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!

Huevos Rancheros

"To hand-crafted beers made in local breweries

To yoga, to yogurt, to rice and beans and cheese

To leather, to dildos, to curry Vindaloo

To Huevos Rancheros and Maya Angelou!"

            --Rent

photo: Rent-SoCo.com

In Jonathan Larson's rock opera Rent, the last number of Act One is "La Vie Boheme", a love letter to all things bohemian. Handcrafted beers from local breweries, I can understand - but what exactly is bohemian about leather and dildos? I don't think real bohemians would even wear leather. Actually, now that I think of it, I can't figure out what's bohemian about half of what's mentioned in that song (Pee Wee Herman? Really?).

Anyway, whenever I hear anything that's mentioned in that song, I have the overwhelming urge to sing it. I never do, of course, but it does take out the seriousness of certain situations (for me).

Professor: "Today, we are going to watch a film by Kurasawa!"
My brain: "ANTONIONI, BERTOLUCCI, KURASAWA! CARMINA BURANA!"

Bartender: "What type of vodka would you like?"
Me: "What do you have?"
Bartender: "Well, we have Grey Goose, Stoli, Absolut..."
My brain: "TO FRUITS, TO NO ABSOLUTES! TO ABSOLUT! TO CHOICE! TO THE VILLAGE VOICE!"

Friend: "Boy, do I enjoy the musical stylings of Bob Dylan."
My brain: "GINSBURG, DYLAN, CUNNINGHAM AND CAGE! LENNY BRUCE! LANGSTON HUGHES! TO THE STAGE!"

Does it get annoying? Yes. That song never leaves my frickin' head. And now it's probably in yours.

Let's make some Huevos Rancheros!

HUEVOS RANCHEROS, courtesy of "Cook This, Not That"
YOU WILL NEED:
1 (16oz) can of whole peeled tomatoes, with juice
½ small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 tbsp chopped chipotle pepper
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Juice of 1 lime
Salt and black pepper to taste
1 (16oz) can black beans
Pinch of ground cumin
8 eggs
8 corn tortillas 

mise-en-place

I couldn't find chipotle peppers for the life of me (I probably wasn't even looking in the right place), so I'm simply omitting them, and adding a half a teaspoon of chipotle pepper powder to the tomatoes instead.

1. Combine the tomatoes, onion, garlic, chipotle cilantro, and half of the lime juice in a food processor and pulse until well blended but still slightly chunky. Season with salt and pepper.

2. Mix the black beans, cumin and remaining lime juice in a bowl; season with salt and pepper. Use the back of a fork to lightly mash the beans, adding a splash of warm water if neccesary (I found that a spoon was way more effective for mashing).

3. Coat a large nonstick skillet or saute pan with nonstick cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Break the eggs into the skillet; cook until the whites have set but the yolks are still loose and runny.

4. On a seperate burner, heat a medium skillet over medium heat and add the tortillas, 2 at a time; cook for 1 minute on each side, until lightly toasted.

5. To assemble the dish, spread the tortillas with the beans, top with the eggs, and top the eggs with the salsa. Garnish with more cilantro if desired. Serve immediately.

¡Olé!

A beautiful plate, if I do say so myself. I was incredibly pleased with the end result. The chipotle powder did its job, which was provide some smoky heat to the eggs. Once the yolk was broken and it oozed onto the salsa, it was just incredible. The tortillas were absorbant enough to not make the dish into a runny mess.

The addition of the chipotle powder gave the salsa a little kick, but if you don't like spicy, or you're making it kid-friendly, it's fine to omit the spice (or the pepper, if you can find them).

Breakfast for dinner doesn't get any better than this! This is also a great meal to serve for brunch, or a late breakfast with close friends. It's easily multiplied to feed more than 4 people and takes very little time. Can I also add that the salsa tastes amazing on some Wheat Thins? All in all, this was one of my favorite meals that I've ever made.

Keep your eyes peeled for another dessert recipe: Margarita Cupcakes!

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!

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! 

Spaghetti with Basil Cream Sauce

I'm baaa-aaack! 

Well, this is a surprise - left for St. Lucia on Wednesday and arrived home last night to find 5" of snow in my backyard. Talk about a complete 180. We went from bathing suits on the beach to scarves and jackets in a matter of 12 hours. 

It was an amazing vacation; I sampled a ton of local cuisine and discovered the deliciousness of Creole sauce (which I am actively searching for a recipe for) and I ate way more Creole bread than I probably should have. I had a johnny cake for the first time. Being an island, there was an abundance of fresh fish to be had: parrotfish, mahi mahi, kingfish, tuna and cod, plus fresh mussels and prawns.

Fiance and I were down there for several days to celebrate and witness his big sister's marriage. She was wed on the beaches of St. Lucia, facing the Piton mountains just as the sun was setting - a true storybook wedding! Congrats to my future sister-in-law and her new husband!  

Okay, so before I left I posted another pasta-related entry. I've come to find that I turn to pasta when I'm feeling really tired or lazy. Well, we didn't return home until 3am on Tuesday, so that night's dinner had to be incredibly simple. To my favorite book!:

SPAGHETTI WITH BASIL CREAM SAUCE, courtesy of 365 Ways to Cook Pasta

YOU WILL NEED:

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

2 tablespoons julienned basil leaves 

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Pinch of salt

12 oz spaghetti (or any long noodle, i.e. vermacelli or capellini)

Just so you know - to "julienne" something simply means to cut it into long, thin strips (ever hear of julienne fries?). Also, I happened to have spaghetti in my pantry.

mise-en-place

Ah, my trusty basil plant. Unfortunately, it's coming to the end of its productive life, and I'll have to pick up another one soon. But it's lasted me nearly an entire month!

This sauce was as easy as 1-2-3.

1. In a saucepan, gently boil the cream until it is reduced by half (about 10 minutes).

2. Stir in the basil, lemon juice and salt.

3. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain and toss with the cream sauce and serve at once.

All done! Told you it was easy. This was an excellent sauce. It was very light and creamy, and the basil flavor was not overpowering (surprising, since I added in an extra half-tablespoon of basil).

To add a little extra protein I cut up some BLSL (boneless/skinless) chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces, coated them in salt and pepper, and sauteed them in olive oil for about 5-6 minutes. Then I tossed it with the pasta and sauce.

Of course, if you're going vegetarian with this recipe, simply omit the chicken and maybe add a few fresh veggies!

Tonight's dinner is more pasta, just because I didn't get to go food shopping yet. I know, it's not good to have even more pasta, but I promise I'll be back to my regularly scheduled deliciousness as soon as I can get my tired butt over to the supermarket. I'm planning on making some kind of Creole recipe to honor the beautiful country I just visited.

Until next time, eat, drink and be merry!!

Stuffed Tomatoes & Asparagus Risotto

I am so excited to post Wednesdays recipes that I barely have enough words to describe how excited I am.

My fiance's parents love to go to garage sales and when we were in the process of moving in to our new apartment, they always thought of us and what sort of little knickknacks  - cute and silly things that we never thought of, like a spoon rest or salt-and-pepper shakers. One time they brought us a gigantic bag of hangers. Another time, they brought us this cookbook:

Fiance's mom sheepishly admitted she tried one of the recipes before handing it over - but who can blame her? (The recipe she tried, by the way, was saffron risotto and it kicked butt)

I have a deep reverence for the Italians and their food. I think I might have been Italian in another life. But then again, the Jews and the Italians are practically the same culture: massive amounts of  unbelievably delicious food, overbearing mothers, emphatic gesturing, grandparents who feed first and ask questions later.  I also realized once I befriended someone who is Greek that the Greeks also fall under this category (the category being AWESOMENESS).

Anyway. Italian cuisine is probably my favorite (or have you forgotten my obsession with pasta?). So of course a cookbook titled "Basic Italian" (by Cornelia Schinharl, Sebastian Dickhaut & Kelsey Lane) would be right up my alley. I've tried two recipes from this book so far (which I promise to revisit sometime in the future for review on this blog) and I'm about to embark on two more. 

I was totally intrigued by this recipe for Pomodori ripieni (stuffed tomatoes), but I had no idea what to serve them with. Would they be too filling if I served them on the side with an actual entree? Or are they hearty enough to stand on their own? Thankfully, this is one of those cookbooks that gives you suggestions. At the bottom of each recipe, it offers ideas as to what will go with what. It turns out that these stuffed tomatoes are "delicious with grilled fish or meat; or, as a main dish with bread or risotto".

Risotto! A staple side in Italian cuisine. The book calls it "the best dish rice could ever aspire to" and I'm inclined to agree.

Did anyone ever watch the reality show "Hell's Kitchen"? This is one of those shows that fall into the category of "it seemed like a good idea at the time". For those who missed it, it was a cooking competition show hosted by Gordon Ramsey and was the American version of his similar UK show "Boiling Points". 

My parents, chefs both, used to love this show, and would often scoff when the so-called "professional" contestants failed to produce a simple risotto. "Risotto is like culinary one-oh-one!" they would laugh. "How can they be a professional and not be able to make a risotto?!"

I may be a n00b when it comes to cooking, but I'm 99% sure even I can whip up a risotto better than the contestants on "Hell's Kitchen". Hopefully, you'll be able to too!

Because it takes less attention, I'm going to start with the tomatoes. Here we go!

POMODORI RIPIENI (Stuffed Tomatoes), courtesy of "Basic Italian"

Feeds 4

YOU WILL NEED:

4 large or 8 medium tomatoes

1 (3.5oz) can oil-packed sardines

2 tablespoons black black olives (kalamata or Nicoise)

1/2 cup fresh parsley sprigs

1 onion

2 cloves garlic 

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup bread crumbs

1/4 cup grated Parmesan

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon lemon zest

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

mise-en-place!

As for equipment, you will be needing a large baking dish (9x13 is suitable), a medium skillet and, if you're trying to save time, a food processor. A quick note about the tomatoes - because I went food shopping on Saturday, so far in advance for this recipe, I purposefully picked tomatoes that were slightly under ripe. By the time I was ready to use them on Wednesday night, they were perfect.

1. Rinse tomatoes and cut top off each one - scoop out the contents (reserve). Discard the seeds and chop the rest of the contents finely. Drain the outer shell of tomatoes upside down on paper towels (to be stuffed later).

 

2. Drain sardines and chop. Dice pitted olives finely. Rinse parsley, pull off leaves and chop finely. Peel onion and garlic; chop both finely (here's where the food processor is useful).

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil. Add and saute the onion and garlic. Stir in chopped tomato and parsley and cook uncovered over medium heat for about 5 minutes.

4. Stir in olives and sardines. Remove pan from heat and let cool slightly, then add bread crumbs, Parmesan, lemon juice and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper. 

5. Stuff the whole tomato shells by filling generously with the tomato-Parmesan--bread crumb mixture (overflowing is desirable). Arrange tomatoes side-by-side in a greased baking dish and sprinkle with remaining oil.

6. Bake tomatoes on the middle rack for about 30 minutes until the tops are nicely browned. 

Delicious! And, might I add, they smelled fantastic!

Now onto the risotto...

RISOTTO AGLI ASPARAGLI (Asparagus Risotto), courtesy of "Basic Italian"

Feeds 4-6

YOU WILL NEED:

1 lb green asparagus

1 small onion

2 cloves garlic

3 tablespoons butter

2 cups risotto rice (arborio or vialone)

3 1/4 cups stock (veal is preferable, but beef will also work or even vegetable, if making vegetarian)

1 cup dry white wine

1/2 to 1 lemon

A few sprigs basil

3 1/2 oz fontina cheese (Parmesan or fontinella will also work)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

All you will need for this recipe is at least a 5-qt pot. Also, I want to add that you can find risotto in the pasta aisle of your grocery store. I almost had a little panic attack when I couldn't find it. Another thing: the recipe calls for fontina cheese, but in a pinch, fontinella cheese will do the trick. In my case, it was almost $1 cheaper to buy fontinella instead.

1. Rinse asparagus and trim off tough ends. Cut off the tips as well (about 1"), because you won't add them to the pot until later. Cut the rest into 1/2" pieces. Peel the onion and garlic; chop both finely.

2. Melt half the butter but don't brown. Briefly saute onion, garlic and asparagus in it while stirring constantly. Add rice and stir until the grains are shiny. Heat stock to a gentle boil.

3. Add wine and let evaporate over high heat while stirring. Then add 1 ladle stock and switch risotto pot to medium heat. Keep stirring diligently while gradually adding the hot stock. After 10 minutes, add the asparagus tips and after another 10 minutes, do a taste test. The grains should be easy to chew but not entirely soft.

4. Rinse lemon, pat dry and grate off a thin layer of zest - without the white part, which would impart a bitter taste to the risotto. Lemon zest should be in fine strips: if not, chop. Remove basil leaves and cut into narrow strips. Dice fontina cheese.

5. Add cheese, lemon zest, basil and remaining butter to the pot and stir only until the cheese has melted in the hot rice mixture. Season with salt and pepper and enjoy the delicious finale!

And the final plate!!! 

Whew!! What an arduous recipe this was. Definitely do not attempt if you have weak arm muscles. You literally are stirring the risotto dish for about twenty solid minutes.

I cooked this for friends who came over for our weekly viewing of "Face Off" and all I had to do was blink and the plates were clean! I was given a round of thumbs up and Fiance asked me to cook this again.

 

You might have noticed that on the right hand side of the blog I have added tags! YAY! What are tags? Well, say you want a chicken recipe. You can click on the "chicken" tag and it will show you all my entries that have chicken in them! 

I'm labeling this recipe as both Fish and Vegetarian. The tomatoes have sardines in them, so that's the fish. However, to make both recipes vegetarian, simply omit the sardines from the tomato recipe and use vegetable stock in the risotto instead of beef or veal. Simple, yes? Also, it's tagged as Side Dish because separately, they are two side dishes coming together to make one entree.

Keep your eyes peeled for a shrimp scampi recipe! Also, surprise - I have a great weeknight recipe for spicy chicken wings that is sure to set your mouth on fire with its deliciousness!

Until next time - eat, drink and be merry!