More [Grilled] Cheese, Please!

A few days ago some friends and I got together and made some fancy grilled cheeses. We all agreed that fancy grilled cheese night was one of our favorites, it allows each person to make their own sandwich exactly how they want it and it is super easy. Not to mention that it helps you finish off random thing from your refrigerator that there isn't quite enough of to make a whole dish. I ended up buying some cheese, prosciutto, an avocado, and a loaf of bread. That's it! Along with the sandwiches I made a big pot of tomato soup which was delicious on this particularly chilly fall night!

Tomato Soup (serves 6)
1 large onion, medium dice
2 tbs. olive oil
1 c. Spicy V8 (or just plain tomato juice)
2 1/2 c. water
24 oz canned crush tomatoes (one big can and one smaller one)
1.5 tsp worcestershire sauce
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
6 oz heavy cream

Optional:
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried red pepper flakes
A dash of paprika (adds a smokey flavor)

Sweat onions in oil then deglaze the pan with the V8. Add water, crushed tomatoes, herbs, and pepper flakes. Let it simmer for 30 minutes. Blend with a stick blender (or a real blender) and return to the pot. Add the worcestershire sauce, paprika, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer and add the cream. At this point your soup is done, if you wanted to add in some fresh basil, parsley, or other herbs this would be the time to do so!

*The spicy V8 and red pepper flakes make the soup have a little spice to it, I like it but if you don't like spice then just use regular tomato juice and omit the red pepper flakes.

Our toppings:
-Fresh mozzarella
-White cheddar
-Ricotta
-Cream cheese
-Prosciutto
-Avocado
-Sundried Tomatoes
-Olives
-Jams and jellies
-garlic

I just laid everything out and let everyone else make their own combinations. I have to say they were all delicious!

 I put ricotta, mozz, sun-dried tomatoes, avocado, and prosciutto on mine. After I grilled it I also rubbed a raw garlic clove on the crunchy outside of the bread which gave it a yummy garlic-bread flavor!

Also, because it is national cat day here is a picture of the lovely Willow. 

This photo was taken by my friend Maya

xx -c

Bolognese Sauce

Good afternoon,

Today marks the start of "pork week" at school. To get ready for this I decided [on Friday] that I was going to make something with pork in it this weekend, as a way to kind of ease into it. Well, as of Sunday morning I still hadn't figured out what I was going to make. I had picked up a cooking magazine and I was flipping through it and I found this recipe for bolognese sauce. I was surprised about how delicious it sounded to me since I'm not normally a big red meat/pork person. I decided to give it a shot, I think it came out really well and it was really easy to make! The only down side is that it makes A LOT, like Matt and I each ate a serving and it still doesn't look like we have touched it! I think I might freeze some, and next time I make it I think I would cut the recipe in half. This would be a great thing to make if you were having people come over, especially on a chilly day!

Bolognese Sauce (serves 8ish)
1# ground beef chuck
1# ground pork
4 oz pancetta, finely chopped
1 carrot, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 large onion, diced
1 cup milk
2 cups chicken broth
1 14.5oz can crushed tomatoes
2 tbs. olive oil
1 1/4 cups red wine
Salt and Pepper
2 tsp. dried herbs
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
3/4 tsp. worcestershire sauce

Start by roughly chopping the onion, celery, and carrots then putting them in a food processor and pulsing until they are finely chopped. If you want the veggies to be more noticeable in the sauce or you don't have a food processor then just small dice them. In a big pot, brown the meats and veggies in the oil until all of the meat is cooked through. Season with salt and pepper. Add the wine and bring to a boil and reduce for 2 minutes. Then add the milk and bring it to a boil again and reduce until all of the liquid has evaporated, 8-10 minutes. Now add the crushed tomatoes [both the tomatoes and juice] and the chicken broth. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. At this point you can add the pepper flakes and herbs of your choice [if you want]. Simmer the sauce for 2-3 hours. If the liquid evaporates before then you can add water in 1/2 cup increments. Add the worcestershire sauce once the sauce is done. Serve over pasta or spaghetti squash.

I think that this would also be good with some lemon juice or fresh basil. Something to freshen the sauce up since it is so heavy and rich!

xx -C

Plating: Week 1

Hello-

I hope everyone had a great weekend, mine was very relaxing and went by a little too quickly. In a previous post I mentioned that we started plating in school this past week and I thought I would show you my plates from our last four days of chicken. Plating is a lot harder than I thought it would be, you have to think about different colors, themes, shapes, heights, garnishes, and many other aspects of the dish to produce a beautiful plate. It seems that everyone has their own rules for what produces a beautiful plate, here are a few that we have learned so far:

         

          1: You want to add some height to your dish. It adds a different, more exciting dynamic to the dish. 

          2: We have been using round plates which is more conducive to a tight, centered look compared to using a rectangular plate. 

          3: You want to minimize the amount of negative space between the different types of food, this makes the dish look more clean and organized.

          4: Use edible garnishes; avoid overly potent foods such as rosemary. 

          5: Keep the rim of the plate clean and allow for ~1 inch of space between the food and the rim around the whole plate.  

Chicken Fricassee with sautéed green beans and Arancini (fried risotto balls stuffed with cheese)

Pan-seared chicken with roasted butternut squash, fresh apple-walnut ravioli and brown butter sauce.  // this was my favorite plate that I produced last week. 

Yakitori chicken with shittake-asparagus stir-fry and rice.

Chicken cordon bleu with roasted fingerlings, sautéed summer squash and béchamel sauce. 

Tomorrow starts the beginning of pork week. I am pretty nervous about this since I normally stay away from most pork products (other than bacon). I'm not exactly sure why, maybe because I grew up in a household that didn't eat any red meat or pork? Anyway, I'm looking forward to learning lots in the upcoming week. Keep an eye out, tomorrow I will be sharing a easy recipe for bolognese sauce that I tried out today!

xx -c

Sunday Muffins: Coffee Cake Muffins

Happy Weekend!

This morning has been a lazy one - not getting out of bed until 10:30, staying in pajamas, drinking coffee, and making muffins. In a previous post I wrote about how I love the weekends because it gives me time to enjoy breakfast [my favorite meal] and sometimes I even bake something. Welllll I made a goal for myself. I want to try to bake at least one thing every Saturday [or Sunday]. This feature will be called Sunday Muffins (I know, I know this time it was on a Saturday). Anyway, today we decided to make coffee cake muffins. I found a basic recipe here and changed it a little bit.

Coffee Cake Muffins (Makes 12)
Streusel Topping
1 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. AP flour
Pinch salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 stick butter

Muffins
1 stick butter
1 3/4 c. AP flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
6 oz. plain yogurt
2 oz. milk
1 c. sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350˚ F.

For the streusel: Mix brown sugar, flour, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together. Cut in the butter and mix with a fork or clean hands (using your hands is easier) until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Let sit out the counter until you are ready to use it.

For the muffins: In an electric mixer beat butter, yogurt, milk, sugar, and vanilla together until smooth. Add the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Mix until just combined and almost smooth.

Spoon a small layer of muffin batter into the bottom of the each hole in a paper-lined muffin tin [using about half of the batter]. Then sprinkle a layer of the streusel. Cover that with another layer of the muffin batter [finishing it off] and another layer of the streusel. Bake for ~20 minutes or until golden brown and a knife inserted into the middle of the muffin comes out clean. 

 Bake for ~20 minutes or until golden brown and a knife inserted into the middle of the muffin comes out clean. 

xx -c

Baked Feta

Good evening,

The past two days have been really exciting and sort of stressful at school. Monday marked the beginning of individual plate presentations, meaning that instead of just serving food family style on platters we are now making actual plates (such as you would see in a restaurant). We also switched into new groups, and after working with the same people for the past few weeks and getting to know their habits, we now have to figure out how to work with new individuals. It's both fun and challenging. Check back this weekend for photos of my plates from the week.

Now onto the recipe. Matt loves feta, like loves it so much he could eat an entire container plain. I, on the other hand, could take it or leave it. It's far from my least favorite but it is also far from my favorite. This being said, Matt would be happy adding feta to just about anything; pasta, pizza, salad, and so on. Since knowing him, he has mentioned this baked feta dish that he had at a restaurant years ago. This weekend I decided that I was going to try my hand at this "baked feta". Not knowing where to start we found a recipe on one of my favorite blogs and tried it out. I changed a few things such as omitting an onion because Matt hates them and adding extra garlic because I love it. I also used sun-dried tomatoes because it is hard to find good tomatoes in late October but if they were in season I would have used those. I was very pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it (I'm pretty sure I ate an obscene amount).

Baked Feta (serves 3-4 if Matt isn't included)
10 oz fresh feta
1 c. sun-dried tomatoes, julienned
1/3 c. kalmata olives, chopped
2 big cloves garlic
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
black pepper, to taste
crackers, bread, crostini - for serving

Preheat oven to 400˚F.

Fill ramekins half way with feta or place feta in an oven safe dish. Mix sun-dried tomatoes, olives, garlic, olive oil, oregano, and black pepper together. Spoon this mixture over the feta and bake for 10-15 minutes until the top starts to brown. Serve hot! If it cheese cools it will firm up, but you can always pop the cheese back in the oven to re-soften it! We ate this by spreading it onto some crostini - it was delicious.

xx
-c

DIY Glitter Leaf Garland

Happy Monday!

It's no secret that I really love glitter and fall and this project combines both. I have been looking for some way to decorate my mantle. As you can see in the following photos it is pretty big and white. During the summer I often had flowers on top of it, but since fall came around I haven't figured out how to break up the whiteness and add some color. Don't get me wrong, it's a great feature but by itself it is pretty boring (especially since there isn't actually a fire place associated with it!) To solve that problem I got a number of white candles and different holders. If I light all of the candles at once its ALMOST like a real fire, not quite but almost! Here is a pretty easy DIY that allowed me to add a pop of fall color to it!

To complete this project you will need:
          -colored leaves (you want bigger ones, the number depends on how long you want your garland to be)
          -glitter (I chose mine to match the leaves, although you could do a completely different color)
          -spray adhesive
          -string to thread the leaves on

Start by collecting your leaves, you want leaves with longer stems so you will be able to tie a knot in them to hang them. Lay them out on a surface that can get pretty sticky and glittery (I used paper bags). Spray each leaf with the adhesive and then apply glitter. Let them dry for a few hours.

To hang: I tied a loose knot in each leaf stem and threaded the string through the hole in the knot and then tightened the knot. This allows you to adjust the spacing between the leaves once they are hanging. If the stems are really long then you can trim them after you tie the knots in them. I hung the garland simply by using some washi tape that matched the paint on the mantle, although you could hang it any way you want.

Happy crafting!

xx C

Pick a Pumpkin, Pumpkin!

Do you ever have those weekends that fly by? Well this weekend did that for me. It was filled with friends, drinks, and good food. Oh and lots of pumpkins!

 On Saturday a bunch of friends came over and we made brunch. It was one of those meals where everyone brought one or two ingredients that they already had and we managed to make something delicious. We ended up making breakfast burritos and mimosas (sorry that there aren't any pictures but by the time the food was ready we were all starving and didn't want to deal with taking pictures!)

After brunch we decided that this was the day to go to the pumpkin patch. It was a beautiful day; blue skies and hardly any clouds in the sky. We trekked out to Sauvie Island (one of my favorite places in Portland) to find our pumpkins. We ate corn on the cob, pet pigs, took pictures, and spent the afternoon searching for the perfect pumpkin or two. Overall it was a great day.

Now that I have my pumpkins I need to figure out what I want to carve. I think I might try to carve a cat face. Do you know what you are going to carve in your pumpkins yet? 

Hope you had a great weekend! 

xx C

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

Happy Tuesday!

The weather the past few days has been amazing! It is finally starting to feel like fall, meaning the air is crisp, the sun is shining, and the leaves are starting to change. While there aren't as many leaves as in New Hampshire (meaning no jumping into leaf piles) there are enough to make it seem fall-like. Other than apple cider, squash is one of my fall favorites. I love all kinds and I am looking forward to sharing lots of good fall squash recipes. This first one combines mac & cheese and squash (two of the best things ever!)

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese (serves 6-8)
4 cups uncooked butternut squash, medium dice (1/2 inch squares)
3 1/4 cups milk
1 1/2 cups chicken broth (or veggie broth)
Pinch nutmeg
Pinch salt
Pinch black pepper
Pinch chili powder or cayenne
2-3 cups shredded extra sharp cheddar (I prefer a cheesier mac)
6 Tbs. Parmesan
1 1/2 # pasta
1 1/2 cups Kale (I used pre-cooked, frozen and it worked well. I defrosted it in the microwave and then squeezed the excess water out)
1/2 cup bread crumbs
Olive oil

Preheat oven to 375˚F

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the macaroni until it is al dente (it will finish cooking in the oven).

Combine squash, broth, and milk in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and simmer approximately 20 minutes (until the squash is tender). Mash the squash (I used my hand blender which made a really smooth, creamy sauce). Add the nutmeg, salt, chili powder, and pepper to taste. Whisk in the cheddar and half of the parmesan cheese. Add the sauce to the pasta and combine, stir in the kale. Place this mixture into a slightly greased 9x13 inch pan.

Combine the rest of the parmesan, bread crumbs, and enough oil to lightly coat the crumbs in a bowl. Stir and then sprinkle over the pasta.

Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 30-45 minutes or until the top is GB&D (or golden brown and delicious!)

I love this meal, it's hearty and warm and filling! I normally eat it with salad and [maybe] a protein but last night I just had a big bowl of this and it was satisfied! Recently I have been fully embracing fall; buying pumpkin-spice everything, raking the yard, burning apple scented candles, going to apple festivals (I'm thinking about going back this weekend and I'll remember to bring my camera this time), and I'm starting to decorate my house!

xox- Caroline and Willow

Popovers

One of my favorite things about the weekends is having a chance to enjoy breakfast. Having to be at school at 8 am has made it almost impossible for me to get more than a cup of coffee in the morning. Either cooking at home or going to one of many brunch spots in Portland is something I look forward to during the week. This weekend I made popovers which is one of my all time breakfast favorites. I grew up eating popovers and every time I smell them it reminds me of eating them at my grandmothers house when I was little.

Popovers (makes 7)
1 c. AP flour
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1 c. milk
1 Tbs. melted butter (or shortening)

Preheat the oven to 425˚F

Beat eggs until thick and fluffy. Add the flour, salt, and 1/3 c. milk and mix until smooth. Add the rest of the milk and the melted butter and mix until the batter has no lumps. Fill greased muffin tins 1/2 way full with the batter and bake for approximately 40 minutes until the popovers are golden brown. Remove and eat immediately.

Matt and I put butter and raspberry jam on ours. Although they are good with any type of jam, lemon curd, or clotted cream.

Mulled Apple Cider

Hello, I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend so far. I know, I have been! My boyfriend, Matt's, parents are visiting this weekend and we have been having so much fun! We have eaten lots of good food, walked around a ton, and done a few things in Portland that I have been wanting to do for a while. One of these things is the Widmer Brothers brewery tour. It was super informative and we got a bunch of yummy samples at the end! Any who, here is a simple and delicious autumn cocktail recipe that I love!

Mulled Cider (alcoholic or non!)
2 c. Apple Cider
1 Tbs. Mulling Spices (I used Penzey's)
1.5 oz Dark Rum (or even spiced rum)

In a small saucepan combine the apple cider and mulling spices. Bring to a simmer and simmer about 30 minutes (if you are impatient you can take it off the heat earlier). Once the cider is done "mulling" add the rum to a mug, then fill with the mulled cider. This drink can be enjoyed hot or cold.

Personally, I love apple cider in almost any form; cold, mulled, or mulled with some rum. Also, when I mull cider I normally make a pretty big batch. This way it is easy to reheat (either on the stove or in the microwave) and then I can enjoy it over the next day or so.

Pasta with Alfredo Sauce and Apple Crisp

Sorry about the delay between posts, life has been super hectic recently!

My friends and I all love the TV series Bones and for the past few weeks we have used that as an excuse to get together on Monday nights, eat dinner, have a drink, and watch it together. These nights also give me an excuse to practice some of the recipes that I have been working on at school. Sooooo this last Monday I made fresh pasta and Alfredo sauce with apple crisp for dessert. Making fresh pasta is actually pretty easy even though it has a pretty high intimidation factor. Pasta was actually the very first thing I made at school this year! While it helps to have a pasta roller, it isn't 100% necessary. In fact, last week I made some yummy ravioli without one and I just used a rolling pin to roll out the pasta (a wine bottle works well too, if you don't have a rolling pin!)

Fresh Pasta (serves 4)
3 cups flour (you can use AP, semolina, or a mix of both)
3-4 egg yolks
1 T salt
1.5 T olive oil
cold water

Add flour, yolks, salt, and olive oil into a medium mixing bowl. Mix until all of the wet ingredients have been incorporated. Now, start adding small amounts of water into the bowl. Basically you just want the dough to come together without it being too wet! Don't worry if it gets too wet; you can just add some more flour. Once the dough has started to form a ball dump it out on to a flat floured surface and knead it for approximately 3 minutes (1-2 minutes longer if you used semolina flour). Now it is time to roll it out. Follow your roller's instructions or if you are using a rolling pin then roll out small portions as thin as you can. Cut into similar sized pieces. Let them dry for a bit by hanging them over some wooden spoons. Add them to salted boiling water and cook for 2-3 minutes.

Before you cook your pasta you want to start your Alfredo sauce since it will take longer than the pasta to cook. Before school I always did the quick cheater way to make Alfredo which basically consists of adding some Parmesan cheese to heated heavy cream. Well here is my new recipe:

Alfredo Sauce (serves 4)
1 pt. heavy cream
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 medium onion, small dice
2 cloves garlic
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1 Tsp Lemon zest

Saute onion and garlic until soft and almost translucent. Add cream and bring to a simmer. Allow the cream to simmer for 10-15 minutes, allowing it to reduce (this makes the sauce sweeter, creamier, and a tad thicker). Right before serving, add cheese and the seasonings to taste. For a fresh zing add lemon zest.

Now, I am a big fan of the fall season and being from New Hampshire that means apple everything. Normally I keep apple cider in the fridge at all times to make mulled cider or just to drink. One of my favorite desserts is Apple Crisp. It is super easy to make and it makes your house smell delicious!

Apple Crisp (makes a 9x9 pan)
4 apples (I normally choose granny smith but any will do, if they are smaller you might need 1-2 more)
1 c. rolled oats
4 T cold butter, diced
1/4 c. AP flour
1/4-1/2 c. brown sugar
cinnamon (the amount depends on how cinnamon-y you want your crisp)

Preheat oven to 350.

Cut the apples and place in the pan. Add the oats, butter, flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon into a bowl and mix until combined. The butter might still be a little chunky since it was cold when you added it to the bowl. Spread this on top of the apples and bake until done. You want the top to be toasty and the apples to be cooked so it will probably take 30-45 minutes but I normally check it after about 25 minutes and keep an eye on it. Serve warm with some cream or vanilla ice cream.

None of these recipes are very time consuming and all of them can be made beforehand and reheated (with the pasta just wait to cook it until right before serving) so they are good for midweek meals. Keep an eye out, I will post some potato recipes soon, I just couldn't bring myself to cook any on Monday because I have been cutting, cooking, and eating so many potatoes at school for the past few weeks!

Happy cooking,
-c