Sweet Love and Ginger

Vegetarian

D4One: French Fusion!

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I am writing this right now between bites. I wasn’t planning on posting this recipe but I simply have to. It is to dye for!

I originally came across this recipe on pinterest, from Stephanie Cooks, however I wanted something a little more traditional, and am so happy with how it turned out. This is my recipe for the dish.

French Onion Pasta

1 cup uncooked pasta
1 large onion, peeled, and sliced thin
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp flour
½ cup white wine
1 cup beef broth (can substitute vegetable broth)
2 tbsp milk
¼ cup grated gruyere cheese
Cook pasta according to package instructions until aldente. Melt butter in a small skillet, add onion and cook until onion turns translucent and browns, or caramelizes. Blend in flour evenly and deglaze with white wine. Once wine has reduced by half add broth, and allow to reduce again. Next add milk and allow to thicken while stirring constantly. Add pasta to pan, and toss to coat. Remove from heat, and top with grated cheese.
Now tell me this is not delicious!

Onion & Cheese Tart

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I am always looking for new side dishes to spice up a meal. This isn’t easy if you have a meat and potatoes kind of guy like myself to please. This particular recipe was a big hit with him, probably because it contains cheese and potatoes, I mean seriously what’s not to like?

He said it reminded him of French Onion Soup, but dry (obviously). I served it with a nice steak, but I bet it would go wonderfully with a roast, or a fresh salad for the vegetarians out there.
I opted to leave mine in the pan out of laziness (No need to wash another dish!), however you can flop the whole tart onto a plate and serve it upside down, this will show off the gorgeous caramelized onions underneath. Personally I think the melted cheese is just as pretty.
Onion & Cheese Tart (serves 2)
1 tbsp butter
½ tbsp. rosemary
1 large onion sliced
1-2 large potatoes sliced thin
1/2 tbsp EVOO
½ cup grated Gruyere Cheese
½ cup grated mozzarella
Salt& Pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 400. Melt the butter in a small oven proof frying pan. Add thyme and onion and cook until the onions begin to become translucent, roughly 5 minutes. Place the potatoes on top, drizzle with oil and cover with a mix of the cheeses. Place the pan in the oven until the top is golden brown, about 35 minutes. Flip onto a plate and sprinkle with salt and pepper to serve.
Note: I did not peal the potatoes first, I simply washed them well and sliced them thin. I don’t think pealing makes much of a difference, save yourself the trouble!

Butternut Squash Ravioli

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I’m throwing my regularly scheduled content out the window. I have to, simply because I must share this recipe with you. I made it last night and thought I was in heaven, which is saying something for someone who previously thought they did not like squash.
I originally found the recipe here; however I decided to put it all together here with what I did, and what I learned for your ease and entertainment. This was also my first foray into actually making my own homemade pasta (spaetzle doesn’t count right?) so it was a big step for me.
Butternut Squash Ravioli in a Sage Butter Sauce
1 medium butternut squash, de-skinned, & deseeded, chopped
1 tbsp EVOO
¼ cup parmesan cheese
¼ tsp nutmeg
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 cups flour (plus some for surface)
3 eggs
1-4 tbsp cold water
1 stick of butter
10-12 sage leaves or 1 tbsp of dried sage (this is to taste)
Chop the squash into roughly 2 inch pieces and scatter over a baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and toss, before putting them in the oven. They should cook at 400 for 30-35 minutes, or until soft. Remove from the oven and let stand to cool, before making the filling. Meanwhile prepare the dough. In a medium bowl add flour and eggs. Mix well using an electric mixer. The dough should begin to form a ball. If the dough is too dry it will remain crumbly, so add a few tablespoons of water until the ball forms. Use a pasta machine, roller, or rolling pin to roll out the dough into 3 inch wide, foot long sheets. Once the squash is sufficiently cooled mash it with a fork. Stir in the parmesan cheese, nutmeg, and salt and pepper. Place 4 dollops about the size of a half dollar in the middle of a pasta sheet evenly spaced, using your finger dip it into water and trace the outside of the dollop. Place another sheet on top and press it down around the dollop, using water to cement the dough together. Slice the dough to create separate ravioli. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and drop in the ravioli, they should only take a few minutes to cook, rising to the top as they finish. Strain the ravioli and set aside. In a skillet melt a stick of butter, and stir in sage, cook for 2-3 minutes, until the butter begins to brown. Drizzle over warm ravioli and serve, with sage leaves as a garnish.
It’s a lot easier than the recipe initially sounds isn’t it? The most difficult part for me was getting the dough flat enough and the correct shape, as I do not have a pasta roller I had to use my rolling pin, and a lightly floured counter top. I also was lacking a fancy cutter to make the edges pretty, so I simply used a butter knife. I think it is beneficial to get your water boiling as you’re making the pasta so you can toss it right in the water when it’s finished. I couldn’t find fresh sage, or even whole dried leaves, so I ended up using ground sage, and used about a tablespoon of it, however I LOVE herbs so some people may not appreciate that strong a flavor, I would suggest beginning with half a tablespoon and adding more according to taste.
The ravioli and sauce are so hearty they could have been a meal on their own, however I wasn’t sure how this endeavor would turn out is I also slow roasted a chicken rubbed with salt, pepper, garlic, and curry. This proved to be a fantastic combination. The creamy ravioli, and sage, with the spice from the curry mixed together to create one of the best meals I think I have ever made. The random stop at the wine store to pick up some dry white wine couldn’t have been better placed either.
I spent the whole rest of the night lying in bed reveling in the deliciousness, and thinking about what else I want to try next. I can get into this whole homemade pasta thing.

D41: Single Sweet Potato Soup

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These fall days often make me crave something warm and comforting, especially when I am home alone. On this particular day I decided to comfort myself with one of my favorite fall dishes for lunch. This recipe is a simplified version of my favorite Sweet Potato Soup recipe that is so easy for the single person to whip up!
Simple Single Sweet Potato Soup
1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cubed
1 ½ cups vegetable broth (or chicken broth)
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ cup milk or cream
Pinch salt
In a sauce pan boil potatoes and broth until tender. The liquid will begin to evaporate, so be sure to stir. Add spices and place in the blender. Blend until smooth and return to saucepan, on low heat stir in milk, adjust seasoning and serve.

 

Now I don’t always use a blender for this recipe. I often simply use a potato masher as shown above. Mostly because I am too lazy to do all those dishes for just me and I enjoy a little texture in the soup. This however is up to you.

 

Vegetarian=/= Salad!

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I was talking to my roommate from college the other day and she expressed great frustrations with food. She is a vegetarian; she does not eat meat or fish, though she does enjoy eggs, milk, and cheese. The thing that she was exasperated about however was salads.
This is a complaint I have heard from her before, people seem to think that because she’s a vegetarian the only thing she can eat is a salad.
When we lived together I didn’t find this a hamper on my culinary choices at all, in fact I don’t think I even made any real changes. Almost all my meals have vegies and/or a starch with them so she ate those, and skipped the meat portion. Does that sound difficult to you? Because it doesn’t to me.
Just off the top of my head there is: pasta and red sauce, alfredo sauce, pesto sauce, and about a million other sauces; macaroni salad, pasta salad, macaroni and cheese!
What about potatoes? There are red, white, purple, sweet; mashed, baked, scalloped, fried, or grilled.
Then there is quinoa, polenta, rice, beans, and soups, all kinds of soups!
And for every soup there is a type of bread, or muffin, scone, or other baked good.
There are just about as many sandwiches as well; I mean egg & cheese, cucumber, tomato and mozzarella, grilled cheese, artichoke and red pepper, peanut butter and jelly, just to name a few.
Just vegetables on their own can be a meal; obviously there is salad, but also grilled asparagus, squash, eggplant parmesan, stir-fries, and steams.
Are you getting my point?
Well in case you haven’t gotten it yet here is a hearty, delicious VEGETARIAN Pasta dish for you. That also happens to be clean.

I can’t tell you how thrilled I was with this dish. I had never made it before, but was very excited to use some fresh rosemary! It was so good. I ended up stirring in a bit of parmesan cheese early to thicken the sauce some, and I did not drain the beans for the same reason. It was delectable, creamy, with a soft flavor that made me go back for thirds and fourths. I think this will have to become a new staple.