The Easiest Vodka Sauce Ever.

Guess what? This was one of the very first recipes I ever made on my own! This was back in a time where I couldn't handle much more than boiling water for pasta or putting some chicken in the oven to bake, so the first time I made my own sauce was a pretty big deal.

I got a craving for vodka sauce one day and went recipe hunting. The one I found, on AllRecipes, was so amazingly simple I would be crazy NOT to do it! The only thing I was missing was the vodka. So, I took a drive to Bottle King and picked up the biggest, cheapest plastic bottle of vodka I could find.

Yeah, I know, vodka in a plastic bottle. That's what we call "klassy". I was young and naive, alright? All I knew was that it was only $9 and vodka doesn't expire, so what does it matter? It wasn't like we were ever going to drink it (Matt likes his scotch and do I really need to re-declare my love for Arbor Mist?).

Shut up.

Anyway...I got my cheap-ass vodka (which smells more like paint thinner than vodka, might I add) and proceeded to make the most delicious sauce we'd have ever tasted. Every time I make it, Matt declares, "I can't believe that you can take the worst vodka in the world and make it in to the most awesome sauce!"

I figured it was time to share this recipe, since I think vodka sauce is something that is just so easy to make and just so delicious. Fun fact - did you know? The reason why there are no other seasonings in this sauce other than onion is because the point of the vodka is to draw out flavors from the tomatoes that could not otherwise be accessed.

Cool, right?

EASY VODKA SAUCE, courtesy of AllRecipes.com 
Makes ~10 servings
YOU WILL NEED:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 onion, diced
1 cup vodka
2 (28oz) cans crushed tomatoes
1 pint heavy cream

You will also need a pot, like a Dutch oven, to cook your sauce in, as well as some pasta or tortellini or ravioli so that you have something to put this sauce on! But to be honest, it's so delicious, you might just want to eat it by itself with a piece of bread!

1. In a pot over medium heat, saute onion in butter until slightly brown and soft.

2. Pour in vodka; let cook for 10 minutes.

3. Mix in crushed tomatoes and cook for 30 minutes.

4. Pour in heavy cream and cook for another 30 minutes (if you are making any sort of pasta, you might want to start it at this time as well).

5. Spoon over your choice of pasta and enjoy!

I made pipette pasta with sauteed sausage to enjoy with the vodka sauce. I always like to add a little bit of meat or veggies whenever I'm making pasta. That way I don't feel so bad about eating so much pasta.

I'm labeling this as "lots of leftovers" and "pot luck". Because this sauce makes a big batch, it's perfect when you're feeding a lot of people! Plus this sauce freezes really well, so don't be hesitant about making the whole batch, even if you're not feeding a crowd!

Until next time: eat, drink and be merry!

Tomato & White Bean Pasta

You really can find recipes anywhere, not just in cookbooks. Magazines, for example, are always printing recipes for this diet fad or that, or for holidays and special events and get-togethers, for kids and for teenagers, for beginner and advanced cooks.

I don't subscribe to any magazines, but in your daily life, magazines can be found everywhere. On line at the supermarket, who doesn't pluck up a magazine while the person in front of you pays in pennies? Waiting for the doctor or the mechanic, there are always a ton of magazines laying around. More often than not, those magazines have been sitting there for weeks. If you find a recipe that you particularly like and want to remember and you do not have a pen and paper to copy it down with, ask the receptionist if you can take the magazine home.

This recipe came from a magazine. I can't remember when I found it or what magazine it came from. All I know is that I'd copied this recipe down some time ago, probably while I was still in college (it was found in an old notebook of mine with "Film as a Medium" written on the cover, which was a class I'd taken). I know I said it would be awhile before I posted another pasta recipe, but this was requested by none other than the fiance. It's one of his favorite pasta dishes and rightly so. It's a relatively healthy one, and vegetarian to boot!

TOMATO & WHITE BEAN PASTA (origins unknown)

YOU WILL NEED:

1 box of tri-color pasta

4 Roma tomatoes

1 tbsp olie oil

3-4 peeled garlic cloves

1 can white beans (white kidney, cannellini, etc.)

1/2 cup chopped fresh basil

1/4 cup grated Parmesan

salt and pepper to taste

mise-en-place

You will also need a large or medium skillet and a pasta pot. Also - return of the basil plant! This one is holding up quite well so far, as opposed to the last one that only lasted two weeks.

1. Cook the pasta in salted water. Drain the pasta and return to the pot. Cover to keep warm.

2. Cut the tomtoes in half, scrape out the seeds with a spoon and cut into 1-inch pieces.

3. Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the tomatoes and garlic cloves. Cover and cook for 10-12 minutes. Remove garlic and set aside.

4. Drain and rinse the beans, Add them to the skillet and then remove from heat. Smash the reserved garlic with a fork and add to drained pasta.

5. Add the tomatoes, beans and basil. Stir well, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

The end!

This pasta dish makes a great weeknight meal that's healthy and causes very little fuss. The garlic gives the tomatoes a great flavor and the beans are still firm to the bite. Of course, the tri-color pasta gives added nutrition, but if you can find the whole grain tri-color pasta, that's even better. Otherwise, it doesn't get any better than this!

Sorry for the delay in posting, we've had a crazy few days here. But I promise there will be more to come! Until next time: eat, drink and be merry!

Chicken Piccata with Lemon Orzo

Piccata. I like that word. Piccata. Rhymes with hotta...or the Spanish Armada.

"House Bunny" anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Forget you. "The House Bunny" is one of the funniest movies ever.

I have noticed, as I get older and my taste buds evolve over and over again, that I really love citrus in my foods, especially in my entrees. I love a strong, lemony flavor. Lemon over pasta, over fish, over calamari, over chicken - especially over chicken. I have TWO containers of lemon pepper seasoning. Chicken piccata definitely quenches my desire for lemony foods - paired with a great dry white wine and capers, it pleases my taste buds.

Usually chicken piccata is prepared with the chicken dredged in flour before its sauteed, but this is actually a healthy version of the dish - minus the flour and using low-sodium chicken broth in the sauce. It tastes just as good without it, I promise!

CHICKEN PICCATA WITH LEMON ORZO, courtesy of MyRecipes.com

Serves 4

YOU WILL NEED:

1 cup uncooked orzo

2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

4 (4oz) chicken cutlets (thin boneless/skinless breasts will also do)

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/4 cup white wine (a dry white wine, like a Chardonnay or a Pinot is preferable)

1/2 cup fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon chilled butter, cut into small pieces

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon capers

mise-en-place

I don't have any parsley, so I just did without. No big deal. You will also need a large skillet and a pasta pot. You will also need a wooden spoon or any other cooking instrument good for stirring in a hot pan (nothing that will melt or scrape the Teflon in a nonstick pan).

Orzo is a delicious little type of pasta, shaped like grains of rice (orzo actually means "barley" in Italian). It's usually used in casseroles or soups. It's not hard to find, a lot of pasta companies make orzo. Fun fact: "piccata", in Italian, means "pounded flat". Traditionally, the chicken breast would be pounded flat efore being cooked. However, by using thinly sliced chicken instead, it is unneccesary.

Quick note: zesting (or grating) a lemon is a pain in the @$$ process. It's a lot of work for very little rind. It's a good thing that the recipe only calls for two teaspoons of rind, because that's about all you can get from an average sized lemon. Just make sure you don't grate the white part underneath the zest - that's the most bitter part. So bitter it doesn't even taste good.

In my opinion, before you do anything else, zest your lemon. You'll thank me later.

1. Cook orzo according to package directions. Drain. Stir in lemon rind.

2. While orzo cooks, heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper.

3. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add chicken; cook 3 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan.

4. Keep pan warm. Add wine; cook 1 minute or until liquid almost evaporates, scraping the pan to loosen browned bits.

5. Add chicken broth and lemon juice; bring to a boil. Cook 2 minutes for until reduced to 1/2 cup.

6. Remove from heat; add butter, stirring until butter melts.

7. Stir in parsley and capers. Serve over orzo, topped with sauce.

Done and done! I served cauliflower and broccoli on the side.

This is my second time making this recipe. Last time, I was happy with the chicken but not with the sauce. This time, it was the other way around. I thought the chicken tasted dry and overcooked, but my fiance disagreed and said it was perfect. I am my own harshest critic after all. I don't think my chicken was flat enough to be cooked properly, my bad. I also forgot what a true pain this recipe is. I'll cook it again just one more time in the future, just to see if I can get it 100% right (to my standards), and if I can't, I'm going to look out for another piccata recipe - which I will, of course share.

I've got only one more recipe to post before I'm gone for a week - New England clam chowder, from the crock pot! It's actually in the crock pot as we speak and I'll post the recipe tomorrow.

Until next time - eat, drink and be merry!

"Everyone's Favorite" Lasagna

Lasagna has to be one of the most comforting comfort foods ever. I know I say that a lot, but I really think lasagna tops the list every single time. It's got pasta, which is my favorite food. It's got tomato sauce - full of antioxidants and lycopene, which is a carotene that has been medically proven to reduce cancer risks. And, it's got ricotta cheese, which is a thick, creamy Italian cheese that's usually made from sheep's milk and is incredibly versatile, used in many Italian dishes from calzones to cannolis.

Everyone has their own way of making lasagna, and they're all right. Some used pre-shredded mozzarella, others prefer to use slices. Some used homemade sauce, like this one. Others use jarred sauce - which is okay, but I don't think it's as good as making it yourself, which is just as easy and a little cheaper than buying it ready-made. This version is very basic and 100% delicious and comes from my favorite cookbook!

"EVERYONE'S FAVORITE LASAGNA", courtesy of "365 Ways to Cook Pasta"
YOU WILL NEED:
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 (28oz) cans Italian-style plum tomatoes, drained with juices
1 (8oz) can tomato sauce
1 (6oz) can tomato paste
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
15 plain or spinach lasagna noodles
1 (15oz) container ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley
1 egg, beaten
1 pound mozzarella cheese, sliced thin or shredded

mise-en-place

You will also need a large wide saucepan, a pasta pot, a medium mixing bowl and a 9x13-inch baking dish.

....My God that's a lot of ingredients. I nearly gave up trying to get my mise-en-place together, it was never ending! But it's not like any of these ingredients are hard to get a hold of, and everything is used. Also, it turns out that my container of flat-leaf parsley went bad before I could use what was left, so I simply substituted dried parsley flakes.

If you've never cooked lasagna noodles before, here's a hint: if a recipe calls for 15 noodles, cook at least 17 or even 18. It never hurts to have extras if something happens during cooking and the noodles break or rip beyond usage (and how else are you going to know if it's done unless you take a bite?).

Please note: though this recipe is easy, it is not a quick fix. The sauce needs to simmer for a minimum of 90 minutes before it can be used and the lasagna itself cooks for nearly an hour before resting about 15 minutes before cutting into it.


Let's cook!



1. Heat the olive oil in a large wide saucepan; add the ground beef, onion, and garlic. Saute, stirring, over medium heat until the meat is browned, about 10 minutes.

 
2. Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce and paste, basil and oregano. Cook, stirring occasionally, over medium-low heat until the sauce is cooked down and thickened, 1 1/2 to 2 hours (there should be 4 cups of sauce left). Season with salt and pepper (NOTE: If the tomatoes do not break down on their own during the cooking process, break them up using the back of a wooden spoon).

3. Cook the lasagna noodles in plenty of boiling salted water until al dente, about 12 minutes; drain. Let noodles sit in a bowl of cool water until ready to use.

4. Beat the ricotta, Parmesan cheese, parsley and egg together; set aside (I prefer to use my hands to mix it together).

5. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Select a 9x13 shallow baking dish. Add about 1/2 cup of the tomato sauce to the bottom of the dish. Lift the noodles from the water individually and blot dry on paper towels. Arrange a slightly overlapping layer of 5 noodles on the bottom of the dish.

6. Dot the noodles with half the ricotta mixture (or use a rubber spatula to lightly spread it around); add about a third of the remaining sauce and arrange a layer of a third of the mozzarella slices (or shreds) on top. Arrange a second layer of 5 slightly overlapping lasagna noodles. Dot with the remaining ricotta, half of the remaining tomato sauce and half the remaining mozzarella.

...and so on and so on

7. Top with the 5 remaining lasagna noodles in a slightly overlapping layer; add the remaining sauce and a layer of the remaining mozzarella.

8. Bake until cheese is melted and mixture is bubbly, about 50 minutes. Let stand at least 15 minutes before serving.

Whew. This dish is just exhausting to make. But the reward is worth it! Wednesday night is, as always, "Face Off", and we had our friends over. Lasagna is a perfect dish to make when feeding a lot of people - who doesn't like lasagna? Needless to say, the entire pan was gone after feeding five people. I kind of wish I had made TWO pans so that there would be plenty left over!

I hope you guys enjoyed this recipe. I know a lot of the recipes I post seem advanced to those who are afraid of the kitchen, so every so often I enjoy posting simple ones like this. I think everyone needs to know how to make a decent lasagna!

Coming up next: finger lickin' fried chicken! And until next time: eat, drink and be merry!

Garlicky Tortellini and Spinach Tomato Soup

March has finally arrived, and spring is at our heels. Every day I'm seeing more and more grass in my courtyard and the days are getting warmer and warmer! Pretty soon we'll be leaving our jackets at home and it won't be getting dark until way after 8 o'clock at night. 

Despite the fact that the temperature is steadily rising during the day, the nights are still pretty cold and miserable. My favorite thing to have at dinnertime on a cold night is a chunky, flavorful soup. 

For about 9 years, my mother owned her own restaurant where she became famous for her soups. She had over one hundred recipes and they were all delicious. She even had a soup-call list: you gave the waitress your name and phone number, and someone would call you the day your favorite soup was being served! That's basically like having your favorite clothing store call you the day before they have a blowout sale and  telling you that you can be the first person in the store that day.  One of Mom's customers once referred to her as the Soup Nazi!

But, being Jewish, she politely refused to be called that. Thus she became known as the Soup Goddess, and held that title for several years. She even served chilled fruit soup in the summer!

If it's one thing I miss from my mom's restaurant, it's the endless soup supply. I've spent several years living in the shadow of the illustrious Soup Goddess, but now it's my time to shine! This filling soup recipe comes from The Nest, one of my favorite lifestyle websites!

GARLICKY TORTELLINI AND SPINACH TOMATO SOUP, courtesy of TheNest.com

Serves 2-3
YOU WILL NEED:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

6 to 8 cloves garlic, chopped

4 cups homemade or low-salt chicken broth

6 oz. fresh or frozen cheese tortellini

14 oz canned diced tomatoes with their liquid

10 ounces fresh spinach, washed and stemmed; coarsely chopped if large 

8 to 10 leaves basil, coarsely chopped

Grated Parmesan

mise-en-place

You will also need at least a 5 qt saucepan. I made no ingredient substitutions, though I did buy whole wheat tortellini as opposed to regular. I really wanted to get spinach tortellini, but my supermarket only sold it in big packets, and I didn't want to buy that much. I actually had to buy a packet of basil this time. My first basil plant was stripped clean; and the second one didn't last as long. I got maybe one use out of it before it wilted and nothing I did could save it. Well...it was good while it lasted.

Let's make soup!

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat

2. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes

3. Add the broth and bring to a boil

4. Add the tortellini and cook halfway, about 5 minutes for frozen pasta; less if using fresh.

5. Add the tomatoes and their liquid, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook just until the pasta is tender

6. Stir in the spinach and basil and cook until wilted, about 1-2 minutes

7. Serve sprinkled with grated cheese

 A nice and simple soup for a cold winter night in about 15 minutes! It was a meal in itself. I couldn't believe how easy it was to make, for someone who hasn't really made soup before. I mean, I have made soup before, but only once and it was far more complicated. I'll most likely revisit the recipe for posting purposes.

In the tags, I've labeled this as vegetarian, despite the fact that chicken broth is used. There's no harm in subbing vegetable broth. Also, there's now a soup tag! I have more soup recipes planned for the future, so I might as well add it.

Tomorrow is Wednesday, so that means "Face Off" night! I'll be making crock-pot Sloppy Joes.  Thursday night, I'm not cooking, since Colleen has invited us over for taco night! Saturday is a special night - a friend of ours is visiting from Brooklyn, so I have a nice Chicken Creole recipe planned. At some point, I'm embarking on a great Italian recipe: costolette alla pizzaiola, or, pork chops with tomato sauce. YUM!!!

Until next time: eat, drink and be merry!