Fallen Souffle

When I was growing up my family would have appetizer night, it was usually on a Friday, we would either sit on the floor and eat off the coffee table or eat at the nice dining room table that we saved for only “special occasions.” My Dad would make Shirley Temples for my sister and me, and we would all just sit around and eat junk while watching TV or chatting. I loved appetizer night as a kid, and I love that Evan and I do it now.

We try to limit appetizer night to every other month or so because the menu usually consists of mozzarella sticks, bagel bites, pizza rolls, chicken tenders and toasted ravioli. I can’t remember what got my husband started on toasted ravioli but it has become one of his favorite treats.

They are pretty easy to make, as I cheat and use frozen ravioli. Once the ravioli are boiled for about 3 minutes, drain them on a paper towel. I usually only make half a bag for the two of us. Beat up an egg in one bowl, and in another sprinkle in Italian bread crumbs. In a dutch oven, heat about 1/2 inch of oil over medium high heat. Coat the ravioli in the egg and then dredge in the bread crumbs. It is a lot easier if you do them all at once because these guys take no time to fry. Once the oil is heated drop the ravioli in batches, making sure they have enough room to move around. Flip once and allow to fry until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Dunk in marinara sauce and you have an easy appetizer or dinner!

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So this recipe worked out a bit better for me, and I had everything in my pantry which makes this a great “fall back” recipe. We usually just used canned sauce when we make pasta dishes…and not even Ragu or Prego, it’s usually the Kroger brand can for 89 cents. But as much Italian food as we eat and as much as we doctor the sauce up, it doesn’t matter much to us.

I have tried to make homemade sauce in the past but Evan usually turns his nose to it. You see he does not like “chunky” sauce. He likes tomato sauce but does not want to see the seeds and skin…go figure. So I usually stick with the canned stuff but this sauce recipe may be worth keeping around. It takes no time to throw together and can be easily doubled to freeze for later use.

It gets 8 out of 10 crockpots from my Chief Taste Tester Evan and that’s only because I snuck in a small can of diced tomatoes…dern it…can’t pass one by him!

Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
1 (15 ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons dried basil
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup red wine
1 pound Italian sausage or ground meat (I left this out this time, but will probably add next time)

1. Heat olive oil in a skillet. Saute onions and garlic until tender, 2-3 minutes. Combine remaining ingredients (except sausage links) in crockpot and add onion and garlic. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

2. With one hour cooking time remaining, cook and brown sausages in a skillet. When browned, place in sauce and continue to simmer. Remove bay leaves before serving. Serve over hot cooked noodles.

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I was short on time tonight as I am getting ready for a dinner party tomorrow night. Yes, I know it’s Thursday but it is the only time everyone can get together. I’ll write more about this tomorrow. Anywho…I had to run to the store and prep stuff for tomorrow night so I needed a quick dinner. I made one of our favorite pasta dishes that we actually discovered on our honeymoon.

We took a cruise to the Caribbean and one night was Italian night, and the “specialty” was a spicy pasta that was made table side. It was a simple sauce of tomatoes and red pepper flakes and garlic. They started serving it on the buffet and I think Evan ate it everyday for the remainder of the cruise. He had the ingredients memorized so we could try and replicate it at home. Sure enough we threw it together one night and it brought back some wonderful memories…sigh….

There is really no “recipe” to this sauce, it is all based on personal taste. So experiment a bit and see what you like. This is a great sauce to throw over leftover pasta too.

Pasta Arrabiata
(Italian for “angry pasta”, but hopefully it won’t make your angry!)

olive oil
chopped garlic
red pepper flakes
can of tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes (fresh diced tomatoes are great too!)
cooked pasta

1. Heat the olive oil over medium heat and add garlic and red pepper flakes. Allow the oil a few minutes to infuse with the flavors.

2. Pour in the tomatoes of choice and allow to simmer a few minutes. You may also add fresh basil, Italian seasoning…whatever you see fit. Some half and half would make this a wonderful rose sauce!

3. Once heated through, toss with the cooked pasta. And sit back and enjoy your easy meal!

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Who does not like mac and cheese?! Well my husband is one, I almost didn’t marry him because he did not appreciate the creamy goodness of a plate of good ole’ cheddar macaroni and cheese. Heck, he didn’t even eat “orange cheese” when I met him, but we have made progress in that department. But when we saw this recipe on “Everyday Italian” he said he wanted to try it. I could not have run to the kitchen fast enough to start making it. This dish is essentially mac and cheese using fontina as the creamy cheesy goodness.

This is one of those recipes that Evan and I eat about once a month, it is sort of a special treat because it is not the healthiest dish ever, but it is so yummy! The first time I made the bechamel is was rather runny but still baked up fine. I have made it numerous times now, with this past time being the best ever. Practice makes perfect when making a bechamel, don’t fret if it looks a little on the thin side. And I like to think it is a team effort, you need to whisk the sauce constantly while streaming in the milk, and I find on our flat top stove that the pot spins all over the place if I try and do it myself. So Evan is always nearby to help- I think it makes a big difference You could easily use the bechamel for the base of a more “traditional” mac and cheese. Just substitute the fontina with cheddar. Seeing as Evan doesn’t prefer the “orange” cheese as much, this is what we make, a creamy comforting dish that will put anyone in a great mood!

I have made this recipe with and without the prosciutto, and honestly is does lend a nice salty aspect to the dish- but prosciutto can be expensive at times, so we have also used big cubes of ham (available near the bacon) and it still tastes great.

Baked Rigatoni with Bechamel Sauce
(from Giada de Laurentis)

Bechamel sauce:
1 stick unsalted butter (4 ounces)
1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 quart whole milk, at room temperature (we use 2%)
Pinch fresh nutmeg
Sea salt and white pepper
1 cup grated fontina

1/2 pound thinly sliced prosciutto, julienned (we have also used big chunks of ham)
1 pound dry rigatoni
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Bechamel sauce:
In a 2 quart saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until smooth, about 2 minutes. Always stirring, gradually add the milk and continue to whisk until the sauce is smooth and creamy. Simmer until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. This will take approximately 10 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in nutmeg, 1/2 cup fontina, prosciutto and season with salt and white pepper. Set aside.

In a large pot, bring to a boil 6 quarts of salted water. Add the rigatoni and cook for about 5 minutes. Since you will be cooking the pasta a second time in the oven, you want to make sure the inside is still hard. Drain in a colander. Return pasta to the pot and pour in bechamel sauce. Using a wooden spoon, mix well until all the pasta is coated with the sauce.

Into a greased 13 by 9-inch baking dish, pour the pasta with cream sauce. Smooth out top and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup fontina. Dot the top with diced butter and bake in oven for 25 minutes or until bubbling and the top is golden brown.

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No, these are not my new lovers I picked up this weekend, but they are my new favorite show on Food Network. For those of you not as dedicated to this fabulous network as my Mom and I, Dan and Steve won Food TV’s reality type show which awarded the winner a cooking show. Their show has been on a couple of weeks and I am addicted. Their dishes are easy to make, with normal ingredients and they have a great presentation. They had a recent episode in which they created a menu around a DVD night with friends. I just so happen to have planned a wine tasting night at our house, conveniently while Evan was in Seattle. I fell in love with the foods they served; easy, simple and so delish. I literally made everything recipe they presented on the show. Not only could I have everything ready in the fridge or oven by the time my guests came (which means I could clean up the kitchen- perfect for a person with my OCD) but the menu was a departure from the norm.

I unfortunately don’t have pictures to share as Evan took the camera to the west coast, but I can share the fabulous recipes.

Spinach, Artichoke, and Bacon Dip
Jen Note: I slapped this on bread the next day and made a yummy sandwich.

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 shallot, minced (I just used an onion and carmelized it in the oil)
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1 (6-ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, roughly chopped
10 bacon strips, fried until crisp and crumbled (use turkey bacon for less fat)
1 teaspoon lemon zest (I just used a tablespoon of lemon juice)
2 cups sour cream (I used light sour cream)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Heat the vegetable oil in a small skillet over medium low heat. Add the garlic and shallot and cook, stirring frequently, until the shallot softens and the garlic begins to brown, about 7 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

Put the spinach in a colander and squeeze out all of the excess water. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and add the artichoke hearts, crumbled bacon, cooked garlic and shallot, lemon zest, sour cream, salt and pepper. Mix well with a rubber spatula, and transfer to a decorative bowl. Allow to sit for 30 minutes before serving so the flavors can blend. Serve with crispy pitas chips or toasted bread triangles.

Three Cheese Spaghetti Pie
Jen Note: I realized half way through the recipe that the entire dish would not fit in my skillet, so I just dumped everything into a deep pie dish and baked as directed. It was sort of a jazzed up baked spaghetti but was still amazing! I am going to make this for Evan sans olives and maybe throw in some ham)

3/4 pound spaghetti
9 tablespoons olive oil
5 garlic cloves coarsely chopped
1 small onion, thinly sliced
16 cherry tomatoes, halved
16 kalamata olives, pitted and halved
4 eggs
1 cup heavy cream ( I used fat free half and half, my new favorite ingrediant)
2 teaspoons kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional
6 fresh basil leaves, chopped
4 ounces fontina, grated
8 ounces feta, crumbled
8 ounces Parmesan, shredded
Fresh basil leaves, for garnish

Special Equipment: 10-inch cast iron skillet or nonstick ovenproof skillet

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Generously add salt and 3 tablespoons of oil and add the spaghetti. Bring back to a boil and cook for 11 to 13 minutes until the spaghetti is just tender. Drain into a colander and rinse under cold water. Return the spaghetti to the pot and set aside.

Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat for 1 minute. Add the garlic and onion and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the tomatoes, kalamatas, 1 teaspoon of salt and a few grinds of pepper and cook for an additional 5 minutes until the tomatoes begin to break down.* Remove the mixture from the heat and set aside.

Whisk the eggs and cream together in a large mixing bowl. Add the remaining teaspoon of salt, a few grinds of pepper, the red pepper flakes, basil, fontina, feta, 4 ounces of the Parmesan and the tomato mixture. Mix in the spaghetti.

Heat the remaining olive oil in the 10-inch skillet over high heat. Add the spaghetti mixture, reduce the heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes. Transfer the skillet to the preheated oven for 30 minutes until the center of the pie is set and the top is golden.

Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Run a spatula around the edges and underneath the pie to loosen. Place a large plate over the skillet and invert the pie onto the plate. Place another plate onto the pie and invert again. Let the pie set for an additional 10 minutes.

Slice the pie into 6 to 8 pieces and garnish with the remaining Parmesan and basil leaves before serving.

Truffle Brownies
Jen Note: These are so sinfully rich and decadent, I cut them up into small bite size chunks because you can’t eat a large piece.

2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 stick margarine
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate chopped
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
Chocolate ganache for topping, recipe follows

Special equipment: 9-inch round foil cake pan

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Using a hand held electric mixer, beat the eggs and salt together in a large mixing bowl until frothy. Add the sugar and beat until the eggs are thick and pale yellow, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the vanilla extract and beat an additional 30 seconds.

Put the margarine and chocolate in a microwave safe container and microwave on high for 1 minute. Stir to insure that the chocolate has melted. Microwave an additional 30 seconds, if needed.

With the mixer running, pour the melted chocolate into the egg mixture. Add the flour and beat 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat an additional 30 seconds.

Spray the cake pan with a pan release spray and pour in the brownie batter. Place the pan on the top rack of the oven and bake 15 to 20 minutes until the center is barely set.* Remove the pan from the oven and let cool. Top with the ganache and place in the freezer for at least 1 hour.

To serve, remove from freezer and slice immediately. Allow to come to room temperature before serving.

*Cook’s Note: If tested with a toothpick the center will still be gooey. If tested by touch, the center will be soft. It will set once frozen.

Chocolate Ganache:
1/2 cup (4 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy cream

Put the chocolate chips and cream into a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Remove the bowl and stir with a whisk or fork until well mixed. Use immediately. If using the ganache later it will need to be reheated.

Yield: 3/4 cup

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A fellow food blogger at la dolce vita has developed an awesome food event called In the Pink to raise awareness of breast cancer, since it is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. The rules were simple, develop a yummy food item that was…PINK!

So I really wanted to make something sweet, because I love to bake and who doesn’t love something sweet and pink! I immediately thought about making fluffy white cupcakes with a sugary pink frosting. But, it is so generic, I wanted to be different and creative. So I pondered other pink possibilities…ham, grapefruit, salmon. Then I realized, nature did not produce alot of pink foods (what a shame!).

Then EUREEKA! What has become my favorite italian dish recently?! ROSE sauces, mixing some sort of dairy into a red sauce to create a beautiful and smooth PINK sauce! So I went to one of my favorite weekday recipes and knew this would fit the bill. It is easy to make, yummy, healthy…and ofcourse, pink

I am lucky as to not have any immediate family members stricken by this diesease, yet my mother in law has been a breast cancer survivor for many years now, so in her honor, I present to you…

Laura’s In the Pink Rigatoni
(aka, Rosa Rigatoni)

In a sauce pan heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil and brown chopped onion and chopped garlic. Once browned,add one can (15 oz) of plain tomato sauce, bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 4 minutes or so. Slowly add 1 cup of cream or half and half (I actually use fat free half and half), 1 box (10 oz) of frozen peas, 1/2 cup of grated parmesan, salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste. Allow to simmer until peas are cooked through. Pour over 1 pound of cooked rigatoni. Sprinkle with a bit more parmesan and dinner is served.

I hope you will try this recipe and think about those that have been affected by this disease. I wish you all peace and good health!

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