Zuppa Toscana II

Here's a similar, yet different and easier version of Zuppa Toscana (Tuscan Soup) that I’d previously posted. This one-pot soup is copied from an Olive Garden Tuscany soup recipe. Five minutes to prep, 40 minutes to cook. And that's it. Serves 6.

Oh, and it is delicious beyond belief! Comfort food.

Ingredients

• ITALIAN SAUSAGE, 16 ounces
• BACON, 8 slices cut into lardons
• ONION, ½ large, diced
• GARLIC, 2-3 cloves, minced
• CHICKEN BROTH, 3½ cups (28 ounces)
• WATER, 3 cups
• RUSSET POTATOES, 5 medium, thinly sliced
• CRUSHED RED PEPPER FLAKES, crushed, 1 teaspoon (optional)
• SALT and PEPPER
• KALE, 4 cups chopped
• HEAVY WHIPPING CREAM, 1 cup
• PARMESAN CHEESE, grated, to garnish

Directions

1. Brown sausage in a large pot.
2. Remove sausage with a slotted spoon and set aside.
3. Add bacon to pot and cook until crispy.
4. Stir in chopped onion. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes or until onion is translucent.
5. Stir in minced garlic and cook for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
6. Add chicken broth and water to the pot. Add crushed red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper if desired.
7. Add thinly sliced potatoes and the cooked sausage to the pot and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
8. Continue cooking until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.
9. Add the kale to the soup, and simmer for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
10. Stir in the heavy cream and let heat through.
11. Ladle soup into bowls and serve with Parmesan cheese.

Italian Wonderpot with Scallops

I wondered why they called this a "Wonderpot." Now I know. It's wonderful—wonderfully easy to make, wonderfully fast to cook, and wonderfully tasty!

The only actual work you have to do, besides opening a couple of cans, is slice up an onion.

You can slice up fresh garlic if you want, but I used crushed garlic from a jar.

The actual cooking is ridiculously easy. Although, next time I make this, I think I'll use fresh baby spinach.

Ingredients 

• VEGETABLE BROTH, 4 cups
• OLIVE OIL, 2 tablespoons
• FETTUCCINE, 12 ounces
• SPINACH, frozen/chopped (or fresh), 8 ounces
• DICED TOMATOES, 28-ounce can
• ONION, 1 medium, sliced
• GARLIC, 4 cloves, sliced
• BASIL, ½ tablespoon
• OREGANO, dried, ½ tablespoon
• RED PEPPER FLAKES, ¼ teaspoon
• BLACK PEPPER, freshly cracked, to taste
• SEA SCALLOPS, frozen, 1 cup, cut into ½-inch chunks
• PARMESAN CHEESE, 2 ounces, grated or shaved

 Directions 

1. Add four cups of vegetable broth to a large pot.
2. Break the fettuccine in half and add it to the pot along with the canned tomatoes (with juices), olive oil, spinach, onion, garlic, basil, oregano, red pepper, and some freshly cracked black pepper.
3. Make sure the ingredients are submerged under the liquid, place a lid on top of the pot, and then turn the heat on to high.
4. Allow the pot to come up to a full boil over high heat, then remove the lid and turn the heat down to medium.
5. Allow the pot to continue to boil over medium heat, without a lid, for 10-15 minutes, or until the pasta is cooked and most of the liquid has been absorbed.
6. Stir the pot every few minutes to prevent the pasta from sticking to the bottom, but avoid over-stirring, which can cause the pasta to become sticky.
7. Just before serving, stir in the scallops, let sit for a minute or so.
8. Sprinkle with Parmesan before taking to the table.

Creamy Tuscan Garlic Chicken

This is easy to make. And it’s as delicious as can be. I ddn’t have chicken breasts, but I did have several three-packs of skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs in the freezer from a former sojourn to Costco. So I substituted them and they were perfect for this dish!

I didn’t change anything else, and the dish was a big hit with the family. I served it on linguine, which pairs very well with creamy sauce.

Ingredients 

• CHICKEN BREASTS, 1½ pounds, boneless, skinless, thinly sliced
• OLIVE OIL, 2 Tablespoons
• HEAVY CREAM, 1 cup
• CHICKEN BROTH, ½ cup
• GARLIC POWDER, 1 teaspoon
• ITALIAN SEASONING, 1 teaspoon
• PARMESAN CHEESE, ½ cup
• FRESH SPINACH, 1 cup, chopped
• SUN-DRIED TOMATOES, ½ cup

Directions 

1. In a large skillet add olive oil and cook the chicken on medium high heat for 3-5 minutes on each side, or until brown on each side and no longer pink in center. Remove chicken and set aside on a plate.
2. Add the heavy cream, chicken broth, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, and parmesan cheese to the pan.
3. Whisk over medium high heat until it starts to thicken.
4. Add the spinach and sundried tomatoes and let it simmer until the spinach starts to wilt.
5. Add the chicken back to the pan and stir.
6. Serve over pasta if desired.

Italian Dressing Shrimp with Penne

Building on a very simple four-ingredient oven-cooked shrimp dish that I found on the Internet, I jazzed the recipe up a bit and created this wonderful pasta meal. The resultant sauce even toned down the lemon rind and boy, was it delicious.

Feel free to alter the ingredients.

It’s one of these “go for seconds” and “no left-overs” meals.

Ingredients

• GARLIC SALT, to flavor pasta-cooking water
• PENNE PASTA, 1 cup
• OLIVE OIL, 1 tablespoon
• BUTTER, 1 block
• ONION, 1, sliced
• GARLIC, 2, minced
• LEMON, 1, sliced into wheels
• SHRIMP, 1 pound, (16-20) peeled, veined, tail-on
• ITALIAN SALAD SEASONING, 1 package
• ZUCCHINI, 1 large, cut into chunks
• PARMESAN CHEESE, ¼ cup, shredded or grated

Directions

1. Boil the penne in a large pot flavored with garlic salt.
2. While the penne is cooking, melt the butter in a large pan over medium heat, and sauté the onions and garlic until soft. Reserve.
3. Lay the shrimp on the butter and lemon slices, sprinkle the salad dressing seasoning on top.
4. Lower the heat to medium-low and add the onions, garlic and cooked penne to the pan and cover.
5. Add the zucchini to the pasta water and cook until almost tender.
6. Transfer the zucchini to the pan with the rest of the ingredients.
7. Thin the sauce slightly with 1-2 ladles of pasta water.
8. Add the parmesan cheese and stir. Cover and let stand for two minutes.
9. Serve in a bowl with extra parmesan cheese on the side.

English Muffin Pizza

 

I’ve always wanted to do this, but for some reason it seemed too easy to do and I kept putting it off because in my head, I always thought “I can do this any time I want to,” which as you know, never happens.

Finally got my act together. And I was right … it’s so easy.

Ingredients

• ENGLISH MUFFINS, cut in half, as many as you want
• BUTTER
• MARINARA SAUCE, about a cup, heated
• SAUSAGE, 1 large (Italian, breakfast, summer, your choice), sliced thin
• MARINATED ARTICHOKES, chopped, as many as you want
• MOZZARELLA CHEESE, shredded

Directions

1. Toast the English muffins and butter the cut side.
2. Spoon on about 2-3 tablespoons of marinara sauce.
3. Layer some of the artichoke hearts on top.
4. Lay 2-3 sausage slices on top of the artichokes.
5. Cover generously with mozzarella cheese.
6. Toast in a broiler oven until the mozzarella is bubbly.

Zuppa Toscana

This recipe came from a Facebook friend, who got it from Budget Bytes (www.budgetbytes.com). It sounded like a winner to me – easy to make, subtle in flavor, and very inexpensive. Budget Bytes estimated that eight servings will cost $1.04 each.

In Hawaii that probably works out to $1.50 to $2.00 a serving, due to the higher cost of ingredients, but who’s counting?

As usual, I had to do a substitution: I couldn’t find any Kale in the market, so I used baby spinach; I added about a teaspoon of garlic salt. Everything else was the same.

Ingredients

• ITALIAN SAUSAGE, ½ pound
• OLIVE OIL, few drops (I used a teaspoon of butter)
• ONION, 1 medium, diced
• GARLIC, 2 cloves, minced
• GREAT NORTHERN BEANS, 1 15-ounce can, drained and rinsed
• SMOKED PAPRIKA, ½ teaspoon
• CHICKEN BROTH, 3 cups
• WATER, 1 cup
• HALF-AND-HALF, 2 cups (1 pint)
• RED POTATOES, 3 medium
• KALE (I used baby spinach), 1 bunch, about a half-pound
• RED PEPPER FLAKES (Optional, I left it out), pinch
• BLACK PEPPER, freshly cracked, to taste
• GARLIC SALT (My option), 1 teaspoon

Directions

1. Remove the sausage from its casing and sauté over medium heat in a large pot, breaking it into small pieces while cooking. Use a few drops of olive oil if needed to prevent sticking.
2. Add in the onions and garlic and sauté until the onions are softened.
3. Add in the beans, paprika, chicken broth, water and half-and-half. Cover and bring to simmer over medium heat.
4. Peel (optional) and cut each potato in lengthwise quarters, then slice across to make thin slices.
5. Add the potatoes, kale and garlic salt to the pot, stirring to help the kale wilt.
6. Simmer over medium heat for about 15 minutes until the potatoes are tender.
7. Season with the red pepper flakes and cracked black pepper.
8. Serve with buttered rolls or bread.

Chicken Vesuvio

This is a simple, easy recipe for a very tasty dish of Italian-style chicken that doesn’t look as though it drowned in red sauce.

The recipe calls for artichoke hearts. You can either use frozen hearts, which is fine, but I use marinated artichoke hearts from Costco. Its tanginess adds tremendously to the chicken.

Ingredients

• CHICKEN, skin on, 8-10 pieces
• OLIVE OIL, 2 tablespoons
• BUTTER, 3 tablespoons
• RED POTATOES, 5 small, unpeeled, halved
• MUSHROOMS, 8 ounces, halved
• ARTICHOKES, 8 ounces
• WHITE WINE, 3/4 cup
• CHICKEN STOCK/BROTH, 3/4 cup
• GARLIC, 3 cloves crushed and minced
• OREGANO, 1-1/2 teaspoon
• THYME, 1 teaspoon
• GARLIC SALT, to taste
• BLACK PEPPER, freshly ground, to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 450°.
2. Brown the skin-on chicken in the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter, set aside.
3. Brown the potatoes, then add the mushrooms and garlic. Toss gently.
4. Deglaze with the wine, then add the herbs and chicken stock. Stir for a few minutes until they are incorporated into a sauce.
5. Add the chicken back into the pan, nestling the pieces into the sauce.
6. Cover and bake for 20 minutes.
7. Remove from the oven. Remove the chicken and potatoes and arrange on a serving dish.
8. Add the artichokes to the sauce, simmer over high heat.
9. Reduce the heat to low and stir in 2 tablespoons of butter to finish. Pour sauce on the chicken and potatoes.
10. (Optional) Garnish with chopped parsley.

Chicken Cacciatore 2

Here’s another version of chicken cacciatore, which is kind of based on Giada De Laurentis’ recipe, but altered somewhat because I didn’t have all the ingredients required in her and/or my original recipe.

I also didn’t have the fresh herbs Giada used, so I substituted dried. Plus, I added in some sliced calamata olives to give a deeper flavor dimension, and used white wine instead of red.

Ingredients

• CHICKEN PIECES, 6 to 10, skin-on, with bone
• FLOUR, ¼ cup
• GARLIC-FLAVORED OLIVE OIL, ¼ cup
• BUTTER, 2 tablespoons
• MUSHROOMS, 8 ounces, sliced
• ONION, 1 large, frenched
• GARLIC, 2 cloves, minced
• CALAMATA OLIVES, 12, pitted, sliced into 4 pieces each
• TOMATOES, diced, 1 14.5-oz. can, with juices
• THYME, dried, 1 teaspoons
• BAY LEAF, 1 or 2
• WHITE WINE, ½ cup (I used Chablis)
• GARLIC SALT and FRESHLY GROUND BLACK PEPPER 

Directions

1. Melt the butter in the olive oil in a large flat pan over medium heat.
2. Slowly sauté the mushrooms. Set aside.
3. Add in the garlic and cook gently until the onions are translucent. Set aside.
4. Dust the chicken in flour, shake off excess flour.
5. Brown the chicken pieces in the olive oil, remove and set aside.
6. Slowly sauté the onions, adding in the garlic after a few minutes, season with salt and pepper, cook until tender but not browned.
7. Add in the mushrooms, the onions and garlic, and the remaining ingredients into the pan.
8. Return the chicken to the pan.
9. Check the seasoning, cover and simmer for 40 minutes.
10. Remove the cover, and cook for another 5 minutes uncovered, until the sauce is thick.
11. Skim the excess fat, remove the bay leaves, and serve with pasta or rice.

Rigatoni with Garlic Shrimp

This is a pretty light and delicious main course. I saw a version of this recipe, called aglio gamberetti con pomodoro in Italian, on David Rocco's Dolce Vita show on the Cooking Channel, and added in the mushrooms and olives because I had some leftover in the refrigerator.

I used rigatoni, but you can use whatever pasta you have in your larder.

Ingredients

·         OLIVE OIL, ¼ cup

·         GARLIC, 2 cloves

·         SHRIMP, 16 headless, size 16/20

·         CHERRY TOMATOES, ½ cup, halved

·         ZUCCHINI, 1 medium, ¼-inch dice

·         MUSHROOMS, 4-6, sliced thin

·         OLIVES, ½ cup sliced

·         LEMON, ½, juice, plus zest if desired

·         GARLIC SALT, to taste

·         BLACK PEPPER, freshly ground, to taste

·         PASTA, about one cup, rigatoni or your choice

Directions

1.       Cook the pasta and set aside.

2.       Clean the shrimp by removing the legs, cutting down the back with scissors and removing the vein. Leave the shells and tails on for extra flavor.

3.       Slice or crush the garlic and heat it in the olive oil.

4.       Sauté the shrimp in the hot oil until just orange/pink inside. Set aside.

5.       Sauté the tomatoes, squishing them slightly.

6.       Add the zucchini, mushrooms and olives.

7.       When the veggies are cooked and slightly tender, return the shrimp to the pan.

8.       Add the lemon juice.

9.       Add in the pasta and mix well.

Insalata Caprese

One of my favorite salads is Insalata Caprese, more commonly referred to by its English name – Caprese Salad (or, “salad in the style of Capri”).

I forget when I first discovered this salad, but once I did, there was no stopping me once I saw it on an Italian restaurant menu. Plus, it’s so easy to make. Nothing to it, just get the right ingredients and arrange them on a plate.

If the basil leaves are limp when you buy them, refresh them by placing in iced water and they will perk up.

Ingredients

·         ROMA TOMATOES, as many as you like, estimating one per diner

·         MOZZARELLA CHEESE, one ball, soft and moist

·         FRESH BASIL LEAVES

·         OLIVE OIL, extra virgin top quality

·         BALSAMIC VINEGAR (optional), aged, from Modena if possible

·         SALT and PEPPER to taste

Directions

1.       Slice the tomatoes into rounds, approximately 3/8 of an inch thick.

2.       Slice the mozzarella cheese into rounds, about the same as the tomatoes.

3.       Chiffonade some of the basil leaves.

4.       Arrange the tomatoes, cheese and basil in alternating layers.

5.       Sprinkle with olive oil (and balsamic vinegar), then salt and pepper to taste.

6.       Arrange a few basil stem tips and leaves on the plate as decoration.

Spaghetti and Spare Ribs

I once saw Iron Chef Michael Symon prepare a dish similar to this on his Symon’s Suppers show on The Cooking Channel, so I thought I’d see what I could do with it.

The dish turned out pretty good. It’s not hard to make because I used jarred marinara sauce. You can use any sauce you want, perhaps even make your own, but I used Mezzetta Napa Valley Bistro Pasta Sauce that we picked up at the local Safeway Supermarket.

Ingredients

·         PORK SPARE RIBLETS, 10-12, separated and trimmed

·         CANOLA OIL, approximately 1½ cups

·         FLOUR, about ½ cup

·         SWEET ONION, 1 large, chopped

·         BACON, 4 slices cut into lardons

·         MARINARA SAUCE, 1 jar, about 3 cups

·         CHERRY TOMATOES, 15 smashed

·         CALAMATA OLIVES (Optional), 10 chopped

·         GARLIC SALT, to taste

·         BLACK PEPPER, freshly ground, to taste

·         DRIED SPAGHETTI, up to 1 pound

Directions

1.       Heat the oil in a large pan until a little flour tossed into it sizzles.

2.       Flour the riblets and brown on all sides, remove and set aside.

3.       In a large pot, brown the bacon in about a teaspoon of the oil.

4.       Add the onions and cook on medium heat until translucent.

5.       Add the marinara sauce and tomatoes (and optional olives), combine thoroughly.

6.       Season with garlic salt and ground pepper.

7.       Place the browned riblets into the sauce, stir, coating the riblets, cover and simmer for 1 hour.

8.       About 15 minutes before eating, cook the spaghetti pasta per package directions.

To serve, remove the riblets from the sauce pot, skim off the excess pork fat, add in the pasta and stir until evenly coated. Place a serving of sauced pasta on a plate, along with 2-3 riblets.

Spinach and Italian Sausage Lasagna

Nobody doesn’t like lasagna. Take a tip from Garfield the Cat and have it often. It’s not that hard to make, although getting your mise en place ready is a bit time-consuming. Once that’s done, however, it’s just layer and bake.

If you make your own marinara sauce, great. Me, I’m lazy, and I use store-bought jars of marinara. You can add other stuff in your lasagna – olives, green onions, zucchini, crispy bacon, leftover sausages – it’s all up to you and your “druthers,” whatever you like.

Lasagna is personal.

Ingredients

·         LASAGNE NOODLES, 1 box

·         ITALIAN SAUSAGE, 1 pound, removed from casings

·         SPINACH, 1 bag fresh (or, 1 box frozen)

·         MUSHROOMS, ½ pound sliced

·         RICOTTA CHEESE, 16 ounces

·         EGGS, 2 large

·         PARMESANO REGGIANO CHEESE, 1 cup grated

·         MOZZARELLA CHEESE, 16 ounces grated

·         MARINARA SAUCE, 1 large jar or 16 ounces homemade

·         OLIVE OIL, 1 tablespoon

·         GARLIC SALT 

Directions

1.       Grate the parmesan and mozzarella cheeses, and set aside.

2.       Cook the spinach with lots of salted water until just wilted. Take out with a slotted spoon and let cool.

3.       Use the spinach water to cook the lasagna noodles until just al dente. Lay the noodles flat on a tray to cool.

4.       Sauté the Italian sausage in a tablespoon of olive oil until crumbly, set aside.

5.       Sauté the mushrooms in the pan drippings and oil, and set aside.

6.       Mix the eggs into the ricotta cheese until well blended, set aside.

7.       Spoon and spread a little marinara sauce on the bottom of a lasagna pan and line the bottom with a layer of lasagna noodles.

8.       Spread marinara sauce on the noodles, then layer with sausage, then ricotta, then spinach, then parmesan, then mushrooms, then mozzarella.

9.       Continue layering two more times, concluding with a layer of lasagna noodles, marinara, whatever else you may have bits of, and lots of mozzarella.

10.   Cover with aluminum foil and bake for one hour in a 350˚ oven. After one hour, remove the foil and continue baking for an additional 15 minutes or until the mozzarella cheese has turned slightly golden.

11.   Remove from oven and let stand for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Chicken Parmesan

This is one of those “nearly instant” type meals that you can whip up if you have some chicken.

All you need more are bread crumbs, cheese and a jar of marinara (or spaghetti) sauce that you can pick up at your local supermarket and keep in your cupboard.

Ingredients

·         CHICKEN, four large thighs (or two breasts halved), deboned, skin-on

·         BREAD CRUMBS, Italian flavored

·         OLIVE OIL, ¼ cup

·         PARMESANO REGGIANO CHEESE, ½ cup, grated

·         MARINARA SAUCE, from a jar

·         MOZZARELLA CHEESE, ½ cup, grated

Directions

1.       With a mallet, flatten the chicken until ¼-inch thin.

2.       Bread the chicken and brown in the olive oil over medium heat.

3.       Arrange the chicken on a wire rack in a cookie pan.

4.       Top with parmesan cheese, then spoon on marinara sauce to your liking.

5.       Top with mozzarella cheese.

6.       Bake in a 350˚ oven for 30 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and turning golden brown.

7.       Serve immediately.

Grilled Lamb Chops with Balsamic Marinade

I found this recipe on the ‘Net, and adapted it to my own taste. For example, the recipe called for white cider vinegar, but I prefer using balsamic vinegar. It also calls for ordinary table sale, but I prefer using garlic salt for that little extra garlic kick.

Ingredients

·         BALSAMIC VINEGAR, ¼ cup

·         MINCED GARLIC, 1 tablespoon

·         ONION, 1 medium, thinly sliced

·         GARLIC SALT, 2 teaspoons

·         BLACK PEPPER, ½ teaspoon, freshly ground

·         OLIVE OIL, 2 tablespoons

·         LAMB CHOPS, 2 pounds or so

Directions

1.       Combine all of the ingredients (except the lamb chops) in a jar and shake well to make the marinade.

2.       Marinate the lamb chops in the marinade for at least two hours in a gallon-sized Zip-Loc bag in the refrigerator.

3.       Take the chops out of the refrigerator and bring to room temperature about 15-20 minutes before you plan to cook. Discard the excess marinade.

4.       Cook the chops in a grill pan, or on a grill. For three minutes per side for medium, a little shorter for medium-rare