Just a quick post showing my tiny kitchen (and my gorgeous new apron). OK, OK - some people's kitchen's are surely tinier than mine, but you must admit - it is fairly small.

Roast Beef for my Husband

I am not a roast beef eating kind of person. I much prefer things like chicken or no meat at all. I do enjoy beef hamburgers, but for some reason when beef comes in a giant hunk or a big slab, it is not all that appetizing to me. That being said, I decided to make this for my poor red meat loving husband who doesn't actually get to eat red meat all that often. I served the roast with a side of steamed broccoli and mashed red potatoes with parsley, garlic, and Parmesan cheese.

Top Round Roast Beef
Recipe courtesy of Emeril Lagasse, Food Network

Ingredients...

1 (4 1/2 to 5 pound) top round roast, rinsed and patted dry
16 cloves peeled garlic
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
2 teaspons salt
1 teaspoon Essence, recipe follows **I didn't have this, so I just used some dried thyme, garlic, salt, and pepper
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
12 small sprigs fresh thyme

Directions...

Preheat Oven to 400 Degrees.

Put the roast in a small roasting pan, bone side down. With a small sharp knife, make sixteen 1/2-inch-deep slits in the meaty side of the roast. Insert 1 garlic clove into each slit, pressing into the meat. Pinch with your thumb and index finger to close the openings. Combine the chopped thyme, salt, Essence, and pepper in a small bowl. Slowly stir in the oil to make a paste. Rub the paste on both sides of the roast, and place the thyme sprigs under the roast. Roast for 1 hour. Remove the pan from the oven and turn the roast for even browning. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F and continue roasting until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the roast reads 125 to 130 degrees F for medium-rare, about 45 minutes, or 140 degrees F for medium, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven and let the roast stand for 15 minutes before carving.

Fiesta Rice

This is one of my all-time favorite recipes. The time spent making this dish is well worth it. The rice is so versatile and can be used as a side dish, in a burrito, on top of nachos, and basically anywhere else you can think of! This recipe makes a nice big batch, so plan on lots of leftovers.

Fiesta Rice

Source: Cooking Light

Ingredients

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 (10-ounce) package frozen whole-kernel corn, thawed
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup chopped green onions
1 1/2 cups uncooked brown rice
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Dash of salt
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with chiles, undrained
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Directions...

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add corn to pan; cook 10 minutes or until corn starts to brown, stirring occasionally. Remove from pan. Set aside.

Melt butter in pan. Add onions; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in rice, cumin, and garlic; cook 1 minute. Add chicken broth, black pepper, salt, and diced tomatoes to pan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in reserved corn and beans. Cover and let stand 10 minutes. Stir in cilantro and juice.

Yield...

8 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

Nutritional Information...

CALORIES 226(16% from fat); FAT 3.9g (sat 1.3g,mono 1.7g,poly 0.7g); PROTEIN 6.6g; CHOLESTEROL 4mg; CALCIUM 52mg; SODIUM 354mg; FIBER 4.9g; IRON 2.1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 43.5g

I can't spell Shepherd's Pie

When I sought out a recipe for this classic comfort food I ran into some difficulty due to my inability to spell "shepherd." One would think that someone who frequently did well in Elementary school spelling bees would not have this problem. However, not once did it occur to me that there would be an "h" in the word. Naturally, once I found the proper spelling, it all made sense. Shep-herd - one who herds She(e)p.

In any case, this blog is about cooking, not spelling. On to the recipe! While this dish takes a little while to make from start to finish, it comes out beautifully and is so satisfying! It's one of my new favorites! Enjoy! (Please excuse my poor photography)

Shepherd's Pie
Source: Emeril Lagasse


Ingredients...


1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 pound chopped lamb shoulder or lamb fillet **I used Ground Beef**
1 cup chopped yellow onions
2 carrots, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 ounces button mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced
**I also added about a cup of frozen corn**
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 1/4 cups lamb or beef stock
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 pound potatoes
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup white cheddar, grated

Directions...

Lightly grease a 6-cup baking dish and set aside.

Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large saute pan over medium high heat. Add the lamb and cook until starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the onions, carrots, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of the pepper, and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and bay leaf, and cook, stirring, until their liquid is almost all gone, about 4 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, until starting to color, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Gradually add the stock and Worcestershire sauce, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until thickened, about 20 to 25 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Meanwhile, place the potatoes in a medium pot and cover with salted water by 1-inch. Bring to a boil and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain in a colander and return to the pot. Over low heat, mash the potatoes with a potato masher. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, 3/4 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of pepper, and nutmeg, and mash to incorporate. Add the heavy cream and mix well. Remove from the heat.

Remove the pot with the meat from the heat. Remove the bay leaf. Spoon into the prepared dish and top with the mashed potatoes, smoothing the top. Sprinkle the cheese over the top and bake until browned and bubbly on top, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve immediately.

Beef Chili wtih Kidney Beans

My new favorite cookbook is The New Best Recipe from the editor's of Cook's Illustrated. It may not be for everybody, since it lacks any colorful food photos, but I love the extended explanations of the process undertaken to find all of their "best" recipes. Their directions are extremely detailed and clear and it's a great reference for those wanting to learn cooking techniques, from basic to fairly advanced.

This chili recipe came out wonderfully and was even better the next day!

Beef Chili with Kidney Beans
Recipe Courtesy of The New Best Recipe from the editor's of Cook's Illustrated

Serves 8 to 10

Ingredients...

2 tablespoons vegetable or corn oil
2 medium onions, chopped fine
1 medium red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
6 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through a garlic press
1/4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 pounds 85 percent lean ground beef
2 (15 ounce) cans dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (28-ounce) can tomato puree
Salt
2 limes, cut into wedges

Directions...

1. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering but not smoking. Add the onions, bell pepper, garlic, chili powder, cumin, coriander, pepper flakes, oregano, and cayenne and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened and beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-high and add half the beef. Cook, breaking up the chunks with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink and just beginning to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the remaining beef and cook, breaking up the chunks with the wooden spoon, until no longer pink, 3 to 4 minutes.

2. Add the beans, tomatoes, tomato puree, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, and stirring occasionally, for 1 hour. Remove the cover and continue to simmer 1 hour longer, stirring occasionally (if the chili begins to stick to the bottom of the pot, stir in 1/2 cup water and continue to simmer), until the beef is tender and the chili is dark, rich, and slightly thickened. Adjust the seasonsing with additional salt to taste. Serve with he lime wedges and condiments, if desired.

**I garnished with cheddar cheese, scallions, and sour cream. Delicious!

Baked Pastina Casserole

It's time for some much-needed updating! I've been doing plenty of cooking, but have found that I'm a little lazy about updating...

This dish is from Giada's Everyday Pasta cookbook. It turned out well and is definitely a nice week-night go-to meal. It was also great as left-overs!

Baked Pastina Casserole
Recipe Courtesy of Giada DeLaurentiis from Everyday Pasta

Ingredients...

1 cup pastina (or any small pasta - I used fusilli/corkscrews)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup cubed chicken breast (1-inch cubes)
1/2 cup diced onion (about 1/2 small onion)
1 garlic clove, minced
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes with juice
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut in small pieces, plus more for buttering the baking dish

Directions...

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees farenheit

Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until just tender, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Drain the pasta and transfer to a large mixing bowl.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes. Add the onion and garlic, stirring to combine, and cook until the onion is soft and the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Add the chicken mixture to the bowl with the drained pasta, then add the canned tomatoes and their juice, mozzarella cheese, parsley, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine.

Butter an 8x8x2-inch baking dish and spread the pasta in the prepared dish. In a small bowl, mix together the bread crumbs and the Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle over the top of the pasta. Dot the top with small bits of butter. Bake until the top is golden brown, about 30 minutes.

Angel Hair Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Goat Cheese

Well, it's been over a month since I've posted! I haven't done a ton of cooking in the last month. December is a crazy month for me at work and that in combination with holiday shopping hasn't left me with much time. But now that I've had a bit of vacation, I'm ready to go again!

This recipe comes from Everyday Pasta by Giada DeLaurentiis, a book which I received from my husband for Christmas. It has a lot of great looking recipes and I intend cook each one of them at some point. I chose this recipe first because it looked fairly simple and I had just gone to Trader Joe's and picked up some goat cheese. By the way, if you have a Trader Joe's near you and you're as frustrated with I am at the prices of specialty cheeses at your local grocery store, you must visit! I got a 10 oz log of goat cheese for about $3.50. Normally, I pay that much for 5 oz at my regular grocery store. Unfortunately, the closest Trader Joe's isn't convenient enough for a weekly visit, so it's a special treat for me to make a visit! Anyway, this dish turned out to be really delicious. It will definitely be making another appearance at our dinner table.

Angel Hair Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Goat Cheese
Recipe courtesy of: Everyday Pasta by Giada DeLaurentiis

Ingredients...

• 1 (10 oz) jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, chopped (oil reserved)
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 pound angel hair pasta
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3-4 ounces soft fresh goat cheese, coarsely crumbled

Directions...

Heat three tablespoons of the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until tender, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add the wine and chopped sun-dried tomatoes and simmer until the liquid reduces by half, about 2 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Add the pasta and parsley to the tomato mixture and toss to coat, adding some of the reserved pasta water to moisten. Season the pasta with salt and pepper. Mound the pasta in bowls, sprinkle with the goat cheese, and serve.