Lemon Thyme Pasta with 6-hour Bolognese

So the beauty of pseudo living with a roommate who went to culinary school is sometimes you whip up some amazingly inspiring dinners. Take yesterday for example... I didn't take pictures of the whole process because I wasn't expecting it to be as amazing as it turned out (and I am just bad about the in-between pictures in general).

It was our day off and we always like to try new things in the kitchen on those days. So we needed to go to the store, and we decided to venture off to Costa Mesa and see what fun things we could round up at Surfas. A little fromage de'affinois, giant can of San Marzanos and garlic butter later, we went and enjoyed one of our favorite dishes... Spicy Miso Ramen. (You could say it was a day filled with noodles)

Finally we are home to start the sauce... This was a joint effort. Lots of mis en place to be done!

Here is the menu for the night: (2 of these items were semi-spontaneous)
6-hour Bolognese with Lemon Thyme Pasta
Grilled Lemon Caesar Salad
Meatball Slider
Strawberry Carpaccio Waffle

6-hour Bolognese (serves a small army...)

Ingredients:
28 oz can of crushed San Marzano tomatoes
2 lbs ground beef (we used mostly 80/20, you want the fat to sauté the veggies!)
9 carrots, small diced
5 stalks of celery, small diced (I learned you should use the inner stalks since they are less fibrous)
1 1/2 yellow onions, small diced
8 whole garlic cloves, peeled
1 bottle Sangiovese (Cook with about 2/3 of the bottle, drink the rest!)
1 tsp dried oregano
2 stems of fresh basil (leaves attached and everything)
Salt/pepper/red pepper flakes to taste

Brown the ground beef in a pot/dutch oven that will be deep enough to combine all the ingredients (we used a 6 quart stockpot)

Transfer the beef to a bowl and start by sautéing the carrots first (again, I learned they take longer to cook), then add the onions and celery cooking until they start to become soft. 

Deglaze the pan using some of the red wine, scraping all the browned bits from the ground beef. (Mas Flavor!) Bring that to a boil and add the canned tomatoes, garlic, oregano, rest of the wine and basil stems. Bring to a boil and then turn the heat to a simmer. Be patient and just let it cook. Taste it periodically to adjust salt (and red pepper flakes if you want a little heat)

Grilled Lemon Caesar Salad (serves 4)
(there is a dipping sauce I make for phyllo-wrapped asparagus that we adapted this from)

Lemon Caesar Dressing:
1/2 C mayonaise
1/2 C sour cream
2 Tbsp dijon mustard
Zest of 1 large lemon
Juice of 2 lemons
2 egg yolks
3 large garlic cloves
1/4 C grated parmesan
olive oil
salt and pepper
2 whole romaine hearts

In a food processor mix the egg yolks, garlic and dijon mustard. Then add the mayo, sour cream, lemon juice and zest. Once combined, slowly add in the olive oil to emulsify. Add salt, pepper and parmesan and blend until the dressing thickens. 

Cut romaine hearts lengthwise and drizzle with a touch of olive oil, salt and pepper. Grill for 3 minutes (or until you get a slight char). Dress and top with freshly shaved parmesan and croutons. 

Now for the good stuff... PASTA!

Lemon Thyme Pasta

Ingredients:
4 eggs
2 egg yolks
2 1/2 C UNBLEACHED all-purpose flour
3 tsp olive oil
1 Tbsp fresh, finely chopped lemon thyme

You can either do this by hand or in a food processor... here is by hand:

Make a well using the flour and then add the oil and crack the eggs (and extra yolks) inside the well. Beat the eggs/oil together and slowly incorporate the flour. As it begins to come together, throw in the lemon thyme and mix well. If it is too sticky, add just a touch more olive oil (and vice versa, add more flour if too dry). *I would probably add a little lemon zest if you really want the lemon to pop!

Knead the dough until it comes together in a ball, not too sticky and not too wet. Place a glass bowl on top and let the dough rest for about an hour. 

Separate the dough into 4 and using a pasta roller, roll out the dough (If using the Kitchenaid Pasta attachment... its a 6). Then cut it into fettucine. Place in SALTED boiling water for 3-5 minutes. Toss the pasta in a skillet with the 6-hour bolognese. Chop fresh tomatoes and grate some fresh parmesan on top. 

*we tossed the pasta in some garlic butter before the sauce.

We were fortunate enough to have dessert made for us. These are Belgian waffle cookies topped with fromage de'affinois, carpaccio of strawberries and port wine macerated cherries and strawberries. HEAVEN.

Now onto the next bite.... 

KB

The best cookies... Ever.

For right now. ;) 

So Austin always likes to have cookie dough around the house (lets be honest, who doesn't love some fresh baked cookies at the drop of a hat!) but the Toll House "Break and Bake" cookies just weren't cutting it for me. 

I decided to try my hand at making some cookie dough and freezing it in individual balls. Then came the million dollar question... what chocolate chip cookie recipe to use! I headed over to handy dandy Google and naturally typed in "Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe". This is where I found the recipe for Best Ever Chocolate Chip Cookie. She tested 5 "award winning" cookie recipes and David Lebovitz's Chocolate Chip Cookie was the winner! 

While I tried it once with english toffee bits, almonds, and mini chocolate chips... that was not so successful. The toffee bits just melted into the cookies and the mini chips got lost. 

However hazelnut, dark chocolate chips and sea salt= AMAZING!!! 

So here we go: 

Ingredients: (You can use a scale if you want, but regular was just as easy and they came out perfect)

• 2 1/2 cups (350 g) all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (8 ounces/225 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup (215 g) packed light brown sugar
• 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 2 cups (about 225 g) hazelnuts, toasted and chopped
• 14 ounces (400 g) dark chocolate chips
• Sea salt for sprinkling on top

Step 1: (If you are baking them right away)

Preheat the oven to 350º F

Step 2:

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

Step 3: 

Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, on medium-high speed cream the butter with both brown sugar and granulated sugar until fluffy (about 3 minutes)

Step 4: 

Slow down the mixer and gradually add in the eggs, making sure the first is fully incorporated before adding the second.

Step 5: 

Turn the speed down to just a stir and slowly add the dry ingredients. (Be careful, as flour can tend to fly creating quite a mess). Mix just until it is combined so you don't over mix it. 

Step 6: 

Add the chocolate chips and nuts and stir in using a spatula. Refrigerate the mixture in the bowl for an hour. 

Step 7:

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, then using a tablespoon scoop, place the dough balls on a baking sheet. Sprinkle the sea salt over the top.

Step 8:

Freeze for 2 hours. Either bake now (for 12-15 minutes), or place them in an airtight container or ziploc bag. 

Then, when you are ready for some delicious cookies, day or night, pull some out of the freezer while the oven heats up. 350ºF for 12-15 minutes and you have fresh baked cookies!! 

TA DAHH!! Finished product. If you really want to take them over the top, put some Trader Joe's Cookie Butter on top!!!! 

Sweet Pea and Ricotta Crostini

A friend of mine text me this afternoon asking for the recipe for a sweet pea and ricotta crostini I made when she was visiting, so I apologize in advance, there are no pictures. But these were so amazing I made them twice in a week.

In September, we had dinner for my brother's girlfriends 30th birthday and I was in charge of appetizers. She loves crostini, and I love to make ricotta. Naturally, I wanted to combine the two and I found a recipe on The Daily Green which inspired the sweet pea mixture.  

Ingredients: 

1 small bag of frozen green peas

1 french baguette

3 Tbsp Olive Oil

5 medium cloves of garlic, minced

1 recipe of fresh ricotta cheese (You could use store-bought, but it's SO easy, and AMAZING!)

       -Side Note: I can't find the exact recipe I used, but I used vinegar, not lemon juice.

1 Tbsp chopped fresh mint

1/2 small shallot, chopped

2 Tbsp grated parmesean (I did this to taste, you can never have too much cheese!)

1 Tbsp fresh chopped basil

Preheat the oven to 400º F

You can make the ricotta a few days in advance if you want to save some time. If making it the same day, I would make it a few hours ahead of time to let it drain. Microwave the peas for about 5 minutes, let them cool. Combine the peas, 1/2 Tbsp of mint, basil, parmesean, 1 Tbsp of olive oil either in a food processor or you can mash it all together with a fork. (The food processor will make it more of a paste, if you want a little more texture, just mash it with a fork or a potato masher) 

Slice the baguette about 1/4 inch thick, brush each side with a small amount of olive oil. Place on a cookie sheet and bake for about 7 minutes (keep an eye on this, once they start to brown it will go quick!)

Take the ricotta and mix in the garlic, shallots, pepper (to taste) and the other 1/2 Tbsp of mint. 

Once all the components are done, spread about 1 teaspoon of the cheese on the bread, then top with a teaspoon of pea mixture. If you wanted to make it really fancy, I would top it with a sweet pea shoot if you can find them which will add a nice little texture to it as well as a little classy touch.

They should look something like this:

Photo: The Daily Green

I LOVE crostini for an easy entertaining dish. They are easy to assemble and there are endless flavor profiles for them. We also did smoked salmon with dill and blue cheese with figs and honey. I am always up for new ideas, so feel free to comment!!!

Until next time! :) 

Katie

Butternut Squash Lasagna!

So I had some friends coming over for dinner last week, one is a vegetarian while the rest of us are very much carnivores. I wanted to make something that didn't feel like she was being left out of the meal. Most of the time, vegetarians may feel like they can only eat sides since a main is usually meat-based. (We did have a little meat... the men made sausages for an appetizer) I got to thinking about this lasagna that my mom made for my birthday last year. Plus, its fall and who doesn't love butternut squash!

I got this recipe from Design Sponge by way of Pinterest. This is Brian Malarkey's recipe, and if you haven't been to his restaurant Searsucker in the Gaslamp district of San Diego I suggest you go. NOW! It was amazing, needless to say so was this lasagna.

Now let me forewarn you, this is pretty easy once you get the squash all cut! My sweet boyfriend took all these pictures on his iPhone as I was prepping. :)

The squash can be a challenge only because they are SO hard and no one wants to lose a finger! I suggest a mandolin if you have one. It will make this process so much easier. I don't, so I cut every piece about 1/4 inch thick. Multitasking was key, it allowed me to make the squash AND roast root veggies for my salad at the same time. Plus, it can be done hours ahead of time!

The squash, pre-roast. And a little Yuengling. 

 If you don't know what Yuengling is, then you must live on the West Coast. Let me tell you about this delicious little lager from one of the world's oldest breweries! They do not distribute anywhere on the west, so any time I (or anyone else I know) goes to the east coast, I bring it back (then introduce all my friends to it so they can suffer with me when it is gone...). This beer is pretty much perfect for an everyday, easy beer. Flavor profile is mellow, not super hoppy or bitter. Just, perfect. Maybe I should petition to get it out here!!

Cheese, and more cheese!!!

The finished product!

Roasted fingerling potatoes for my salad!

I wanted to make a salad to go along with the Lasagna. With all the cream and cheese in this dish, I thought a nice little roasted root veggie salad would be great. While I don't really have pictures, it's just a salad. The oven is already hot from the squash, why not roast some amazing veggies!? I took fingerling potatoes (I especially love the purple ones), parsnips and carrots, tossed in a little olive oil/salt/pepper combo. Beets I roasted separately because, a) they take longer and b) I didn't want all my veggies to turn pink. To my veggies I added mixed greens (baby kale, swiss chard and spinach), pomegranate seeds for a little texture, shaved grana padana for a little salt and a balsamic vinaigrette. EASY! 

The assembly.

I was too excited to eat.

All in all, it was a great night with some amazing people. Here is the breakdown of the recipes:

Mixed Root Veggie Salad

Serves 4 (depending on how much salad everyone eats!)

1 bag of mixed lettuces 

1 1/4 T Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 small bunch of beets

2 small parsnips

2 small carrots

8 baby fingerling potatoes

store-bought balsamic vinaigrette

shaved grana padana

pomegranate seeds

Pre-heat the oven to 375ºF. Peel the carrots and parsnips and cut into 1/4 inch chunks. Cut potatoes in half (they should be about the same size as the carrots) and toss those all in a bowl with some olive oil, salt and pepper. Place them on a baking sheet (I line mine with foil for easy cleanup). Roast for about 30 minutes then check for doneness.

For the beets, I just put them in a foil packet with a little bit of olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast those until a fork can be inserted and removed easily. 

Then combine all the rest of the ingredients in a bowl. 

SIMPLE! 

Butternut Squash Lasagna recipe can be found at Design Sponge. It calls for a sage-lemon sauce, but I thought with all the cheese and cream, it didn't need it. So to still get those flavors, I finely chopped about 5 sage leaves, sprinkled that over the top when it came out of the oven and finished it with a little fresh lemon juice to give it that brightness. It was perfect without the extra butter.  

Here We Go Again!

So this is now the 6th blog I have attempted to start. There is someone in my life who is urging me to really get serious and keep up with a blog. 

Journey, begin! 

I figure I post all of the food adventures I go on/take in my kitchen on Instagram, might as well blog about it too! Then I can post the recipes so everyone else can make it!! 

Plus, its the beginning of my favorite time of year, so what a better time to start this. Bare with me regarding pictures, most of them are things I've taken on my iPhone. As you can imagine, not the best quality all the time.