Tag: milk

Chicken and Mushroom Ragu on Herb Polenta

Delicious chicken stew over polenta…

1 pound chicken thighs, skinned
2 tablespoons olive oil
¼ cup pancetta, chopped
Salt
Pepper

Heat a saucepan with the olive oil on high. Add the pancetta and sauté for a minute. Brown the chicken for 2 to 3 minutes of each side. Sprinkle salt while browning. Take the chicken pieces out and keep aside.

2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 pound cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 large shallot, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup red wine
2 cups chicken broth
Salt

Add the herbs in the pancetta mixture with the mushrooms. Saute on high heat till the mushrooms have cooked down including the excess liquid. Add the shallot and garlic. Saute for a minute and add the flour. Cook the flour for a minute and add the red wine. Scrape all the brown bits off the bottom and add the chicken broth. Add the chicken pieces and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes with the lid on. Take the lid off and make sure the chicken is tender and juicy. Turn the heat up and bring to a boil and cook till the dish reaches desired consistency.

Herb Polenta with Gruyere

1 cup fine polenta
1½ cups milk
1½ cups chicken broth
1 sprig thyme
1 sprig rosemary
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup aged Gruyere cheese, grated

Bring the milk and broth. Add the herbs and salt. Slowly add the polenta whisking at the same time, stirring till it thickens. Turn the heat off and add the cheese. Mix well and check for seasonings. Serve with the chicken and mushroom ragu.

Scalloped Potatoes with Roasted Poblano Sauce

I am very proud of this recipe. I combined a bunch of peppers, garlic and onion and roasted them till they became soft and deliciously nutty. I then blended the veggies with cream and milk- I basically made a cream sauce to be used to make scalloped potatoes. I bought a reasonably priced mandolin. Usually they are quite expensive and not worth the money. They are handy to have around- as they make slicing the potatoes a cinch. I was done in no time. The whole dish took me hardly any time to make.

I would recommend making the cream sauce ahead of time if you are planning a big Thanksgiving dinner. You could even freeze the sauce and take it out a day ahead and assemble the potatoes the morning of and then bake them right before eating. They are simply delicious…

1 poblano pepper
1 anaheim pepper
1 head of garlic with the top sliced off with a drizzle of olive oil and wrapped in aluminum foil
½ medium yellow onion
1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup cream
¼ cup milk
Salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the peppers, wrapped garlic and onion onto a lined cookie sheet. Drizzle the peppers and onion with the oil and massage with fingers. Roast in oven for 30 to 45 minutes, until the peppers are charred on the outside. Let cool. Take the skin off the peppers and squeeze the garlic out of the skins.
Add the roasted vegetables into a blender with cream and milk. Blend till smooth and add salt. Keep aside. This can be made two days in advance.

2 pounds red skinned potatoes, sliced thin about 1/8 inch
½ cup queso fresco, shredded

Divide the potato slices into three batches. Add the first to the bottom of an ovenproof dish (9X9). Spread a quarter cup of green sauce. Repeat till you have the third and last bit of potatoes. Pour all of the sauce covering all the potatoes. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes. Take the foil off and add the cheese. Bake for another 10 to 15 minutes or till the cheese is golden brown.

Roasted Garlic and Cilantro Mashed Potatoes

This was a big hit! I added delicious roasted garlic, cilantro and green onions. I blended the aromatics with half and half and milk. I then added this delicious green sauce to the cooked potatoes. To make it even yummier, I added some grated cheese inside and on top. Everyone loved it!

1 large head of garlic, top trimmed, wrapped in aluminum foil, drizzled with olive oil

Roast the garlic in a 400 degrees F oven for 30 to 40 minutes. Let it cool and squeeze the soft garlic out and keep aside.

1 cup cilantro, chopped
4 to 5 green onions, chopped
¾ cup half and half
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup milk
2 teaspoons salt
Soft roasted garlic

Place the cilantro, green onions, half and half, olive oil, milk, salt and garlic in a blender. Blend till smooth.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

3 pounds baby yellow potatoes, peeled and cut in half
1 cup plus ½ cup shredded pepper cheese

Cover with water and bring to a boil. Simmer till soft. Drain and put through a food mill or potato ricer. Transfer the mashed potatoes back to the saucepan. Add the cilantro sauce and mix well. Add one cup shredded cheese and mix well. Transfer to a serving bowl and top with ½ cup cheese. Bake in oven covered for 30 minutes, take the aluminum foil off and bake for another 15 minutes or till the top is golden brown. Serve hot.

Healthy Pumpkin Oatmeal Muffins

I know it is not pumpkin season but these healthy muffins are still really, really good- I make them for my daughter for breakfast. They are great to have in the fridge or freezer all the time. I just take them out, cut them in half, and toast them with butter- really delicious and really good for you! A glass of milk and some berries on the side- it is a perfect breakfast!

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup old fashioned oats
2 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ cup full fat yogurt
½ cup full fat milk
¾ cup pumpkin puree
1 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup coconut oil
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
½ cup walnuts, chopped
½ cup dark chocolate, chopped

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Line 15 to 16 standard size muffin cups with paper liners.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg and sugar. In a glass bowl, melt the coconut oil and add the yogurt, milk, pumpkin puree, egg and vanilla extract. Whisk well and add to the dry ingredients. Add the walnuts and chocolate. Mix well and divide batter between the muffin cups. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or till the toothpick comes out clean.

Beef and Sausage Ragu

This recipe is a mix between a ragu and a bolognese. My daughter loves, loves any kind of meat sauce over pasta. I try to make them different every time- so this one is a mix. A bolognese, typically is made with just tomato paste and milk- there is no tomato sauce. I added it all in this one- it was delicious!!

2 chicken sausage links (I used spinach and fontina), casings off and crumbled
1 pound grass fed ground beef
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 small yellow onion, chopped
½ cup shredded carrots
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cups tomato sauce, preferably fresh
1 cup chicken broth
2 cups milk
Salt

Heat a heavy saucepan with the olive oil. Add the ground beef and crumbled sausage and brown while stirring constantly on a medium high heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Add garlic, onion, carrots, rosemary and thyme. Cook on medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the paste and cook for a minute. Add the tomato sauce, chicken broth and milk. Bring to a boil and lower to a simmer, cover with a lid. Cook for at least an hour and a half on low heat, stirring every 15 minutes. Take the lid off, taste for seasoning, and add salt if needed. Serve on top of cooked pasta.

Beef and Pork Ragu with Spaghetti

If it was up to my daughter, I would be making spaghetti bolognese once or twice a week.. this is twist on a true bolognese..

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ pound ground grass fed beef
½ pound ground pork
2 tablespoons fresh thyme
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup red wine
1 cup tomato sauce
2 cups milk
Salt

Heat a heavy saucepan with the olive oil. Add the ground beef and pork. Saute on medium high heat while breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon and brown for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the thyme, onion, celery, carrot and garlic. Add a teaspoon of salt. Saute on medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook for a minute. Add the red wine and bring to a boil and add the tomato sauce and milk. Bring to a boil and simmer with lid on for an hour. Take lid off and cook for another 20 minutes. Check for seasoning and add salt. Serve with spaghetti.

Spinach Polenta with Short Ribs

I have now made a few polenta dishes where I have added a bunch of different ingredients to make them a bit different. I realized that polenta is like any other starch and I can go crazy with all the different aromatics or vegetables I can add to it.

In this case I was making the short ribs and wanted to keep it simple and serve it on top of polenta. Both my husband and I love polenta. My daughter on the other hand, is not a big fan. In fact the last time I made it, she asked not to give it to her ever again. I am okay with her not wanting to eat polenta- she is such a good eater and everyone has a few things they don’t like- although I can’t think of a thing I would have on that list.

Anyway, I started with shallots and garlic and added baby spinach. I then added chicken broth and milk. The polenta was made in no time. I topped it with some cheese and that was it. I made it simple for myself by adding baby spinach to the starch- I didn’t have to make a salad or a vegetable on the side.

The polenta was delicious with the short ribs- creamy and earthy with the rich meat.

5 ounces baby spinach
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 small shallots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped

Heat a large frying pan with the olive oil. Add the shallots and garlic. Saute on medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the baby spinach and sauté till it is wilted and cooked down. Keep aside.

1 cup fine polenta
1½ cups chicken broth
1½ cups milk
Salt
½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated

Add the liquids to the spinach mixture and bring to a boil. Add salt and the polenta. Cook according to instructions on the polenta package. Add the cheese and serve.

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