stewart.

Ingredients:
1 English cucumber (or 3 Kirby cucumbers) halved lengthwise, seeded, thinly sliced
4 radishes, thinly sliced
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
A handful of feta cheese, crumbled
2 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 garlic clove, crushed with the flat side of a cutting knife
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/4 cup olive oil

Begin by prepping your vegetables. Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise, and use a spoon to remove all seeds.

Once seeded, thinly slice the cucumber.

The radishes I had were tiny, and I was afraid to try to thinly slice them without losing a finger. I used a mandolin slicer to slice the radishes as thin as possible. Be very careful not to get your fingers!

Add the sliced cucumber and radishes to a bowl. Zest the lemon into the same bowl.

Add the feta cheese and set aside.

In another bowl, combine the lemon juice, vinegar, dill, sugar, and garlic. Whisk until the sugar has dissolved. Season with salt and pepper.

Whisk in the oil in a slow, steady stream until emulsified.

That just means mixed so the vinegar/oil don’t separate

Add the vinaigrette to the cucumber mixture, tossing to coat. Make sure to discard the garlic before serving.

Even if this turned out to be the most offensive salad I’ve ever eaten, I’d still probably post it just so you could see how beautiful the salad is. Thankfully, the flavors worked really well together. The lemon soaked into the cucumbers and radishes adding a hint of citrus, the dill added a little earthiness to the dish, and the feta was a nice balance to the fresh vegetables. I am pleasantly surprised to say that I hope to make radishes a part of my normal ingredients during the spring!

Pear Arugula Salad with Walnuts and Parmesan

I found a recipe for Fig & Arugula Salad with Parmesan and really wanted to try it, but figs are not in season until September-ish. Comments for the recipe suggested using red pears as a substitute, so I tried it out. I also didn’t have any shallots so I nixed those, and added in some walnuts for a bit of crunch. The result was this Pear Arugula Salad with Walnuts and Parmesan!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 red pears, peeled, cored & chopped
6 cups trimmed arugula (about 6 ounces)
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup (1 ounce) shaved fresh Parmesan cheese
A handful of walnuts

Combine the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and salt. Whisk to combine.

Very exciting photo, I know

Peel pears.

Cut in half and remove the seeds and stem. (You can use a melon baller or just a spoon)

Chop into bite-size pieces.

Add the pear pieces to the vinaigrette and toss to coat.

Cover and let marinate for 20 minutes. In another bowl, add the arugula.

You can add raw walnuts, or if you’re up for it, saute them in some butter until fragrant.

Remove and place on a paper towel to drain the butter.

Allow to cool and add to the arugula. Add the cheese. After 20 minutes, add the pear pieces.

This was really refreshing! I wish I could have made it with fresh figs, so I will have to attempt that again in the fall. There was just the right amount of sweetness from the pears, tangy-ness from the vinegar, crunch from the walnuts, and spice from the arugula. This would be a perfect summer dinner and a great spring board dish. Grilled salmon or chicken would be a great addition to this dish.

Chickpea and Spinach Stew

A friend sent me this recipe from Food & Wine, and I somehow had all of these ingredients on hand (yes, including the saffron and golden raisins… don’t judge me). This recipe said it would take 30 minutes, so I thought it would be a great weeknight meal, plus any time I can make something somewhat healthy, it’s a win.

Ingredients:
1 cup water
10 ounces baby spinach
2 large garlic cloves, crushed
Kosher salt
Pinch of saffron threads
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
Pinch of ground cloves
Pinch of freshly ground pepper
Two 15-ounce cans chickpeas with their liquid
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 large tomato—peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped
1/4 cup golden raisins
Crusty bread, for serving

To cook the spinach, boil the water in a pot and add the leaves. Stir frequently until wilted (about 2 minutes). Drain the spinach in a strainer, pressing the leaves against the sides to squeeze out as much liquid as possible. Coarsely chop the spinach and set aside.

In retrospect, I feel like using frozen chopped spinach that has been defrosted would work just as well, and save some time.

Using the flat side of a knife, mash the garlic into a paste with 1/2 teaspoon salt and the saffron.

kind of coarse, but oh well

In a small bowl, mix the garlic paste, paprika, cumin, cloves, and black pepper and mash until combined.

Stir in 1/4 cup of the chickpea liquid.

To seed the tomatoes, cut the tomato in half and use a spoon to remove the seeds.

I decided not to peel the tomato because I wanted the pieces to retain their shape. Feel free to peel them, it will make for a more soft and more incorporated into the dish.

Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a dutch oven or pot. Heat over high heat and add in the onion and tomato, (I forgot about the onion, oops) and stir occasionally until soft, about 3 minutes.

Add the spiced garlic sauce to the pot and cook for 1 minute.

Add the chickpeas and the liquid they came in to the pot. Add the raisins and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

Add the spinach, reduce heat, and simmer for 15 minutes.

Drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil on top and serve with some crusty bread.

This didn’t have as much hit-you-over-the-head flavor as I was expecting (when cumin is in a recipe, I tend to prepare for some kick). But, the more I ate, the more I really enjoyed it. If I make this in the future, I will probably use more tomato, I was really craving more. Also, I hope to remember to use onion next time! Darn me. This is one of those dishes that will probably taste better the next day, when all the flavors have time to meld. (Update: it was delicious the next day!)

it’s great as an appetizer too

Shish Kabobs with Rice

This weekend I was given quite the culinary challenge: make a meal for ten people without breaking the bank. I would be feeding everyone at the beach, so my mind immediately went to Shish Kabobs with Rice (I want summer and barbecues to be here so badly!). This is a great option for vegetarians as well, always a plus.

Living in the city does not mean you can’t enjoy this recipe. If you have a little indoor grill, that will work just fine. Due to the poor weather we had this weekend, we actually ended up broiling the shish kabobs in the oven, which worked just fine.

Ingredients (serves 10):

3 pints cherry tomatoes
1 bag of pearl onions, peeled (quick tip below)
2 green bell peppers
1 yellow pepper
1 red pepper
1 orange pepper
2 8 oz packages of whole mushrooms (I used cremini)
1 large zucchini
2 large summer squash
5 lbs top sirloin steak, cut into cubes
10 cups chicken stock (ideally, use vegetable stock to keep veggies truly vegetarian)
5 cups rice

Ingredients for marinade:

1 tablespoon salt
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 heaping tablespoon of the following dried spices: thyme, basil, oregano, marjoram
2/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup oil
3/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 2/3 cup red wine (an inexpensive table wine is fine)
5 bay leaves
1 large onion, thinly sliced
6-8 drops tabasco sauce

Continue reading Shish Kabobs with Rice

Tomato Soup with Chickpeas and Pasta

I try to bring my lunch into work at least four times a week, but sometimes I am just too exhausted at the end of a week day to think about and prepare a lunch for the next day. Soups in general are great for these days; you can make a huge batch on Saturday, freeze it in single portions, and then grab when on the run. Food and Wine had a “fast” soup recipe listed so I thought I’d try it out (most soups take at least an hour to prepare).

The original recipe is linked above. I made a few substitutions, based on what I already had in my house.

Ingredients:
7 cups diced tomatoes with their juice (two 28-ounce cans)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 /2 teaspoons dried sage
2 cups canned low-sodium chicken broth or homemade stock
2 cups water
1 3/4 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup orzo
2 cups drained and rinsed canned chickpeas (one 19-ounce can)
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
1/3 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for serving

First puree the tomatoes with their juice in a food processor or blender. Feel free to puree at much or as little as you want. If you like your soup a bit chunky, only pulse the blender a few times.

In a large pot (and I mean large– my Dutch Oven was almost too small!), heat the oil over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. (The original recipe called for 1 whole onion. That seemed like quite a lot of onion for my tastes, so I used half of the onion in my ingredients photo.) Stir in garlic.

Add the pureed tomatoes, sage, broth, water and salt to the pot. Bring to a boil. Stir in the pasta and chickpeas. Bring the soup back to a boil.

Reduce the heat and partially cover, stirring occasionally.

Partially covered? Sure

Cook for 15 minutes, or until the pasta is tender. Stir in the parsley, pepper, and grated Parmesan. Serve topped with an additional sprinkle of Parmesan.

Finished Dish

I was impressed with how quick this recipe was, maybe 35-45 minutes from start to finish. What made it even more manageable was during the down time (10 minute cooking of onion, waiting for it to boil, etc) I was able to clean up the mess I was making.

The soup was really tasty and deceptively fresh tasting (that parsley really helped!). If you like a little kick, I think a few drops of hot sauce during the final boiling stage would be a nice addition. If you don’t have and dried sage on hand, the recipe suggests substituting rosemary or marjoram.

This dish would be great to sop up with garlic bread or even a cheesy toast. I’m excited to have this for lunch some time next week!

Vegan Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Butternut Squash and Apple with Candied Walnuts

New York Times recently had an article with a recipe from Carmen Quagliata, the executive chef at Union Square Café. The recipe was for a perfect winter dish: Vegan Roasted Brussels Sprouts, Butternut Squash and Apple with Candied Walnuts. Usually when searching for Brussels sprouts recipes, bacon is almost always included, so I was happy to find a somewhat healthy alternative. I thought Ash Wednesday would a great to try out this recipe for dinner.

Ingredients for Brussels sprouts:

1 ½ cups Brussels sprouts, trimmed, halved

2 cups butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch asymmetrical chunks

2 cups (about 1 large) Honeycrisp, Cortland, or Granny Smith apple, cored and cut into 1-inch asymmetrical chunks (my local market was out of these options so I used two Pink Lady apples)

1 shallot, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch slices

2 tablespoons olive oil

5 fresh sage leaves

Salt and freshly ground pepper

½ tablespoon maple syrup

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. While it is heating up, prep your Brussels sprouts, butternut squash, apples, and shallot. To trim the Brussels sprouts, cut off the rough white stem and then cut the sprout in half. If any outer leaves fall off discard them as well.

This was my first attempt at cutting and peeling a butternut squash, and I found the blog A Veggie Venture to be super helpful. The blog has a lot of great tips about veggies in general, so I suggest checking it out. If you’re not up for cutting your own butternut squash, Trader Joe’s sells already cubed pieces. However, they are a bit more dried out than freshly cut squash so keep that in mind.

I only needed the top half of the butternut squash

I used an apple corer to prepare the apples, and then cut the slices in half.

Keep the skins on the apple

Toss the Brussels sprouts, butternut squash, apple, and shallot with the olive oil and sage leaves in a shallow baking dish.

So many colors!

Season with salt and pepper.

Bake at 375 until vegetables and apple are wrinkled and slightly brown, about 45 minutes to an hour. Do not disturb or mix the dish while it’s cooking.

If you don’t have time or are just apprehensive about making the candied walnuts, you can purchase them already made.

However, the recipe is below in case you’re feeling adventurous. (Honestly, it wasn’t that difficult!)

Ingredients for walnuts:

6 cups vegetable oil

6 ounces walnut halves

2 cups confectioners’ sugar (I ended up using less than a cup and they were fine)

kosher salt

To make, place a deep fryer or high-sided saucepan over high heat (I ended up using my pasta pot; my saucepans were all dirty from previous cooking adventures). Add the oil making sure there is at least 3 inches from the top of the pot. (When the walnuts are added, the oil bubbles and rises so you need room for this to happen) Heat to 375 degrees.

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil in another pot. Add the walnuts and boil for 10 seconds. Drain well and immediately toss with confectioners’ sugar. Spread flat on a baking sheet to allow to dry.

Walnuts after tossed in powdered sugar

The original directions suggest having a baking sheet lined with paper towels nearby. Mine stuck to the paper towels (boo) so I’d suggest maybe using parchment paper. Working in batches if necessary, add the walnuts to oil and stir once or twice. Fry until amber-brown or about 30 seconds. Using a wire skimmer or a heatproof slotted spoon, remove walnuts and move to baking sheets. Sprinkle with salt and allow to cool for about 5 minutes.

To serve, drizzle maple syrup over roasted vegetables and sprinkle with walnut pieces.

How good does that look??

This dish was really great. It had the feel of a comfort food dish without the leftover heaviness.

I was sort of hoping the Brussels sprouts would play a bigger role in the dish, but the butternut squash was what I kept going back for (nothing wrong with that). The walnuts add a lot of sweetness to the dish so don’t go overboard on topping the dish with them. The best part though, was that with so much flavor, I didn’t even miss not having meat for dinner!

Note: If you want something to pair with this to make a more hearty meal, the recipe suggests serving it with walnut bread.

Guinness Cupcakes with Baileys Frosting

With St. Patrick’s Day right around the corner, I wanted to test out my recipe for Guinness Cupcakes with Baileys Frosting before the big day to make sure it didn’t need any tweaking.

Guinness cupcakes are chocolate cupcakes that use a dark stout to enhance the flavor.

To keep with the theme, I decided to also make Bailey’s frosting.

Ingredients (makes 24 cupcakes)

Guinness Cupcakes:

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 cups sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 12 oz bottle of Guinness (or any other dark stout) – if your bottle is more than this, just measure out 12 oz
1 (4 oz) stick of butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream

Baileys Frosting:

2 (4 oz) sticks of butter, softened
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup Bailey’s Irish Cream
1/4 tsp salt
8 cups powdered (confectioners) sugar

Continue reading Guinness Cupcakes with Baileys Frosting

Wilted Spinach with Garlic Vinaigrette

Most sides are a bit of an afterthought. I tend to just whip something up really quick to give my dish more color, or to make me feel like I’m being healthy because there is some green on my plate. But this Wilted Spinach with Garlic Vinaigrette side dish is so good, I’d be happy to have just this for dinner. I am not the biggest fan of mustard in general, but the small amount of Dijon mustard really ups this side from good to great.

Ingredients

1 ½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/8 teaspoon salt

3 garlic cloves, minced (or thinly sliced, whatever makes you happy)

6 cups baby spinach leaves

¼ cup sliced red onion

To prepare the vinaigrette, combine the first 5 ingredients in a bowl (up to salt) combining with a whisk. Heat the vinaigrette in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Gradually add the spinach (it will shrink up a lot!) and toss to combine. Remove from heat when wilted (1-2 minutes).

The spinach ended up stealing the show when I made it (I had a pasta/chicken dish along with it). It was a very quick and easy side; I cannot wait to make this again!

Fettuccine with Mushrooms and Hazelnuts

Despite growing up on pasta, I didn’t experience fresh pasta (besides ravioli) until recently, and I fell in love with it. As much as I wish I had my own pasta maker so that I could enjoy it all the time, I don’t have the space, money, or time to whip out fresh pasta for dinner. However, I found a place near me that sells fresh pasta in different widths (spaghetti to lasagna sheets) and flavors (egg, spinach, pumpkin, etc). So I was beyond excited when this month’s Cooking Light came with a recipe for fresh Fettuccine with Mushrooms and Hazelnuts. I made some very slight alterations (ie bigger mushroom to pasta ratio) but the overall recipe is mostly intact.

Ingredients:

1/2 pound fresh fettuccine
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup chopped blanched hazelnuts (You can find blanched hazelnuts in stores. I already had hazelnuts, so I blanched them myself. I’ve included a how-to below)
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 package each of portobello, cremini, and shiitake mushrooms, sliced
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage
2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, shaved or grated
2 tablespoons chopped chives

To blanch hazelnuts:

As you can see in the bottom right corner in the above photo, I had shelled hazelnuts on hand. Instead of buying blanched hazelnuts, I decided to try on my own. It honestly was pretty darn simple!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place hazelnuts on a baking sheet (just for convenience, use one with a lip so that they don’t roll off. Cook the hazelnuts for about ten minutes. Using a paper towel or a cloth towel, take a few hazelnuts at a time and rub them back and forth within the towel to remove the dark brown layer. Some of mine were being stubborn, but I think it was overall a success.

Blanched hazelnuts, w/ some brown left on (oh well)

Cook the fettuccine in boiling water with no salt or fat added (if there are directions, follow them. mine, I guessed 5 minutes and it tasted A-ok to me). When draining the pasta, put a bowl or measuring cup under the colander to reserve 3/4 cup water.

To prepare the mushroom/hazelnut mixture, melt the butter in a saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the blanched hazelnuts and cook for 3 minutes. Make sure to keep an eye on them, you want a somewhat even toast on them. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

toasted hazelnuts

Add oil to the pan. When heated, add the garlic and mushrooms, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and black pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes.

Stir in chopped sage, pasta, reserved cooking liquid, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and toss. I gave it a minute to sort of meld together over the heat (I have an electric stove, so I turned off the burner, but left the pan over the still warm burner). Remove from heat, and add cheese, hazelnuts, and top with chives.

This turned out great! The flavors were fantastic. I was pretty wary about a sauce-less pasta dish; my previous posts show how much I love sauce, but there was enough going on that a sauce wasn’t needed at all. A definite plus, this took about 20 minutes from start to finish! How I love feasible week day meals.

Sauces for Ravioli

As much as I love cooking, sometimes I am just too exhausted at the end of the day to whip together a tasty meal. But why should my taste buds be punished? So I always keep a few different types of ravioli in my freezer for a quick meal. Tomato sauce on meat or cheese ravioli is great, but I tend to lean towards mushroom, pumpkin, butternut squash, or spinach fillings. So here is a short list of a few different sauces (besides tomato) that you can cook in the time it takes to cook the ravioli.

White Wine Sage Sauce

(great with mushroom ravioli)

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 clove minced garlic
1 tablespoon dried sage
1/2 cup white wine (whatever you have open, I have been using a Pinot Grigio recently)
Optional ingredients:
Truffle oil
Panko bread crumbs
Parmesan cheese (grated or shaved)
Note: This is for one serving, so multiply as needed!

To make, add the olive oil to a saute pan. Heat over medium-high heat, and add the garlic and sage. Let cook for one minute. Add the white wine, and turn the heat down to medium-low. Let simmer for a few minutes until it reduces. Remove from heat and pour over cooked ravioli. I really enjoy adding a little drizzle of truffle oil and then topping the ravioli off with panko and parmesan cheese. The truffle oil enhances the flavor of the ravioli and the panko adds a bit of a light crunch to the dish.

Brown Butter Sage Sauce

(great with pumpkin or butternut squash ravioli)

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon butter

4 sage leaves

Lemon juice, to taste

Parmesan cheese, to taste

Note: This is for one serving, so multiply as needed!

To prepare, melt butter in a saute pan until a light brown color appears (about 3 minutes). Add the sage leaves and cook for one minute more (to help the leaves get a little crispy). Remove from heat and add a few drops of lemon juice. Add some Parmesan cheese and mix. Pour over the ravioli and serve.

Brown Butter Sage Sauce with Dried Cranberries

(great with pumpkin or butternut squash ravioli)

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon butter

1 teaspoon dried sage

1-2 teaspoons dried cranberries

Salt, to taste

Pepper, to taste

Note: This is for one serving, so multiply as needed!

To prepare, melt butter in a saute pan. Add the sage and dried cranberries and cook until a light brown color appears (about 3 minutes). Remove from heat. Add salt and pepper and mix. Pour over the ravioli and serve. Note: If you have walnuts, they would be fantastic in this dish, I just didn’t have any. Toast the walnuts in the oven at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. Add the walnuts to the melted butter when you add in the sage and dried cranberries.

Roasted Walnuts – more of a topping than a sauce

(great with cheese or spinach ravioli)

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 clove chopped garlic

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Salt, to taste

Pepper, to taste

1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley

Parmesan cheese (grated or shaved), to taste

Note: This is for one serving, so multiply as needed!

To prepare, heat the oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and walnuts and cook until the walnuts are slightly toasted, stirring frequently (about 5 minutes). Add lemon juice, salt, pepper, and parsley. Remove from heat and pour over ravioli. Top with the Parmesan cheese.