Posts filed under ‘Dinners’
Recipe of the Week – Roasted Fig and Goat Cheese Raviolis
From the Starch and Pasta Collection at emealsforyou.com
Roasted Fig and Goat Cheese Raviolis
I usually opt for the store-bought raviolis when making your typical ravioli and sauce meal. The four-cheese raviolis have a good flavor and are very easy to prepare for a fast dinner. On occasion I get creative in the kitchen and decide to make my own raviolis from scratch. While this sounds crazy to most it really isn’t that hard, and the results are really worth the exercise.
Making your own pasta for the raviolis involves a very quick combining of eggs and flour in your food processor, allowing the dough to rest and then deciding on the filling for your raviolis. A pasta machine is good to have but not required if you have a rolling pin and don’t mind a little work.
Roasted Fig and Goat Cheese Raviolis
| Complexity: | Medium |
| Serves: | 4 |
| Category: | Starch/ Pasta |
| Meal: | other (General) |
| 3 | recipe | Quick Homemade Pasta |
| 4 | medium | figs, fresh |
| 4 | oz | cheese, goat |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
| 1 | Tb | honey |
| 1 | medium | egg, whites |
| 1 | recipe | Fresh Ginger Sauce |
Make 3 batches of Quick Homemade Pasta recipe. Roll or use a pasta machine out to the thinness setting. Cut into strips the size of the raviolis you wish to make. Keep the pasta under a damp towel to avoid it drying out. Cut figs in half and roast on a parchment covered cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Allow figs to cool and then chop into ½ inch pieces. Mix goat cheese, salt and pepper and the figs in a small bowl. Add a Tb of water to the egg white.
To assemble the ravioli: place pasta on a cutting board; with a top piece and a bottom piece. Paint the bottom strip with the egg white. Decide how big your raviolis will be and add a heaping tsp of the cheese mixture into the middle of each section. Place a piece of the fig in the middle of the cheese and drizzle with a drop or two of the honey. Carefully place the other strip on top and push to seal the edges and across and down the middle. Cut into individual raviolis and pinch the edges with a fork to further seal. Place the finished ravioli on a piece of parchment, allow to dry and freeze until needed. This should make about 28 large ravioli.
To serve: Add the raviolis to boiling, salted water. When they float to the top they are done. Make the Fresh Ginger Sauce; place some in the bottom of a plate and add the raviolis.
Note: Add additional fig pieces, golden raisins or dried cranberries to the sauce. Sprinkle some grated Romano cheese on top. Any pieces of pasta leftover may be frozen and used as noodles.
Here is the recipe for the Fresh Ginger Sauce
More Homemade pasta recipes including Lobster Raviolis at emealsforyou.com
Recipe of the Week – Baked Pasta
From the Vegetarian Entrée Collection at emealsforyou.com
Baked Pasta
There is a wonderful Italian restaurant in Buffalo, NY that serves baked pasta two ways. The first is pasta with garlic butter; then cover the top with mozzarella and a sprinkling of Romano and bake in the oven until brown, serve with a side ramekin of good tomato sauce. The second is to mix the tomato sauce with the pasta, then cover with mozzarella and Romano and bake. Either way it is something special.
Pasta is something, like salad, that is very difficult to guess how much to make. All of us have made too much pasta at some time. This recipe makes great use of that extra pasta; stretching your food budget and giving your family a special treat. This recipe is so good you will forget that Buffalo is famous for its chicken wings and maybe a little Beef on Weck.
Baked Pasta
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 4 |
| Category: | Vegetarian Entrée |
| Meal: | Veggie – Little Italy (Theme Meal Plans) |
| 1 | lb | pasta, penne |
| 2 | Tb | salt, kosher |
| 3 | cup | tomato sauce |
| 1 | cup | cheese, mozzarella |
| 3 | Tb | cheese, Romano, grated |
Cook pasta in a large pot of salted, boiling water and drain well. Using your favorite jarred spaghetti sauce or part of the spaghetti sauce recipe which appears on this site, mix sauce with the cooked pasta, and place in an oven-proof dish. Grate mozzarella cheese and sprinkle generously on top; finish with a sprinkling of the romano.
Bakes at 400 degrees for about 4-6 minutes or until it begins to brown.
Shown here using spaghetti.
We do a great spaghetti sauce over at emealsforyou.com and our Italian beef is pretty good as well.
Recipe of the Week – Seared Scallop Small Plates
From the Fish Entrée Collection at emealsforyou.com
Seared Scallops
My sister-in-law dropped in for a weekend visit on her way home after a visit to the East Coast. As she doesn’t eat meat but enjoys seafood; we had to come up with a menu plan that fit our schedule as well as provide an interesting and palate pleasing treat. We decided on small plates; our version of several great recipes prepared as partial recipes. We usually make about 4- 5 different entrées to choose from.
To make sure the scallops are fresh, buy only those from a vendor who moves a lot of product daily. The scallops should be off-white to creamy in color and not sitting in the white milky substance you sometimes see them sitting in. Avoid those that are “swimming” in this fluid. As we were having 5 small plate entrees I made 2 large (10 -20 count) scallops per person. I also added a few golden raisins to the brown butter sauce for an added touch.
Our other small plate entrées included Grilled Steelhead Trout on Cucumber Slices with Hollandase Sauce, Cantaloupe with Crab Salad, Individual Yellow Tomato Caprese Salad, and Toast Points with Goat Cheese and Fig Jam.
Pan-roasted Sea Scallops
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 2 |
| Category: | Fish Entrée |
| Meal: | Dinner in the Round (Distinctive Dinners) |
| 8 | large | scallops, sea |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
| 4 | Tb | Panko breadcrumbs |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
| 1 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 1 | Tb | butter, salted |
| 8 | leaves | sage, fresh |
| 2 | Tb | butter, salted |
| 0.5 | medium | lemons |
Note: This recipe takes very little time to make and therefore be sure to have the rest of the meal ready to go before starting the scallops.
Dry scallops thoroughly on a paper towel. Salt and pepper both sides of the scallops. Place Panko breadcrumbs in a shallow dish, salt and pepper breadcrumbs. Dip one side of scallop in breadcrumbs. Place butter and olive oil in pan; heat pan until oil begins to smoke. Place scallops, breadcrumb side down in pan and cook until light brown (about 3 minutes); flip scallops and cook for three minutes on reverse side. Remove scallops to a side plate. Lower heat to medium, place sage leaves and butter in pan and swirl, cooking for three minutes. Plate scallops and drizzle brown butter sauce over scallops, serve with a lemon wedge on the side.
Shown here with baby Yukon Gold potatoes and peas.
More small plate ideas at emealsforyou.com.
Recipe of the Week – Coq au Vin
From the Chicken Entrée Collection at emealsforyou.com
Coq au Vin
I have a friend who says it is too hot to cook starting about Memorial Day and finishing up sometime after Labor Day. I believe this is a carry-over from her youth when A/C wasn’t what it is today. Anyway, there are some meals that we associate with chilly fall meals and some we associate with summer. I don’t buy off on these theories. I cook and eat what I feel like regardless of the weather.
If I were sitting in a Paris bistro and found Coq au Vin on the menu it probably would be the first thing I would order; Summer, Winter, Spring or Fall. Simple to make, this is one of those meals you start and then just let it cook until you are ready to eat. The smell of the garlicy, wine sauce will spread throughout the house. Add a small tart salad and some crunchy bread with just a little wine and it’s a mini-trip to Paris. Julia Child would be so proud.
Coq au Vin
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 4 |
| Category: | Chicken Entrée |
| Meal: | Welcome Home (Celebration Meal Plans) |
| 2 | slices | bacon |
| 2 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 1 | whole | chicken, whole, cut up |
| 6 | cloves | garlic, chopped |
| 8 | oz | onions, pearl frozen |
| 8 | oz | mushrooms, white button |
| 1 | 10.5 oz can | beef consommé |
| 8 | oz | wine, dry red |
| 8 | oz | chicken broth |
| 3 | Tb | tomato paste |
| 3 | medium | bay leaves, whole dried |
| 2 | Tb | butter, salted |
| 2 | Tb | flour |
| 0.5 | tsp | salt and pepper to taste |
Cut bacon into small pieces, brown bacon in large pan, add oil. Brown chicken in pan, remove chicken, add garlic and onions, sauté for 3 minutes. Add mushrooms, chicken, consommé, wine, bay leaves, tomato paste and enough of the broth to just cover chicken. Reduce heat to simmer, cook for 25 minutes, until chicken is tender. Remove chicken to platter. Add flour to some of the juice and add to gravy to thicken, add butter. Salt and pepper to taste. Spoon over chicken and serve.
Serve with crusty bread.
More flavorful recipe ideas at emealsforyou.com.
Recipe of the Week – Pasta alla Costco
From the Starch/ Pasta Collection at emealsforyou.com
Pasta alla Costco
This could be called Pasta alla Sam’s Club or whatever wholesale warehouse you belong to. The main point is that when you buy in bulk; purchasing large containers of everything leaves you with large containers of everything and needing a reason to use them. We call this Pasta alla Costco because the extra large jars of olives, artichokes and capers came from our local Costco.
This is ideal for a quick dinner or a Saturday lunch when you can’t figure out what you want to eat. I mean who doesn’t like pasta. Add some chicken, sausage or just as it is and you will think you are in a small corner tavern in Little Italy.
Pasta alla Costco
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 4 |
| Category: | Starch/ Pasta |
| Meal: | other (General) |
| 1 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 2 | Tb | onions, chopped |
| 4 | cloves | garlic, chopped |
| 1 | 14 oz. can | tomatoes, diced |
| 1 | Tb | capers |
| 1 | Tb | peppers, pickled rings |
| 2 | Tb | artichoke hearts |
| 2 | Tb | olives, mixed, pitted |
| 1 | tsp | garlic chili sauce |
| 0.25 | cup | cheese, mozzarella, shredded |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
| 1 | lb | pasta, cooked |
| 1 | Tb | cheese, Romano, grated |
Heat olive oil in a pan, add the onions, and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, capers, peppers, artichoke hearts, sliced, the olives, chopped and the chili paste and sauté for 5 minutes or until the liquid is reduced by half. Cook and drain pasta. Add mozzarella and salt and pepper to taste to the pan. Add cooked pasta to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes to allow pasta to absorb some of the sauce. Plate and sprinkle ¼ of the Romano on the top of each plate.
Want some more easy meals; try emealsforyou.com
Recipe of the Week – The Ultimate Burger
From the Beef Entrée Collection at emealsforyou.com
Campy's Burger
A couple of weeks ago, when the New Jersey gang was in town, we went over to the Kentucky side of the Ohio River to have lunch. We stopped at a small storefront cafe called Bellevue Bistro as they have a huge, eclectic menu. Everything from skillet breakfast to great salads. My brother-in-law tried their coffee-rubbed burger and declared it the best burger he had ever had. Once we were home again he asked me how he could recreate this wonderful burger. The problem was he didn’t give me a bite when we were there. We went back and forth pulling together details of the burger; finally I decided to go over to the restaurant again and try it myself.
This is one very large burger and every bit as good as he said. I think I have it just right below. Give it a try!
Campy’s Burger
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 6 |
| Category: | Beef Entrée |
| Meal: | other (General) |
| 2 | Tb | dry rub |
| 1 | Tb | coffee, ground |
| 2 | lb | beef, ground, extra lean |
| 8 | slices | bacon |
| 4 | slices | cheese, cheddar |
| 4 | tsp | bbq sauce, hickory |
| 4 | large | pretzel rolls |
Make or buy the dry rub; add the ground coffee and mix. Make 1/3rd pound burgers, sprinkle dry rub mixture evenly on both sides of burgers. Heat the grill or a heavy pan to high heat; sear burgers on both sides and then cook to desired doneness. Cook bacon and drain. Put burgers on rolls and place 2 slices of bacon on each burger along with 1 slice of cheddar cheese and a tsp of the bbq sauce.
Note: substitute any egg roll for the pretzel roll. Add optional lettuce, tomato and onion, if desired.
Great burger ideas and more at emealsforyou.com.
Recipe of the Week – Capt Jim’s Asparagus Lasagna
From the Starch/ Pasta Collection at emealsforyou.com
Capt Jim's Asparagus Lasagna
After completing a long road trip for a visit to our “old” neighbors in Virginia we settled in to enjoy the company, weather and especially the food. Capt Jim, as we call him on this blog and our website, emealsforyou.com, has dedicated a lot of his time to perfecting the art of cooking. We looked forward to his fresh baked bread but had no idea he was preparing short ribs for dinner the first night. We thought he would have a hard time upstaging these wonderfully tasty and tender ribs the next night but were more than pleasantly surprised by his Asparagus Lasagna on Saturday. The lasagna was perfectly cooked and all the flavors blended together to form a spectacular visual as well as a true gourmet entrée. Jim finished the evening off with a delightfully flavorful but light Grapefruit Granita for dessert.
It was a great visit; with great friends and more than great food. I only hope we can return the favor when they come to our home.
Capt Jim’s Asparagus Lasagna
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 8 |
| Category: | Starch/ Pasta |
| Meal: | other (General) |
| 2 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 9 | sheets | lasagna noodles |
| 16 | oz | sun-dried tomatoes, in oil |
| 1.5 | cups | basil leaves, whole |
| 1.25 | cups | cheese, parmesan, grated |
| 0.25 | lb | pancetta |
| 1 | medium | onions, diced |
| 2 | cloves | garlic, minced |
| 1 | lb | asparagus |
| 1 | 16 oz. container | cheese, ricotta |
| 1 | tsp | salt, kosher |
| 0.5 | tsp | pepper, fresh cracked |
| 2 | cups | cheese, mozzarella, shredded |
| 2 | Tb | butter, unsalted |
Boil salted water; add 1 TB olive oil and pasta and cook for 5 minutes. Rinse and drain pasta; separate sheets. Combine sun-dried tomatoes and basil in a food processor; remove to a bowl and stir in 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese. Brown pancetta in a sauce pan; remove when done. Add the remaining olive oil to the pan, add the onions and garlic and sauté until tender. Cut the asparagus into 1 inch pieces and add to the pan and cook until tender. Remove asparagus and onions from the pan to a large mixing bowl. Stir in the ricotta, salt and pepper. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Sprinkle some of the sun-dried tomato mixture over the bottom of a 9 X 13 baking pan. Place a layer of the lasagna sheets in the pan; add half of the asparagus mixture; spread evenly over the pasta. Sprinkle 1/3rd of the mozzarella and 1/3rd of the remaining Parmesan on top; repeat the pasta and mixtures; ending with the a pasta layer and the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan. Dot the top with the butter and bake until heated through and golden. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving.
Note: You may substitute any good ham for the pancetta and a good low-moisture cottage cheese for the ricotta.
See more of Capt Jim’s recipes at emealsforyou.com
Recipe of the Week – Warm Chicken Salad
(From the Salad Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Warm Chicken Salad
It was warm in the Ohio Valley this weekend; and after a couple of days of running errands we settled in for a nice, light dinner on Sunday. Trying to figure out what we felt like proved difficult until I mentioned a Warm Chicken Salad, something we have in the summer and always find just right.
There is something special about a nice big salad topped off with a few pieces of warm chicken. Just the right amount of food to keep us happy without the heavy feeling of over-doing it on a warm night. Besides, we had room for a Klondike Bar a few hours later.
Warm Chicken Salad
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 2 |
| Category: | Salad |
| Meal: | Other (General) |
| 4 | cup | lettuce, mixed |
| 0.5 | tsp | garlic powder |
| 0.125 | Tb | oregano, dried |
| 2 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 1 | Tb | vinegar, red wine |
| 6 | oz | chicken breast, cooked , skinless and boneless with pan juices |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
Place lettuce in a bowl; add garlic powder, oregano, oil and vinegar. Toss and place in center of plate. Heat chicken and pan juices. Cut chicken into slices and place on salad. Spoon pan juices on top and serve.
More Diet Friendly meals at emealsforyou.com
Recipe of the Week – Brick Grilled Chicken
(From the Chicken Entrée Collection at emealsforyou.com)
Brick Grilled Chicken
Rainy, cold weather this weekend so I made a comfort meal. More like a diner meal: meatloaf, mashed potatoes with mushroom gravy and peas… and rice pudding for dessert. On Sunday we overdid the beef theme and made a rib roast in Grandmother Story’s 100 year old Dutch Oven. So we are pretty “beefed out”. Looking for something a little lighter but with all the flavor a Brick Grilled Chicken seemed like a likely candidate.
This is a really great way to make a chicken that the whole family will enjoy and be easy on you. Simply split the chicken in half; at the backbone. Remove the backbone, season and put it on the grill and plop a brick wrapped in foil on top. Crispy, juicy and fulfilling this chicken is just what we needed; and we had no beef with that.
Brick Grilled Chicken
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 6 |
| Category: | Chicken Entrée |
| Meal: | Grill Baby Grill (Picnic Meal Plans) |
| 4 | lb | chicken, whole |
| 1 | pinch | salt and pepper to taste |
| 0.5 | medium | lemon, juice of |
Cut or have your grocery store cut the backbone out of the chicken. Flatten it and rub oil and salt and pepper evenly over the skin. Heat grill to high, place chicken, skin side down on grill, place a brick covered with aluminum foil on top and cook for 20 minutes, turn over and cook for 10 more minutes. Remove and squeeze the juice of half a lemon on top, carve and serve.
More easy recipes and meal plans at emealsforyou.com.
How Lazy Can We Get – A Spicy Rant
From the Chicken Entree Category at emealsforyou.com.
Chicken Cacciatore
I think we have hit a new low in laziness. Along with the open the pouch, pour into a pot and heat ” meals” on the market we now have McCormick’s new spice packets. For a couple of bucks you get six small packets; about a teaspoon or less, of six spices with an idea of what to cook using the spices. No measuring needed, simply rip off the back of the packet and you have the spices for the meal. For that $2 you get about 35 cents worth of spices. But hey, look on the bright side, no measuring spoon needed. Just think for a mere $14 a week McCormick will ensure you dump the right amount of their spices into the pot. You still have to brown the meat, add other ingredients and actually cook. I guess I just don’t get it.
Spice up your life; try measuring the spices yourself. The Cacciatore recipe is for a white wine sauce; not the usual red sauce. Give it a try and BTW only 3 spices needed.
Chicken Cacciatore
| Complexity: | Easy |
| Serves: | 4 |
| Category: | Chicken Entrée |
| Meal: | I Need Comfort Food (Quick Meals Planner) |
| 2 | Tb | oil, olive |
| 4 | lb | chicken, whole, cut up |
| 3 | medium | onion, yellow ,quartered |
| 1 | lb | mushrooms, quartered |
| 8 | cloves | garlic, chopped |
| 0.25 | tsp | oregano, dried |
| 1 | tsp | celery seeds |
| 2 | medium | bay leaves, whole dried |
| 1 | cup | wine, dry white |
| 1 | 15 oz can | chicken broth |
| 0.5 | tsp | salt and pepper to taste |
Brown chicken in oil, add onions, mushrooms and garlic sauté for 3 minutes. Add remaining ingredients, simmer for 30 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.
Note: If you prefer red sauce, add 1 LB diced tomatoes, 2 TB tomato paste and substitute red wine for the white wine.
If you want ideas on what to cook for dinner try our website at emealsforyou.com but you will have to measure the spices yourself.
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