Spiced Pork Roast

This is a dish inspired by the book Back to the Table: The Reunion of Food and Family by Art Smith and the recipe for Spiced Pork Loin with Vidalia Onion Sauce. I thought this recipe sounded great except I did not have white wine, and I also did not like to think about using whole cinnamon, allspice and cloves (I like them better ground so they can easily incorporate and flavor the food). I decided that instead of following the recipe I would adapt it and use ingredients I already had. Instead of using vidalia onions I used shallots and I rubbed my pork roast with the Moroccan spice blend I made in one of my previous posts instead of using the whole spices. Here is what you will need and how to make this delicious dish.

Spiced Pork Roast

1 Pork Roast (Large to Medium about 3-5 pounds)
2 TBSP Moroccan Spice Blend
2 TBSP Olive Oil
3-4 Shallots (Thinly sliced)
1 Cup Vegetable Broth
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Place 1 TBSP of olive oil in a dutch oven and put your pork roast in, coating it with the oil. Sprinkle the pork with the Moroccan spice blend making sure to rub it all over the pork. Allow the pork to sit in this blend for about 10 minutes.

Place the dutch oven on your stove and turn on your burner to medium high heat to get the oil nice and hot. Brown the roast on all sides. Remove the roast once all sides have been nicely browned and set aside on a dish.

Add the remaining TBSP of olive oil into the dutch oven and allow to heat up. Add your shallots and saute them until they are soft, translucent and fragrant. Add in the vegetable stock and stir. Bring the liquid to a boil and return the pork to the dutch oven. Add salt and pepper to taste. Place the lid on the dutch oven and place in the oven. Bake for about 1 and a half hours or until a thermometer inserted at the center  of the roast reads 155 degrees Fahrenheit.

Heat the liquid remaining in the dutch oven and reduce it to about 3/4 to 1/2. Use this liquid as a sauce for the roast (or you can always use some demiglace).

Slice your roast and serve with your favorite sides.

Enjoy.

Ravioli with Carrot & Ricotta Filling

Sorry for my absence this week. It seems that as we get deeper into summer things start getting more and more hectic, which is the opposite of my general expectations, but what the heck. Since I have been cooking a bit of stuff that is on my usual repertoire, I decided that I should try to be a little more creative and make something that I could share will those of you who read through my humble blog. This week I made Jumbo Raviolis stuffed with a wonderful mix of Ricotta cheese and carrots. I made my pasta using a recipe from the Food Network website. After that it was a matter of making the filling and hand rolling the pasta into thin sheets to make the ravioli. Here is the recipe for the filling:


Carrot & Ricotta Ravioli Filling

2 TBSP Olive Oil

2 Shallots (small preferable - finely diced)
4-5 Garlic cloves (Minced)
2 Carrots (Finely grated)

1 Cup Ricotta Cheese (Whole or low fat - whichever you prefer)
 Salt and pepper to taste


In a pan heat the olive oil on medium high heat. Add the shallots and garlic and saute until the shallots are semi translucent and soft and the garlic is starting to brown.

Add in your carrots and saute for about 5-10 minutes, until the carrots are a deeper shade of orange.

Allow the mixture to cool slightly about 10-20 minutes.

In a separate bowl combine the carrot mixture with the ricotta. Make sure to mix well so that all ingredients are evenly distributed. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Now you are ready to make your ravioli. If you do not have a ravioli maker (which I don't at the time), you can roll out your dough out into sheets about 1/8 inch in thickness (or slightly less - thinner pasta cooks quicker). The pictures below show you my process for making my ravioli.

 Place about 1 teaspoon of filling on one side of your pasta sheet.

make sure to leave about 1 inch between them and about 1/2 inch for the edges

 Fold pasta over and press between the mounds of filling.

 Cut Raviolis

 Roll edges of ravioli pillows to seal them in.

 Finished ravioli 

I topped mine off with some bolognese sauce, but you can do it any way you want (Alfredo, butter and garlic, etc...)

Enjoy

Quick Leek, Shallot & Garlic Quiche

It is nearly summer here in the northern hemisphere and the temperatures have definitely been getting up there every now and again. We have enjoyed a few weekends of wonderful weather lately so everyone is in the mood for barbecues and getting together with friends and family. With that in mind I whipped up a quiche that is quick, tasty, somewhat vegetarian (it has eggs so it can't claim the full vegetarian title), that will make those events even more enjoyable.

Here is the recipe:

Quick Leek, Shallot & Garlic Quiche

1 Pre-made Pre-cooked Pie Shell
2 TBSP Olive Oil
2 Leeks (sliced thin)
1 Shallot (Large if possible, sliced thin)
5 Cloves of Garlic (minced)
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 tsp  Black Truffle Oil (optional)
3 Eggs
1 1/4 Cup Milk
1/4 Pound Gruyere Cheese (Grated - about 1 1/3 Cup)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit

Put the 2 TBSP of olive oil in a frying pan and heat at medium high heat. Add the leeks, shallots and garlic to the hot oil and saute until the leeks become soft. Add in the black truffle oil (optional, but it will give the quiche an enhanced flavor). Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat and allow this mixture to cool off.

In a bowl beat the eggs and add the milk in. Once well mixed add in the cheese and the cool leek mixture. Once all the ingredients are well incorporated pour the mixture into the pre made pie shell.

Place in the oven on a cookie sheet and bake for 25-35 minutes, or until the custard puffs in the center.

Allow to cool before serving.

Enjoy :)

Oven Roasted Chicken with Grape and Thyme Cream Sauce

I found this recipe in one of my Spinney's magazines and thought is sounded delicious so I made it. Here is the recipe:

For the Oven Roasted Chicken
3 or 4 Chicken legs (separated or whole depending on what size portion you would like)
4 TBSP Olive Oil
1/2 tsp Curry Powder
1 tsp Honey
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (200 degrees celcius)

Place the chicken legs on a roasting pan, brush them with 2 TBSP of the oil and roast in the oven for about 35 minutes.

In a bowl mix 2 TBSP of the oil with the curry powder, honey, salt and pepper.

Once the chicken has cooked for the 35 minutes remove it from the oven and brush it with the oil, honey and curry mixture and return to the oven for an additional 10 minutes.

For the Grape and Thyme Cream Sauce
2 Shallots (finely diced)
1-2 TBSP Olive Oil
1 Cup Chicken Stock
1 1/4 Cup Cream
2 Fresh Sprigs of Thyme (If you don't have fresh Thyme sub in 1 tsp Dried Thyme leaves)
3/4 Cup Seedless Grapes (halved)

While your chicken is roasting in the oven you can make the sauce.

Heat the oil in a sauce pan oven medium high heat. Saute the shallots in the oil until translucent.

Add the chicken stock and allow it to cook and reduce by half.

 Add the cream and the Thyme and allow it to simmer until the mixture thickens.

Add in the grapes and season the sauce with salt and pepper to your taste. Remove from the heat and reserve until the chicken is ready.


Once your chicken is ready serve it on a plate with a good amount of sauce on top. You can either serve it with some rice or you can do what I did and just make a nice mixed salad with halved seedless grapes and blueberries.

Enjoy.

Lamb and Grape Turnovers

As promised here is a recipe for some delicious lamb turnovers, that will make for an easy and healthy meal. This will really only take about 30 minutes for you to make and it will be very much worth it. Here is the recipe:

Lamb and Grape Turnovers

2-3 TBSP Olive Oil
2 Shallots (thinly sliced)
4 Garlic Cloves (finely minced)
1 tsp Cumin Powder
1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
1 TBSP Dried Cilantro/Coriander leaves
1 Lb Ground Lamb
1 1/4 Cup Seedless Grapes (Quartered)
2 Packs of ready made turnover Pastry disks (I recommend Goya for those of you who live in the US, but any other brand will do)
1 Egg (beaten for egg wash)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (180 degrees Celsius)

Heat the oil over medium high heat in a large frying pan. Add in the shallots and garlic and saute until the shallots start to look translucent.

Reduce the heat to medium and add in your cumin, cinnamon and cilantro, stirring well to incorporate  into the shallots and garlic. If this starts to get dried out add a tablespoon of water.

Add the lamb and raise the heat to a medium high again to brown the meat. Once the meat has browned add the grapes adding a little water if necessary. Cover the pan and cook for about five minutes then remove from heat.

For the how to on getting your turnovers together you can refer to my post on Empanadas.

Place your assembled turnovers on baking sheets lined with parchment paper and give them a nice egg wash with a silicone brush.

Place your trays one at a time in the oven, and bake for about 20-25 minutes until the crust has turned a nice golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to rest for 10 minutes.

You can serve this with a nice simple mixed greens salad and some grapes, drizzled with a nice balsamic vinegar.

Enjoy.

Pork Chops with Strawberry Chutney

Tonight was leftovers night and I wanted to make something to enhance some pork chops I had made earlier in the week. I was a little ambitious last week and got two parcels of strawberries because my daughter loves them, but by today these darlings had not been completely eaten and they were starting to look like they needed to be used. I thought I would give a try at a chutney using them. I had not seen any recipes for chutney using strawberries so I made one up and here it is.

Strawberry Chutney

1 1/2 Pounds of Strawberries (finely diced)
Ginger Root (a 1/2 inch piece, pealed and finely sliced)
3 Medium Shallots (finely sliced)
3 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1 TBSP Sherry Cooking Wine
Salt to taste
2 tsp Red Pepper Paste
1 TBSP Yellow Curry Powder
1 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar

Heat the oil in a pan at medium high heat and add your shallots and ginger root. Saute until the shallots become translucent.

Add in your strawberries and allow them to cook briefly.

Add in the brown sugar making sure to allow it to dissolve and incorporate it evenly into the strawberry and shallot mixture.

Add in the sherry, salt, red pepper paste and curry powder mixing in until well incorporated. Make sure to taste it at this point to make sure you like the amount of seasoning.

Add in the vinegar, lower the heat to medium low and let it simmer, making sure to stir frequently until the texture is soft and thick. Do a check on your seasoning again to ensure you like it. then remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly. When ready place on top of the pork chops.

This makes enough to fill a 13oz jar so you can save it and use it on crackers with some nice cheese for a great snack.

Enjoy. 

Gnocchi Alfredo with Pancetta and caramelized Shallots

This one is actually a recipe I made a while back, but I had misplaced the picture (which I luckily found today). You can say it is long overdue, especially because I need to give credit to my very wonderful friend Josh for the tremendous curing job on the pancetta. He has become some sort of renaissance man who not only knows how to lead in the business world of theater but who can make mozzarella, ricotta and other smoked and cured meats. In our group of friends we have agreed that if the apocalypse ever does take place we want him on our side to ensure our survival. He is pretty darn awesome.

I digress, so let's get back to the point. I cheated a bit because I did not make the gnocchi, but I did make a simple Alfredo sauce and  a great pancetta topping. This is a nice and easy dish that will literally take you at most 20 minutes to put together (Ronnie I hope you are still reading because this one will make it easy for you to get a meal together during your busy week).


Gnocchi Alfredo with Pancetta and Caramelized Shallots

1 Pack of store bought gnocchi (1pound recommended)

For the Alfredo Sauce:
1 Pint Heavy Cream
2 TBSP Butter
3-4 Cloves of Garlic (crushed or finely diced)
1 1/2 Cups Grated Parmesan
Pepper to taste

For the Pancetta and Caramelized Shallot Topping:
1/4 Pound Pancetta (cut up into small cubes)
2 Shallots (finely sliced)

Start by getting 6 cups of water in pot with some salt and a small amount of olive oil and bringing this to a boil. Add your gnocchi and cook for about 5-6 minutes or until tender (but please make sure not to over cook it because it will not be good eats if you do).

In a sauce pan melt your butter and add in the garlic, and saute until the garlic starts to brown. Add in your heavy cream and stir. Add in the Parmesan a little bit at a time while simultaneously stirring it into the heavy cream mixture quickly with a whisk (what you want is to incorporate the cheese into the cream slowly to allow it to become a part of it without creating clumps). Add your pepper and remove the sauce from the burner.

The gnocchi and the sauce should be cooking simultaneously because they will take about the same amount of time to cook and because you want to make sure that your sauce is ready as soon as you drain your gnocchi so that you can immediately coat it with the sauce.

In a frying pan, preheated over medium high heat start cooking your Pancetta the goal is to heat it through and sear it just a bit, and to let it render some fat. once you see the Pancetta start to brown (about 5 minutes) remove it onto a plate with a paper towel to drain any extra oil. Use the fat rendered onto your pan to caramelize your shallots. Once this is done return the Pancetta to the pan, incorporate it into the shallots and remove the pan from the burner. Add on top of your gnocchi alfredo with a little fresh grated Parmesan and enjoy.

Bobotie Adaptation

 One of the many reasons I am grateful for having lived outside the US is how much that has helped to broaden my horizons when it comes to food. I am particularly grateful for the time my family and I spent in Dubai, because were it not for it I would have missed out on a lot of cuisine from Africa that I might not have otherwise experienced. One of my favorite food finds during that time was Bobotie. For my US peeps Bobotie is a dish typical of South Africa, and the best way I can describe it is to say that it is like meatloaf but sooooo much better because of all the great flavors that go into it. I have made my version of it adapted from three different recipes, one which I saw in Spinney's Magazine while I was living in Dubai and the other two I found on the internet recently. I took ingredients that the recipes had in common and kept those while omitting stuff like raisins that my husband is not very keen on. Anyway here is my recipe:

Bobotie - An Adapted Version

1 Lb Ground/Minced Beef
1 Lb Ground/Minced Lamb
1 Large Carrot (Grated)
2-3 TBSP Olive Oil
3-4 Shallots (thinly sliced)
4 Garlic cloves (minced)
2 TBSP Curry Powder
2 tsp Tumeric Powder
3 tsp All Spice
2 tsp Ginger Powder
1/2 tsp Ground Cloves
1/4 Cup Water
2 Slices of Bread (Crumbled - I used Arnold's Whole Grains Oatnut Bread)
1/4 Cup Milk
Salt and Pepper to taste
4-5 Bay leaves


Preheat oven to 365 degrees Fahrenheit.

Heat the olive oil over medium high heat in a dutch oven adding the shallots and garlic. Saute until the shallots have become translucent.

Add in the spices adding water if necessary in order to prevent the mixture from becoming dry and clumpy.

Take the pot off the stove and add in your ground beef and lamb making sure to incorporate the shallot, garlic and spice mixture evenly throughout the meat.

Add in the grated carrot and incorporate evenly into the mixture.

In a separate bowl mix the bread with the milk allowing the bread to absorb the milk. Add this to the meat mixture making sure to incorporate it as evenly as possible.

Insert the bay leaves at even intervals, and now you are ready to place your pot in the oven. Make sure to cover and bake for about 1 hour.

** I want to note that you do not need to have a dutch oven to make this. You can just as easily prepare everything in a large pan and then transfer everything into a baking dish. Just make sure that the baking dish is deep enough to fit the meat mixture as well as the topping that is added onto it.

As you get close to the end of the baking time (5 minutes or so) you can start making the topping. Here is what you need to make it:

Bobotie Topping

1 Cup of milk
2 Large Eggs
1 tsp Tumeric
1/2 tsp Salt

Mix all the ingredients together until well incorporated and set aside briefly.

Once your baking time is done remove the baking dish/dutch oven from the oven and remove the foil/lid.

Raise the oven temperature to 400 degrees Fahrenheit

Pour the topping over the meat and place your dutch oven/baking dish back in the oven (uncovered) and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until the topping starts to turn a golden brown.

Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes. It is recommended that this dish be served over yellow rice, but Jasmine rice works well too.

Enjoy.  

Here are the links to some of the recipes I drew inspiration from
Bobotie Recipe at Epicurious
Cleopatras' Bobotie - with secret sauce

Chicken Lasagna

This recipe is very special to me because it was one of the things I always loved that my mom made (even though mine will never come close to how good my mom's is). This is the one that I would always request she make on my birthday. Here is my recipe.

Chicken Lasagna

9 inch by 12 inch Baking Dish
Lasagna pasta sheets (you will need enough for a base layer, 3 layers of filling in between and for the top)
3 large Chicken Breast Halves
3 Cups Chicken Stock/Broth 
2 TBSP Olive Oil
2 Plum Tomatoes (Seeded, pealed and finely diced)
1 Large Shallot (Thinly sliced and diced)
5 Cloves of Garlic (Thinly sliced)
2 Green Onions (Thinly sliced)
1/2 Red Pepper (Finely diced)
1 Large Carrot (Grated)
1 lb Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
2 Cups Ricotta Cheese
1 Cup Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
Bechamel Sauce (see recipe at end)


Preheat oven at 390 degrees Fahrenheit.

Start by heating your chicken stock  in a medium pot add the chicken breasts and allow to cook through. Once cooked through, remove the breasts from the broth and allow to cool. When they have cooled off shred them as you would pulled pork (you want long stringy pieces).

In a large pan heat your olive oil and add the tomatoes, shallot, garlic, green onions, red pepper and carrot and cook until the onions become translucent. (If your mixture starts to dry out a bit add a bit of the chicken stock used to cook the chicken breasts). Add salt and pepper to taste.

Add the chicken to the vegetable mixture making sure to incorporate the chicken evenly and allowing the vegetable base to coat it. Once this is done set it aside.

In a bowl combine the ricotta and Parmesan cheeses until the Parmesan is evenly distributed into the ricotta. Set it aside.

Now start getting your pasta sheets ready in a large pot of boiling water with a pinch of salt and olive oil (I find it best to cook the pasta in batches on a per layer basis because it prevents the pasta from over cooking). 

Get your baking dish ready by greasing the bottom of it with a little olive oil. Start by laying down a layer of pasta at the bottom. Add half of the chicken and vegetable mix onto the layer of pasta making sure to distribute it evenly. Add the bechamel sauce on top of the chicken vegetable mixture (this will insure that your chicken will not dry out) and top out with a sprinkling of grated mozzarella. Now add another layer of pasta. The next layer is going to be your ricotta Parmesan cheese mixture distributed thinly and evenly. Add another layer of pasta and add the remaining half of your chicken vegetable mixture. Top this layer off with Bechamel sauce and a sprinkling of shredded Mozzarella. Add the last layer of pasta and add the rest of the shredded Mozzarella.

Place your baking dish at the center of your oven and allow the lasagna to cook until you see the ingredients bubbling and the mozzarella on top starts to brown. About 20-30 minutes.

Once ready remove from oven and allow it to rest for at least 15 minutes. Serve and enjoy


Bechamel Sauce (my version at least)

2 Cups Chicken Stock/Broth (you can use the stock/broth used to cook the chicken breasts)
1/4 Cup Heavy Cream
1/4 Cup Flour
Pinch of Nutmeg
Salt and Pepper to taste (if necessary)

In a medium sauce pot, heat up your chicken stock/broth and heavy cream on medium heat until they they start to lightly simmer. Start sifting in the flour while whisking it into the broth and cream. Whisk until you are satisfied that there are no lumps and the flour has been well incorporated into the wet ingredients. Add the pinch of nutmeg. Allow to cook for about five additional minutes stirring frequently. Remove from heat and set aside to be used when needed)

Pork Chops with Pear, Shallot and Thyme Medley

This is a nice and easy recipe that will take minimal time to make and the taste is just wonderful because pork pairs so nicely with pears. Here is what you will need.

4 Nicely sized pork chops (Usually something that is about 1 inch thick will do nicely with a nice edge of fat)

Salt and Pepper to taste (season the pork chops with these just before they go into the pan)

2 TBSP Butter

2 Large Shallots (sliced thin)

2 Large Bosch Pears (sliced thin)

1 TBSP Dry Thyme

1 Cup water

In a deep pan or dutch oven on medium heat add the butter, shallots and pear slices. Let the butter melt and make sure to coat the shallots and pears with it.

Cook until the shallots start to caramelize. then push the mixture into the center of the pan and add the pork chops.

Sear the pork chops on both sides.

Add the water and sprinkle the thyme just a little over the pork chops and mix the remainder into the shallot and pear mixture. 

Simmer for five minutes then cover and lower the heat to a medium low. 

Cook for about 20 - 30 minutes then turn off the heat and let it rest.

Serve with rice and your favorite vegetable and definitely give it a generous amount of the juices from the pan for a little extra love.

Enjoy :)

Wonton Potato Curry Pockets - AKA Curry Puffs without the puff

These little treats are jam packed with flavor. They were inspired by Thai restaurant curry puffs which I have been wanting to make for a long time. I was trying to put together a dinner because One of my husband's cousins was coming over. I made my Thai Style chicken with the coconut curry sauce, jasmin rice and some steamed broccoli, but I was feeling like we should have a pre-diner snack, so I concocted a recipe and tried to put it together with the least amount of hassle.

For the filling:

2 TBSP butter
2 Medium Shallots (sliced thin)
2 large cloves of garlic (minced)
1 Green onion (sliced thin)
2 large Yukon gold potatoes (Diced)
1 Large carrot (diced)
2 TBSP Mild Yellow Curry powder
1/2 Cup of water


For the pockets:

1 Pack of wonton wrappers



Recipe:


Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan on medium heat. Add the shallots, garlic and green onions until the shallots become translucent and  start to caramelize. Add the potatoes and carrot and cook for 5 minutes stirring frequently to prevent ingredients form burning. Add the water and curry making sure to add the curry powder slowly to prevent lumps. Cook until the water is reduced enough to make a thick gravy. 


Set the filling aside and get your wonton wrappers ready by slicing them diagonally to create triangles. Once this is done start getting your Pockets together. The pictures below show the step by step procedure on how to fold your wrappers and get them ready for frying/sauteing.

 place your wonton triangle on a flat surface

 Place about 1 teaspoon of filling 

at the center of your wonton triangle

 Make your first fold as shown above.

 Make your second fold as shown above.

 Make your third fold as shown above.

Finally tuck the last corner under to complete your triangle shaped pocket.

To cook these simply fry in a large pan with a thin layer of Safflower or canola oil until they are golden brown on both sides. Serve with either duck sauce or red chilly dipping sauce. Enjoy.