Tag: parmigiano reggiano
Leftover Chicken Lasagna
After I made the delicious stew, I had some chicken left over- this is a great way to make a completely new dish!!! If you haven’t cooked the stew and don’t have leftover chicken- just buy a rotisserie chicken…
- Leftover chicken breast, meat taken off and chopped, mixed with any leftover gravy. It should be about a cup.
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- ½ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg, beaten
Mix all the ingredients in a medium bowl and keep aside.
- 3 to 4 cups fresh tomato sauce
- 9 lasagna noodles (I used no bake ones)
- 1 medium sized oven proof dish
- 5 to 6 small slices of fresh mozzarella
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Dip the no bake noodles in tomato sauce and place three at the bottom of the dish. Add half the amount of ricotta cheese mixture and top with half the amount of chicken. Top with three more no bake noodles (dipped in tomato sauce) and repeat the process. Finally top with the last three no bake noodles (dipped in tomato sauce) and add at least a cup of tomato sauce on top, covering all corners (add more sauce if needed). Top with fresh mozzarella and then cover with aluminum foil. Bake in oven for 45 minutes. Take out and let it rest for at least 15 minutes before serving.
Sausage and Green Bean Pasta
This is a perfect dish to make for this season as the basil season is coming to an end. I cut down all my basil and made a big batch of pesto to freeze. It is a great way to enjoy some summer flavors in a few month!
Pesto
- 3 garlic cloves
- ¼ cup Parmigiano Reggiano
- 1/3 cup pine nuts
- Zest of one lemon
- Juice of one lemon
- 2 cups basil
- ¼ cup tarragon
- ¼ cup parsley
- Salt
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil (or more if needed)
Add the garlic, cheese, pine nuts, lemon zest and lemon juice to a processor. Process for a minute and add the basil, tarragon, parsley and salt. Process for a minute and gradually add the oil while the machine is still on. Taste for seasonings and keep aside.
- 8 oz tender green beans, trimmed
Add the green beans to boiling water. Bring back to a boil and take out and dip into cold water to retain the color. Take out and keep aside.
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 4 links chicken sausage, casings taken off and crumbled
- ½ pound pasta, cooked al dente
- Salt to taste
Heat a frying pan with the olive oil. Add the crumbled sausage and sauté on a medium high heat, stirring constantly for 5 to 6 minutes till golden brown. Add the pasta and green beans. Add enough pesto to coat everything and mix well. Add salt if needed and serve.
Mushroom and Olive Meatballs
Here is another version of my delicious meatballs. Everyone loved them. I took two of my daughter’s favorite pizza toppings- mushrooms and olives, and added them to the turkey meat. I also added garlic and parsley. Of course the homemade tomato sauce helps with the taste factor. This is a good one!!
- 1 pound dark meat turkey
- 1 cup Cremini mushrooms, shredded
- ½ cup kalamata olives, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ cup parsley, chopped
- 1 egg, beaten
- ½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup panko bread crumbs soaked in ½ cup milk (for 10 minutes)
- 2 cups tomato sauce
Transfer the tomato sauce into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer.
Transfer the turkey, mushrooms, olives, garlic, parsley and cheese into a medium mixing bowl. Mix well and add the egg, salt and panko crumbs. Mix well and form meatballs and slide into the simmering sauce. Bring to a boil and lower the heat to a simmer and cook meatballs covered with a lid for 15 minutes. Taste for seasonings and serve with pasta.
Chicken Piccata
I am amazed this is the first time I am making chicken piccata. It is quite easy to make and it felt nice to add another chicken dish to my repertoire. We are always looking for more, different chicken dishes to make for our families… well, here is a delicious one.I served it to my daughter with some whole wheat thin spaghetti. I had it just with the veggies and it was quite a substantial meal…
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large shallot, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup white wine
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons capers
- Juice of half large lemon
- ¼ cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped
- Salt
- Pepper
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin into cutlets (or cutlets can be purchased from the store), sprinkled with salt and pepper
- ½ cup all purpose flour
- ¼ cup Parmigiano Reggiano, shredded
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
Heat a large frying pan with the olive oil. Add the shallot and garlic. Saute on medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes or till translucent. Take out with a slotted spoon and keep aside. In the meantime dredge the chicken cutlets into the flour. Add butter to the frying pan and brown the chicken cutlets for about 3 minutes on each side on medium high heat. Keep aside and cover with foil. Add the white wine, chicken broth, capers and lemon juice to the frying pan. Bring to a boil and scrape up the brown bits from the bottom. Add the shallot and garlic mixture. Return the chicken pieces back and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer and cook for 3 to 4 minutes or till the chicken pieces are cooked through and the liquid has reduced by about one-third. Add the chopped parsley and check for salt and pepper. Serve hot with pasta, rice or salad.
Lugano, Switzerland- Day One
When we decided to come to Switzerland, I wasn’t too excited.. why, you ask? Well, nothing against the beautiful country but I just didn’t think it would offer very delicious food except yummy chocolate and yummy cheese! Well, I guess there is nothing wrong with the two things but it wasn’t what I had in mind. I decided to change my mindset and told myself not every trip has to be filled with delicious food… it is supposed to be a gorgeous country and that is what I should be paying attention to. As I was convincing myself, I realized we had an option of going to Lugano which is very close to the Italian border- yay!! I knew the food would be delicious down there.. and here we are- first day in Lugano and so far so good. Well, it has been a tiring day after landing in Zurich at 8 AM, stopping for a delicious cappuccino and pretzel, catching three trains and arriving in Lugano at 1 PM! The journey to Lugano was absolutely breathtaking with the most amazing vistas.. too bad we were half asleep. All I could think was, what a gorgeous country!
Arugula and Parmigiano Salad
We arrived at our hotel and dropped the luggage off as our room was not ready as yet. A very short walk later, we found ourselves enjoying the gorgeous Lake Lugano. We walked around and found cafe/restaurant over looking the water. We ordered a delicious, local rose from the Ticino region- it was yummy… we washed it down with a delicious arugula and Parmigiano salad and a mushroom and spicy salami pizza. The food was yummy and so was the gelato that my daughter had three times!!
Spicy Salami and Mushroom Pizza
Tuscan Style Cannellini Beans and Tomato Ragu
This ragu is delicious and very easy to make. I decided to make it dried beans and soaked them overnight, but you can definitely make them with the canned variety. The dried beans give the dish a bit more depth of flavor but the canned ones are very comparable.
I started with pancetta, onion, celery, carrots and garlic. I got fresh herbs from my backyard including rosemary, thyme and sage. I always buy San Marzano tomatoes which are special ones grown in Italy and have an amazing flavor. Some white wine and chicken broth later, I had a start to a very delicious stew. I let it cook for a couple of hours. The good thing about this dish is you can make it in advance. In fact it will taste better the next day as all the flavors will have a chance to marry.
Make this ragu with the lamb roast and have a wonderful holiday.
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Turkey Meatballs with Broccoli Rabe
- 1 pound dark meat turkey
- 3 garlic cloves
- ½ cup basil
- ½ cup parsley
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- ¼ cup pine nuts
Process the garlic, basil, parsley, lemon zest and pine nuts in a food processor till all is chopped well.
- ½ bunch broccoli rabe, greens taken off, blanched, squeezed and chopped
- 1 egg, beaten
- ½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
- 2 teaspoons salt
- ½ cup panko bread crumbs soaked in ½ cup milk (for 10 minutes)
- 2 cups tomato sauce
Transfer the tomato sauce into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer.
Add the turkey, processed herbs, broccoli rabe, egg, cheese, salt and bread crumbs into a medium bowl. Mix well and form meatballs and slide into the simmering sauce. Bring to a boil and lower the heat to a simmer and cook meatballs covered with a lid for 15 minutes. Taste for seasonings and serve with pasta.