Portobella, lemon and truffle risotto with chilli shrimp

If Kit asks me once he asks me a thousand times to cook something with truffle oil in it.... so last night I thought it would be perfect in a creamy risotto with portabello mushrooms, lemons and chilli shrimp.

Chop 3 cloves of garlic, 1 brown onion and about 12 small baby portabello mushrooms. Saute in pan with 1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil... add a little salt pepper, red pepper flakes and fresh grated lemon zest.

Once the onions, mushrooms and spices have sauteed, add 1 cup of aborio rice and stir until covered with oil..... add 1/2 a cup dry white wine and stir until absorbed.
Then cup by cup.... add hot chicken/vegetable stock and stir until absorbed.
Saute in extra virgin olive oil until pink
Before serving, stir in baby arugula, a tablespoon of black truffle oil and Parmigiano-Reggiano. Serve with shrimp.....
So delicious!!!!

Lasagne with Arugula Salad and Lemon Basil balsamic

Lasagna is something my mum Dizey taught me how to make when I was young..... She still makes a mean one. :)
Here is my version.... Kit approves!



Chop a medium brown onion, 4 cloves of garlic, about a cup of celery and a cup of carrot. Saute in a pot with a tablespoon of Extra Virgin olive oil. Add salt, pepper, a pinch of red pepper flakes, cumin, paprika, oregano and chilli powder. saute until translucent... ( notice the puppy laying in the sun on the floor while I cooked )


Chop and add about 12 baby portobello mushrooms to the vegetables.
Saute a pound of lean ground beef.... in a separate pan. Drain excess fat and add beef to pot.


Crisp some chopped bacon or panchetta and chop some fresh basil. Add to pot....

Stir through.... add 1/2 cup dry white wine. Small can of tomato paste and 1 can of crushed organic tomatoes.

Simmer for 20 mins. Add 1/2 a cup of milk and simmer for another 10 mins while you make the bechamel.

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of flour. Whisk into a rue....

While whisking add milk and stir as the sauce thickens. Add salt, pepper and parmesan to taste....
( If the sauce thickens too much, whisk in some more milk to thin out... )
Pre heat oven to 375 F.

In a baking pan layer bolognese, straight lasagna noodles and then bechamel sauce. I did 3 layers with the final being bechamel. I seasoned with salt, pepper, parmesan and paprika.
Bake uncovered for 1 hour.
I served the lasagna with a simple arugula salad with cucumber and cherry tomatoes. I made a balsamic vinaigrette with fresh basil and lemon zest.
Delicious!

Italian Meat Loaf with homemade tomato gravy

So tonight I decided I wanted to re attempt Meatloaf.... ( My last try was kind of pathetic when the oven apparently wasn't preheated nor actually on at all, so my meatloaf was...after an hour just a slightly warm log of ground beef :( )
I set out to create something a little different with the flavors and this is what I came up with!

Italian Style Meatloaf w/ creamy mash and homemade Tomato Gravy

1 lb ground beef
1/2 large yellow onion diced
1/2 red pepper diced
1/2 large carrot diced
3 stalks celery diced
3-4 rashes of bacon diced
2 large cloves garlic diced finely
teaspoon cumin
tsp chili powder
tsp dried oregano
tsp chopped fresh rosemary
tsp chopped fresh thyme
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
2 eggs
1-2 cups Italian style bread crumbs
tbsp ketchup
tbsp mustard
Salt and Pepper
* 4 tbsp sundried tomato pesto ( from jar )

Homemade Tomato Gravy
1/2 onion diced
1 small shallot diced finely
1/2 small can tomato paste
2 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup red wine
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
Salt and Pepper
2 tbsp butter

Mash:
Potatoes
Butter
Milk
Sat and Pepper


Method:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F. ( Make sure the oven is ON! )
In a pan sweat the garlic and onions. Add the carrot, celery and red pepper. Saute' until soft.
Add the herbs and spices and stir until fragrant. Add the chopped bacon and cook until browned.
Take this mix off heat and cool for a few mintutes.
In a large mixing bowl crumble the ground beef, add onion/vege mix, eggs, breadcrumbs and ketchup/mustard. Mix with hands until mixture is combined. Add more breadcrumbs if needed...
Place on a foiled baking tray and shape into a log or roll. Make sure mixture is even in size.
For the final touch, spread the sun-dried tomato pesto over the top of the meatloaf.
Bake uncovered for 60 mins.

While baking make the GRAVY:
In pan saute' the onion and shallot in a little butter. Add tomato paste and then whisk in chicken stock, wine and balsamic.
Simmer and stir as sauce thickens. Flavor with oregano, pepper flakes, salt and pepper.

Make your favorite mash recipe :)

Eat and enjoy!
Kit loved this one and wants it in the recipe book, so that's a good indication of its success!

Woodstock NY Weekend

Well what an incredible weekend we had! Kit and I left with our friends Bret and Yulia after work on Thursday evening and made the 2 hour drive to Woodstock NY.
Once we arrived at the house we had a teeny set back with locking both the house and car keys INSIDE the house! Yes, we managed to lock it all inside while we were outside in the freezing snow.
After a little bit of panic and getting the cell phone to work on 1 bar, we got in touch with Yulia's mom and found the very well hidden spare key. Thank goodness!
Day 1:
We made the drive to Hunter Mountain and I lost my virginity to skiiing!!! Wahoo.
After some tense training with Kit on the bunny hill , Bret, Yulia and Kit finally managed to force me up the lift to do my first run.
My first 10 yards or so were spent with me still trying to do the 'pizza' with my ski's and then falling down or being stopped from falling by Kit or Bret.
Then I started to go again this time really gaining speed quite quickly and I thought " screw it... it's now or never!" so I just kept going and made it all the way down the mountain! WITHOUT FALLING!
Wahoooooo
Kit then recorded my second run :) See below

Day 2: Involved some really fun sledding action on the big sledding hill in Woodstock. It's incredible how much fun this is! And free! I must admit I am kinda hooked now and really want to find a place to go when it snows in NYC.

Thanks to our hosts and for Bret and Yulia for inviting us.
Plenty of snow, sitting in front of the fire, wine, pool, games, skiing, sledding, laughing and some amazing dinners!
We shall return soon....

Kit's Bday Breakfast

So it's Kit's bday today and I decided I wanted to make us both a yummy breakfast!
I didn't have vanilla extract or white sugar so I improvised a little a found a new favorite recipe!

Lemon and Maple Pancakes with Berries

1 cup Self Rising Flour
1 egg
1 cup low fat milk
teaspoon of lemon zest
teaspoon of real canadian maple syrup
pinch of salt
2 teaspoons of raw sugar

Strawberries
blueberries
raw sugar
lemon juice

Bacon :) ( Yes, everything is better with it )

I like to chill my pancake batter in the fridge/freezer after I whisk it together.

Enjoy!!!!

Cooking: Chicken Tortilla Soup

So being new to my very own blogspot I am not quite sure how I am going to format things but I figured I should just get writing!
I am ALL about food. Buying it, cooking it, eating it.... smelling it, tasting it, watching it on tv..... if it's food related then I am ALL about it!
So needless to say, I like trying new things in the kitchen and I love to cook for my boyfriend and myself.
Today during my time flipping between Food Network and HGTV I decided I wanted to make Chicken Lime Tortilla Soup for dinner. After looking at a few recipes on Food Networks website, I sort of made up my own version and got cooking.
It was delicious and Kit definitely approved :)

Chicken Lime Tortilla Soup

1 Carton Chicken Broth
Chicken breast tenders
2 Limes
Cumin
Garlic
Paprika
Can of diced tomatoes
Yellow onion
Red onion
Hot sauce
Salt and Pepper
Sour cream
Cilantro
White corn tortilla chips

Method:
I poured the entire carton of chicken broth into a saucepan and brought it to a boil, then I put in the chicken tenders to poach at a medium heat.
I sauteed 3 cloves of garlic in some Extra Virgin olive oil in a fry pan, then added some diced yellow onions.
While they were cooking I added some paprika and cumin. Probably about a teaspoon of each.
I then added some diced red onion and the zest of one lime.
Once everything was sauteed and fragrant, I added the can of diced tomatoes and tossed it all together. I chopped a palmful cilantro and stirred that through.
The chicken was poached and juicy, so I took it out with a slotted spoon, shredded it and then returned it to the onion/tomato mixture.
I strained the chicken broth, returned it to the saucepan and then added the rest of the ingredients.
I squeezed in the juice of one lime and added some hot sauce for taste.
To finish off, I simmered the soup with a lid on for another 10-15 mins. Season with salt and pepper.

In bowls crush some tortilla chips, then ladle the soup over it.
Garnish with sour cream, thinly slice red onions, cilatro and lime wedges.

DELISH!

Having thought of it, some diced avocado on top would have been perfect.

Let me know if you try it :)