Orecchiette

    w/ Sausage & Broccoli Rabe a la Joy of Cooking

Verdict: Success

Neighbor-worthy

Months back, my friend Layth gave me a most thoughtful gift.  After speaking at length about the love of cooking and recipes and such, he gave me a copy of "Joy of Cooking", which is like the Bible of cooking.  I say this without the slightest hint at hyperbole, it is one the top 5 most thoughtful gifts I've received to date. 

To call this book a "cook book" would be an insult. And not just because it is probably the first book I've ever read the introductory pages to (including notes from Julia Child, co-author Ethan Becker and Acknowledgments).  The book opens with some history of the authors, the book and how the recipes have been updated (for today's standards) and re-tested and goes much further to speak about things like nutrition (and it's slanted importance over time), safety, table setting and parties, just to name a few.  In short, it has everything...including my fleeting attention.  I have trouble putting this sucker down sometimes.

I struggled picking the first recipe out of here that I wanted to try for the blog and would end up reading and flagging, reading and flagging.  Over and over I would do this on multiple dates where I ended up not deciding and doing one of my stand-by recipes.  What am I an idiot? 

So here it was, Sunday and I didn't want to just make my sauce, so I cracked open the book and picked a pasta.  One of my favorites: Orecchiette with Sausage and Broccoli Rabe

Ingredients:
olive oil
1 lb orecchiette
1 lb Italian sausage hot/spicy turkey sausage removed from casings
3 4 or 5 large cloves garlic diced
1/4 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 large bunch broccoli rabe trimmed and chopped
salt
pepper
romano for sprinkling

Boil water and cook pasta as directed.  While your pasta cooks, heat olive oil in a large skillet and add sausage.  Brown your sausage and carefully salt and pepper to taste* and add your garlic and red pepper.  Mix in your broccoli rabe and cover.  Allow to cook for 10 minutes or so.

Add your cooked pasted to your pan and mix it up some.  Plate and top with some romano cheese.

Notes:

I have to admit, mine came out a little salty this first time.  I had never used the brand of turkey sausage I bought today and it was saltier to begin with then I had expected).  It wasn't the end of the world. 
I LOVE this dish and eat it all the time and am unsure why I have never made it as it is SO easy.

Tweaks:
I added more garlic and more crushed red pepper.  I like it hot!

Healthy Tweak:
I used turkey sausage instead of "regular" sausage or, as it is wonderfully used at one of our fav places, Bottino, boar sausage.  It's a little less fattening and a little lower in cholesterol.

Any suggestions?  e-mail me: theManicCheater@gmail.com

Fried Ravioli

Verdict: Success

Neighbor-worthy

I'm not feeling 100% today and I decided that I wanted to make some food that A) is easy to make and B) can be handled without passing any germs onto my bf.  Neither of us can be sick right now due to work (it's one of those crucial times for both of us) so I have to take precautions to contain anything even dancing on the precipice of illness.

So what better way to guarantee bacteria and germs are warded off?  Deep frying.  It kills everything. 

I chose to make a favorite dish that I have never made before: "Fried Ravs", as we used to say in our restaurants.  So easy that I should make these all the time.

Ingredients:

oil (canola, vegetable, etc...NOT olive oil)

1 cup buttermilk *see my cheat

2 cups Italian-style breadcrumbs  **I don't have anby so I "made" some.
24 store-bought cheese ravioli

1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan

1 jar store bought marinara heated (no need for forgiveness, ma, I have some leftover home-made)

Either fill you deep fryer with new or reserved oil (I've mentioned before that I keep oils as long as they are re-usable: oil for fish for example should be used for fried chicken) or enough in a deep skillet to be 2" deep.  Heat it until it is 325°

While he oil heats, put the buttermilk mixture in one bowl and the breadcrumbs in another.  Dip each ravioli in the buttermilk and toss in the breadcrumbs to cover.  Make sure to allow your buttermilk to drip off, otherwise it will make your breadcrumbs clump and will make it harder to coat the ravioli as you go along.  Place your ravioli on a baking sheet.

When the oil is heated, fry the ravioli in batches (turning occasionally if using a pan) until they are golden.  Allow the oil to drip off when you remove your basket (for a deep fryer) or use a slotted spoon if using a pan and lie the ravioli on a paper towel to soak up excess oil.  Sprinkle with some grated cheese and serve with warm marinara and crunchy bread or my Prosciutto Bruschetta.

Notes: 

So easy and so good.

So unhealthy, even if I had used my home-made whole wheat breadcrumbs, but did I mention how good they are?

Does anyone else find it weird that I live in NYC and don;t have a cooling rack or room for a lot of pots but I have a deep fryer??

**I only had plain breadcrumbs from my clams francaise recipe, so I made them into Italian by adding 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp dried parsley, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp sugar and 2 pinches of oregano.

Cheats:

*1 cup whole milk + 1 tablespoon lemon yields buttermilk substitute after it has had a chance to curdle (about 15mins).

I am not feeling well and I still haven't bought a new grater, so I did not freshly grate the parmesan.


Have recipes for me?  Send to : theManicCheater@gmail.com

Baked Clams Francaise

 

Verdict: Success

Neighbor-worthy

The bf and I are so fond of this dish at one of our fave restaurants by our apartment (Moran's) but really have no idea how or why it is so good.  His mother makes the most incredible clams oreganata at Christmas every year that can't be topped--EXCEPT by these.  Thank goodness she doesn't do the internet otherwise she'd kill over that statement. 

This recipe was a complete guess as it isn't even listed as francaise dish at the restaurant but it has this wonderful lemon sauce incorporated in it that remains on the plate and begs for bread dipping.   So I am trying to incorporate this recipe for baked clams oreganata and tweaking it some--by using a stand-by francais sauce that I make--to try to come close to what we had just a few nights ago.  (It's that good that I'm already ready for it again).

Ingredients:
1 dozen little neck clams scrubbed
1 cup PLAIN breadcrumbs  (I used Italian breadcrumbs once and it ended coming out so salty we had to order out.)
2 cloves garlic cloves smashed and chopped
3 tablespoons fresh Italian parsley chopped
2 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves
red pepper flakes
Kosher salt
2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 to 3/4 cups chicken stock
+ 1/2 to 3/4 cups francais sauce (recipe below)

Francais Sauce:
1 tablespoon flour seasoned with salt and pepper (plus more if necessary)
zest of one lemon
juice of two lemons (and 2 thinly sliced rings of lemon)
1/2 palmful fresh parsley leaves chopped
2 cups chicken stock
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4-5 cloves garlic chopped
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 cup white wine
4 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat your oven to 450° or turn your grill in High if you want to start there and go into your kitchen for the final step.

Do your francaise sauce first...Season some flour with the salt and pepper and set aside.  Put 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over High heat.  Add 2 tablespoons of the butter and whisk until the butter has melted.  Lower the heat to Medium.  Add the garlic, pepper flakes and the rest of your olive oil.  Add the flour and whisk for about a minute.  Add the wine and the stock and cook for another minute.  Add your zest and lemon juice and a pinch of salt and pepper.  Remove from the heat and throw in the rest of the butter and whisk 'till it has melted. If the mixture hasn't thickened at this point, throw in a teaspoon of flour and whisk.  When you get the desire thickness add your parsley and your lemon rings and set aside.

Clams...Place the clams on your grill if you live in the suburbs or on a cookie sheet if in a city.  (City dwellers: put the sheet in the oven.)  Cook 'em till they start popping open.  Remove from heat and crank your broiler on and pry them open with something less than sharp--you can cut yourself doing this or shucking oysters and it's a downer.  Also look for chips on the ends, the little pieces can cut like glass. Tear off the top half of the clam shell and throw out.  Remove the clam from the shell and replace it in the reserved half shell. 

In a bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, garlic, parsley, oregano, pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt.  Add the olive oil and mix well.  Add the measured francaise sauce until pretty wet. Pack each clam full of your breadcrumb mixture and pack down tightly.  Put the clams on the a cookie sheet, add a 1/2 cup of water to the pan and place it on the top rack in your oven.  Cook the clams until the crumbs start to pass golden and darken a little but KEEP YOUR EYE ON IT, you don't want them to burn.

Add the remaining francais sauce to a large plate and arrange your clams on top of the sauce.  Eat and dip some bread in the sauce when done....If you did this right, the plate should be completely dry after the meal.

Notes:
I like trying to duplicate recipes which is why I ran with this. The francaise approach can be skipped if you want to go simple.  Just skip that step and replace with the original chicken stock.

Tweaks:
The addition of the francaise sauce instead of the stock and practically altering the nature of the recipe is a pretty big tweak.
I dropped the chicken stock in the clam prep in favor of the francaise sauce.
I love me some Kosher salt but I keep forgetting to buy it so I used "regular".

Cheats:
I did not buy fresh oregano.  I already had to buy too much parsley for the recipe...I wasn't going to waste more money on another bushel for a pinch ingredient.

Injury:
I cut the my finger with a clam shard.  Just a little nick bled for about an hr.


Send me recipes and leave me comments please.  theManicCheater@gmail.com.   

Write-in Recipe
Chicken Broccoli Crepes

Verdict: Success

Neighbor-worthy

My friend Jen gave me this recipe way back when I first started the blog.  I was intimidated by it and put it off.  Why? For some reason, I cannot do simple things in the kitchen.  I screwed up Steak-ems once and I still can't make rice correctly!  (I know.)

Now, I'm not saying this recipe is easy necessarily.  I put it off because I was scared of a step in it that should be easy....getting the crepe up from the pan and flipping it without ruining it.  I'm not joking.  I have no idea why, but I can't get flat things up (yes, yes...obvious penis joke).  Every time I make an omelette I end up making scrambled eggs 'cause I can't fold it over properly.  Even my pancakes come out weird lately.  I'm getting better in the kitchen in some aspects and regressing in others.

This did end up coming out quite good.  I did tweak some spots that resulted in a meal more suited for me and my bf but I think it is safe to say that it would turn out perfectly fine without my tweaks. 

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter fake butter

1 + 1/4 cup Bisquick (plus more for thickening)

1/2 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons BACON SALT (Yay!)

1/4 1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 + 3/4 cups milk

2 eggs

2 cups seasoned cooked chicken chopped

1 jar (2oz) diced pimento drained

2 tablespoons snipped chives scallion (I have no idea what "snipped" is, so I finely sliced 'em)

1 lb broccoli cooked and drained (or thawed and nuked)

+ 1 jalapeño chopped (remove the seeds if a heat-phobe)

Crepes

Beat 1 cup bisquick, eggs and 3/4 cups milk in a small bowl until smooth.  Spray a small skillet with vegetable spray (like PAM) and heat on Medium-high heat.  Pour the mixture into the skillet until the pan bottom is covered with a thin covering (barely covering it-you're not making pancakes).  Cook until golden.  Loosen edges with spatula and flip to other side and cook.  Stack your crepes with damp paper towels in between each one as they are finished.

Mix & Meal

Heat the fake butter in a small sauce pan over Medium-high heat until melted.  Add the bisquick, salt and pepper.  Stir until bubbly and add the remaining milk long with salt.  Stir until boiling and allow to bubble for a minute or so.  Add chicken, pepper and  most of your scallion (save some) and lower heat to Medium-low and add a small palmful of bisquick to thicken up your sauce.

Lay out 4 crepes and line the centers with a line of broccoli.  Roll up your crepe and plate 2 per plate, seam down.  Cover the crepe with your sauce and top with some scallion pieces for color.

Notes:
I am glad I did some of the tweaks on this one as I like my creams a little thicker than most and ALWAYS like more spice toi things.
This recipe was a messy one but it was worth it.

Tweaks:

(Just like Jen) I didn't use the pimento part of the original recipe.

I added jalapeño which was a great idea!

I think chives and scallions are the same thing, but the word "chives" makes me think of sour cream and bacon covered baked potatoes (which I love but sounds Fridays or Applebees-y to me).

Healthy Tweaks:

I used fake butter

Cheats:

I used frozen broccoli-thawed, drained and nuked.

We're in fall now...send me some comfort foods: theManicCheater@gmail.com



Cran-Apple Goat Cheese Stuffed Pork Chops w/ Sauteed Apples

 

 

Verdict: Success

Neighbor-worthy

While looking for something new, I stumbled upon this recipe for "Apple-Cranberry Stuffed Pork Chops with Sauteed Apples".  I love stuffing foods and I wanted to tweak this to my liking as I wanted to try something new (both cooking and eating) and, 'cause I am not overly sold on sweet entrees, I thought I would curb some the sweetness involved in the original by using goat cheese. 

(Selection of a good side can also be a good way to counter a sweet or savory intensive entree recipe. As this recipe is quite sweet, I chose a salty, bitter brussel sprout side.)

Ingredients:

2 tart apples

1 cup fresh spinach finely chopped

1/3 cup dried cranberries craisons (I had 'em in my cabinet already) chopped

4 tablespoons apple juice divided

4 boneless pork loin chops (1" thick)

salt

pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons butter fake butter

+ 2 garlic cloves diced

+ 4 oz goat cheese at room temperature

Peel and chop 1 apple.  Leaving the peel on, thinly slice the second one (like a thick potato chip).  In a bowl, mix apple, spinach, craisons and a 1 tablespoon of the apple juice.  Separate in half and mix half with the goat cheese in another bowl.

Season your pork chops with salt and pepper and butterfly it (slice side-to-side to make a pocket).  Open the chop (like a book) and line the seam with the goat cheese mixture and close it.  Continue to stuff the chop with the non-cheese mixture. 

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil on your range at Medium-high heat.  Add your chops and cook until well browned (7 or 8 minutes each side).  Remove chops from pan. Add your (fake) butter to the skillet and add your sliced apples along with the rest of your apple juice.  Cook until the apples are soft and top your chops with it.

Notes:

I think this (original recipe) was a grown-up spin on Pork Chops and Applesauce.  I took it a step or two away from that.

This recipe (the use of apple and spinach) offers a good source of antioxidants that help fighting cancer.

Tweak:

I added the goat cheese to the dish along with garlic to take some of the edge off the sweetness of the recipe I lifted.

I used craisons for the recipe as opposed to cranberries as I had them in my cabinet already and didn't want to waste money unnecessarily.

Healthy Tweak:

I swapped butter for my stand-by 'fake butter".

Got something I can stuff???    Let me know: theManicCheater@gmail.com

Taco Crescent Squares 

Verdict: Success

Neighbor-worthy

Sometimes I fall for ads in corners of pages when I'm on the web...like one that linked me to this recipe from Paula Deen.  There was not anything particularly special or flashy about it except for the word "Taco" which makes my stomach growl.  My bf always says that I could eat Mexican every day...he's right.  This one actually eats like a Mexi-pastry creation or even like a stuffed Mexican pizza.  It has a nice balance of sweet and savory.

The recipe I lifted is simple enough and left room for me to do my stuff....

Ingredients:

1 onion finely chopped

2 lbs ground chuck ground turkey meat

1 package taco seasoning

1 cup enchilada sauce

2 cups 1 cup shredded Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese blend (use low-fat)

4 cans refrigerated crescent rolls

1 large egg beaten 2 egg whites beaten

sour cream reduced-fat sour cream for garnish

+ salt and pepper

+ olive oil

+ yellow, orange or red bell pepper chopped

+ 1 jalapeño chopped (and seeded if you're a heat wuss)

+ 5 cloves garlic chopped

+ 1 1/4 cup beef stock

+ 14 oz can fire roasted crushed tomatoes

+ 1 handful cilantro chopped

Pre-heat your oven to 375°

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in skillet over Medium+ heat.  Add your turkey meat and break up with a wooden spoon while browning.  After the browning process has gotten a good start, season your meat with the taco mix, salt and pepper.  When completely browned, add your onions, peppers and garlic.  Cook until your veggies are soft.  Throw in the stick and mix  with your spoon.  Cook for a few minutes and add your tomatoes.  Allow to simmer until the liquid has had a chance to reduce and fold in your cilantro.   Continue to let it to reduce for a bit while you prepare the rest of your recipe.  Add your cheese and mix.

Lightly grease a  17"x 12" rimmed baking sheet.  If you want to curb the heat some, use butter.  If you don't, use a vegetable spray like PAM.).  Unroll 2 of your crescent cans.  Press dough into the baking sheet, pressing edges together.  Bake about 8 minutes.

Spoon the meat mixture on top of the baked crust and unroll the other two crescent cans and place over the meat mixture.  Brush the top dough with the egg.  Bake between 25-30 minutes.  KEEP AN EYE ON IT and pull it out when golden brown.  Let cool a few; cut into squares; top it with some  enchilada sauce,  sour cream or maybe some hot sauce and plate it.

Notes:

This is a very easy recipe that virtually anyone can do.  The original recipe was just like making tacos with mix and adding an onion.....boring.

Tweaks:

I pretty much substituted the whole inside of this dish.  I added a bunch of ingredients (listed above) to make a more fresh and natural tasting taco filler with a little more heat to it.

Healthy Tweaks:

I swapped ground chuck with turkey meat.

I used reduced fat sour cream as well as low-fat cheeses for this recipe.

I used egg whites instead of a "regular" egg.

Have recipes for me?  e-mail me: TheManicCheater@gmail.com   And for goodness sake, please get into the comments section.

Bloody Mary Burgers

Verdict: Success

Neighbor-worthy

I had my first Bloody Mary not all that long ago (like 4 years or so ago).  It was with my cousins Dana and Ignacio and their 2 kids (Nico and Naia) at a Santa Breakfast at my parents' country club.  I love spending time with all of my cousins' kids, but this time was extra special and not 'cause they were at that age where they were so cute you wish there was a shot that would keep 'em that age forever, but because their event brought me to my now favorite brunch drink.

I love trying to incorporate multiple favorites into one recipe (see my Margarita Cheesecake) and when I heard about this recipe, I had to try it.  And tweak it some.

The recipe below is for 4 servings.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 small onion diced

2 ribs of celery diced   (I LOATHE recipes that ask for this--where you need to buy a "bunch for a pinch")

1 tablespoon celery salt   (What the hell is celery salt?)

1 tablespoon hot sauce

black pepper

1 cup tomato sauce   (This is a burger recipe, go ahead and use jarred)

2 lbs ground beef sirloin ground turkey meat

2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup fresh flat leaf parsley chopped dried parsley*

2 tablespoons horseradish

2 palmfuls grill seasoning

4 kaiser or roll of choice

+ low-fat swiss cheese

Preheat Broiler to High.  Preheat a large skillet on Medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

Put a small sauce pan on your range on Medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons olive oil.  When it ripples, add the onion and celery and season with salt and pepper.  Add hot sauce and cook until the onion is translucent (while stirring).  Add the tomato sauce and bring to a slight boil.  Lower your heat to Medium-low (or a little lower-like a low plus) simmer while doing the burgers.

Combine your meat, worcestershire, parsley, horseradish and seasoning mix in a bowl.  Make it so the ingredients are all evenly distributed.  Portion your mixture out into 4 equal parts.  Pound out (not "pound", just make) the portions into patties that are about an inch thick.  Push the center of the burger in a little so that it is more shallow than the diameter. 

Add the patties to the skillet and cook each side about 6-8 minutes and flip and repeat.  Add your cheese to melt toward the end.  Toast your rolls in your broiler---WATCH THEM, a broiler can burn bread fast.  Pour your sauce on top of your buger and serve with some sides.

Notes:

This is not for everyone but still damn good even if you don't like Bloody Mary's.  Add some hot sauce or Tabasco upon your burger to up the heat factor.

Tweaks:

I used "regular" salt instead of celery salt (I have no idea what celery salt it.  I'm not saying it doesn't exist, just that I'm not going to buy it.)
I added cheese to the burger.

Healthy tweaks:

I changed the sirloin to turkey meat (slightly less fattening and lower in cholesterol).

Cheats:
*I already had to buy a whole bunch of celery and use almost none of the mass of it.  I didn't want to do it again with the parsely, so I used dried.

Gimme some burger or grilled chicken sandwich recipes!  Send 'em to themaniccheater@gmail.com

Spicy Chicken Empanadas

Verdict: Success

Neighbor-worthy

This recipe is one of my own after having totally ripped off a bunch of similar recipes over the years so there is no trackable tweaking here.  There are however cheats.  It is/was a Tuesday night and I am/was too tired to make my own dough which I usually do for these.  The same goes for the salsa in the recipe.  Corners are cut on this post.  I'll tell you how I do those another time.

The recipes I have done before have called for frying the empanadas, which obviously makes them taste awesome, but it really isn't necessary.  I bake them.

I LOVE these empanadas and if you haven't caught on yet, I love spicy food.  If you do not, then leave out the jalapeños and only use a little hot sauce.  If you really do not, then skip the hot sauce all together.


Serve these with nachos, sour cream and my guacamole.  Or yours, whatever...

Ingredients:

1/2 rotisserie chicken meat stripped from bones (about 3 cups worth)

2 jalapeño peppers diced

1 red bell pepper chopped

1 cup low-fat shredded cheddar

1 yellow onion chopped

just short of 1 tablespoon cumin

2  tablespoons canola oil

4 oz fat free cream cheese

1 cup home made salsa  (recipe DOES NOT follow today)

home made dough (recipe DOES NOT follow today)

salt
pepper

flour for sprinkling

water

hot sauce (Franks Red Hot or Cholula recommended)

+ store bought (freshest, non-processed as possible) salsa

+ 2 ready-made pie crusts
+ olive oil

Pre-heat your oven to 400°

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over Medium-high heat.  When the oil smokes, lower the heat to Medium and add the onion and bell pepper and season with salt and pepper.  When veggies get soft, add the chicken followed by the salsa.  Mix well with a wooden spoons and cook for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Throw the chicken mix into a large bowl and add the jalapeño, cheese, hot sauce, cumin and cream cheese and mix well.

Lie your pie crusts on a work surface and lightly flour.  Using a cookie cutter (or in my case, as a non-cookie cutter owner, something round you can cut around--a glass or a lid of some sort) cut out circles from the dough (5" diameters or so).  Use the leftover scraps to roll and cut out additional circles.  Try to get 10.

Spoon a tablespoon and a half of the mixture you made onto one side of the circle, but not to the edge.  Dip your fingers in water and lightly wet the outside of the circle all the way around.  Fold the empty side over the mound of chicken to line up with the other side.  Using a fork, press down on the sides to seal the edges of your creation.  Lie on a cookie sheet sprayed with a vegetable spray (like PAM) and repeat the process.  Reserve any leftover mix and put on top of nachos or something.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Brush with some olive oil as these are dryer than the greasy one that come from oil.

Notes:  I will definitely do these again when I fry them but I am trying to stay away from fried foods as much as I can.  It's easier to do with recipes like this where it tastes so good without it.

Tweaks:

I baked these instead of frying them as is the (mostly) traditional method.


Cheats:

I used store bought salsa instead of making my own.

I used ready-made pie crusts instead of making my own dough.

Confession:

I am pretty sure my motivation for not making my own salsa and dough was mostly 'cause I didn't want to write it all out for a looong post.

Send me some challenges!  themaniccheater@gmail.com.

Spicy Glazed Eggplant

                                                            *Shown with salad and broccoli with chesse and bacon

Verdict: Success (*if you're a vegetarian, otherwise a semi)

Neighbor-worthy*

I have never really been an eggplant person until recently so I am ripping this whole thing off.  My bf's mother doesn't respond to the word "no" in her dining room so it all started there.  Then I realized my mother, who had to learn the word "no" at our table on account of me being a bitch growing up, makes the world's best eggplant parm. 

So here I am about to embark on a new venture: an eggplant dish. Never bought one, sliced one or even had one in my apartment.  This one could totally suck which will piss me off 'cause it's a million degrees out and the last place I want to be is at a stove...but my guy wants to eat on my building's terrace and I want to be nice.  I'm playing with this recipe.

Heat a grill or grill pan or George Formany apparatus (I use the Griddler) to High.

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1" piece fresh ginger roughly chopped

2 cloves garlic finely chopped

1  teaspoon red pepper flakes

1/2 cup hoisin sauce

1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce

1 medium eggplant ends trimmed and cut into 1/2" thick slices lengthwise

6 tablespoons olive oil

salt and pepper

2 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves

Heat oil in a small sauce pan over Medium heat.  Add the garlic and pepper flakes and cook until soft.  Remove from heat and whisk in the hoisin, vinegar and soy sauce until combined.

Brush eggplant on both sides with the oil and season with salt and pepper.  Place eggplant on the grill until golden and a wee bit charred.  Brush on some of the glaze and turn over to continue grilling until cooked through (brushing some more glaze on it).  remove from grill and brush with more glaze.  Plate it and sprinkle with some cilantro.

*Notes:  Hmmm...  Good/Bad: This recipe tasted great, but it really isn't/wasn't a meal to me.  My bf needs meat for a meal (healthy meals, of course) and I hate to admit it but I do to.  As you can see above, I had to add cheese and bacon to the side of broccoli to attempt to make it feel meal-worthy.  This was more of an appetizer in my book and most likely in the books of fellow carnivores.

Tweaks:
I removed the ginger--I hate ginger.  I find it too overpowering and can't ever get the taste out of my mouth.  If you love ginger, by all means use it. 

Cheats:

I copied this whole damn recipe as I've never worked with eggplant before.

If you have a more fulfilling veggie entree, by all means, send to me!   themaniccheater@gmail.com

Three 4-Alarm Italian Chili Mac

Verdict: Success

Neighbor-Worthy

This recipe is one of the staples in my home and comes from a recipe that is a little more tame than the one I make.  I love it hot and I crank it up some in my take on it.  Comfort food is comfort food and we all need it but we can still cut some corners on existing dishes to make them at least a wee bit healthier.

Ingredients:

1 lb penne pasta

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 pounds ground sirloin 1 lb ground turkey meat

2 tablespoons (or handfuls) chili powder

1 onion chopped

1 cubanelle pepper seeded and chopped 3 jalapeño peppers chopped (less 1or seeded if you can't take     the heat)

1 red, yellow or orange bell pepper seeded and chopped (I used yellow this time)

3 to 4 5 cloves garlic chopped

1 cup beef stock low-sodium beef stock

1 (28 oz) can fire roasted crushed tomatoes (I drain out some of the liquid)

handful fresh basil leaves torn

2 cups smoked cheddar or scamorza cheese 2 palmfuls reduced-fat cheddar cheese

salt and black pepper

+ 1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning

+ 1/2 teaspoon red cayenne pepper

Cook penne in salted water according to [timing] directions until al dente. While you wait for water to boil, prep your ingredients.  When the pasta is cooking, heat a skillet on Medium-high with the olive oil.  When the oil smokes, add the turkey and brown.  When it is cooked, add the chili powder, poultry seasoning, cayenne, salt and pepper and continue to cook for a few minutes.  Add the garlic, peppers and onion and continue to cook until the onion is translucent.  Add the stock and scrape up the gooey goodness at the bottom of the pan.  Add the tomatoes and allow to simmer for about 15 minutes.  (During this time, you hopefully have noticed your timer and drained your pasta.)

Pre-heat your oven broiler to High.  Fold in your basil and simmer for a few more minutes.  Put your drained pasta back into the pot you cooked it in and add the Italian chili.  Mix well and pour into a 9" x13" glass baking dish.  Cover with your cheddar and throw in the oven on the top rack.  Lightly char the top of the cheese by cooking it for like 4 minutes---BUT KEEP YOUR EYE ON IT.

Notes:

I love this recipe and others seem to too.  The best thing is that you can tweak it a million ways.  Like for me, I add more heat to it with hotter peppers. A parent may sneak in some more veggies by chopping them up small and mixing them in.  This recipe is also great for leftovers and bringing to work.  Try it.

Healthy Tweaks:

I substituted turkey meat for the sirloin.  It is good to reduce the amount of red meat you eat on a weekly or month basis. 

I used low fat cheese and used less of it than prescribed.

I used low-sodium beef stock.

Tweaks:

I substituted cubanelle peppers with jalapeño peppers and added cayenne.

I added poultry seasoning to give the turkey meat an edge.

I added more garlic.

I reduced the amount of meat.

I removed some liquid from the can of tomatoes.

Leave me comments online--I love the attention.

Do you have any recipes you want me to try?  Shoot me a note: themaniccheater@gmail.com

Pesto Arugula Pizza

Verdict: Success
Neighbor-worthy

This recipe is one of mine and uses 2 other recipes (pizza dough and pesto) I have already made and had in the freezer which is cool.  If you are going to do your dough fresh, make it a day early!

*You will need a pizza stone for this recipe.  And if you are as cool as me, a pizza peel.


Ingredients:

Pizza Dough:

1 1/2 cups warm water
1 (1/4 oz) active dry yeast
5 cups all-purpose flour (and extra for dusting)

1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt 
olive oil  

-or-

take a trip to your Pontillo's or local pizza shop and buy some dough.

Pesto:

1/4 cup pine nuts

10 cloves garlic

5 cups fresh basil leaves (packed down)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 1/2 cups olive oil

1 cup pecorino romano

-or-

buy a bottle

Pizza Topping:
2 handfuls part-skim shredded mozzarella cheese
1 palmful romano cheese
2 chicken breasts cooked and chopped and seasoned with salt and pepper
3 tablespoons pine nuts
2 cups fresh arugula
flour for dusting
cornmeal for dusting

Preheat oven to 500º (and put your stone in the oven if you are using a pizza peel).

If making fresh pesto and dough, follow the links.  If you have made these recipes before and have a stock frozen, allow for time to thaw.  I threw mine in the fridge last night.

Flour up your work space and a rolling pin. Flatten your dough with flat hands and spread out.  It doesn't spread right away.  Roll out the dough with a rolling pin when it has softened some (and for those who have worked with pizza, give it a toss or two).  Roll again until it's flattened some and around a foot in diameter and 1/2" thick.  Cut it on it's sides if you are particular about its roundness.  Me 'n my family spin to make sure the cornmeal is allowing for the pizza to move around a little.  Using your fingers trail the diameter with pinches to give your edges a bit of a lift.  This part makes the crust or "bones" (a term coined by my cousin Grady. One that we still use today in our family).

Spread about a cup of pesto onto your dough and using a ladle, spoon, spatula or fingers almost up to your pinched crust.  Cover your pesto with pine nuts, then mozzarella, then a layer of arugula.  Cover your arugula with the chicken and cover with a palmful of romano.  For the skilled peel owner, slide your pizza off your peel onto your stone.  Place your stone onto the middle rack of your oven and start to cook.

I'm a creature of habit and as I have always known how we do it at our pizza shops, I always turn my pies as they cook so they won't stick and get an even cook.  It is not necessary but it will come out better.  About 7 minutes into cooking, peel users and those not afraid of burns (or those used to burns that don't care anymore (read: me) slip your peel under the pie and spin it by the crust 180 degrees and close the oven and let it keep cooking.

After 7 or 8 minutes use your peel to remove your pie onto a workspace where you can slice up the pie.  OR just remove the stone as you can slice it right on there.  That's what I'm doing....I'm not going to risk hurting my slicer on my granite.  Formica owners: Don't hurt your counters!

Notes: 

We (extended family) are pros but even we get different results at home than we would at the pizza shops with the ovens we are used to.  You're going to have to learn by trial and error.  Mine still come out a little doughy in the middle sometimes.  When you cut into it the first time, check to see if you want to throw it back into the oven a little more.

Possible Cheats:

Buy your own dough and pesto--no one will judge you.

Injuries:
I burned the shit out of my hand, er, wrist...hang in there with me...you know the spot Spiderman shoots his web from?  There.  I know I got all cocky in this post about burns...well I didn't take into consideration that the stone rack thing that mine came with served more an obstacle than asset.

Do you want to be on the mailing list or have recipes you want to share with me?  Contact me at themaniccheater@gmail.com.

Spinach Lasagna Roll-Ups

(with MASSIVE Healthy Tweaking) 

I've made this recipe from Giada De Laurentiis before successfully and also slayed "regular" lasagnas.  BUT I have always slaughtered the "regular" lasagnas when I have tried to put a healthy spin on them.  I wanted to give her recipe a dose of the tweaks as A) I really wanted to make a healthier lasagna and B) I'm on track with a page hit goal I set and you people come in droves when I screw up!

(By the way, did anyone notice how odd it is that when I said "slayed" it was an obvious positive and when I said "slaughtered" it was clearly a negative....food for thought.)

Ingredients:

Bechamel Sauce:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter "fake" butter (me=Smart Balance Light) plus smearing for dish

4 teaspoons flour

1 1/4 cups whole milk skim milk

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

pinch ground nutmeg

+ 2 pinches cinnamon*

Lasagna:

1 (15 oz) whole milk ricotta cheese fat-free ricotta cheese

1 (10 oz) package frozen, chopped spinach thawed and squeezed dry

1 cup (plus a little for sprinkling) romano cheese

3 oz thinly sliced prosciutto chopped

1 large egg beaten

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil

12 uncooked lasagna noodles multi-grain lasagna noodles

2 cups marinara (recipe here or bottled if short on time or just tired or lazy)

1 cup shredded mozzarella part-skim mozzarella 

Pre-heat oven to 450°

Bechamel-Melt the (non)butter in a medium sauce pan over Medium-low heat..  Add the flour and whisk for a couple of minutes. Add  the milk and increase the heat to Medium-high and continue to whisk until it becomes thick. Add in the nutmeg, salt, pepper and cinnamon*.  Set aside.

*My family has always added cinnamon to our ricotta in recipes.  I think it is regional to where our family came from in Italy as I know not all Italians do this.  Try it out or avoid it if you want.

The Rest-Boil a pot of water and add salt. Top the water with the olive oil.  Add your lasagna noodles and cook al dente as directed (time wise, based on brand).  As the noodles cook, mix the ricotta, spinach, romano, prosciutto, egg,salt and pepper in a medium bowl.

Lie your cooked noodles out on a workspace side-by-side and allow to cool a little for handling.  While cooling, spread your bechamel sauce evenly on the bottom of a (non)buttered 9x13 glass baking dish. Spoon the cheese/prosciutto mixture evenly down the length of each lasagna noodle.  Roll up each noodle like a sleeping bag and place seam-down in your baking dish on your bechamel.  The exposed roll-side should face the short side of the baking dish and each roll should not touch.

Cover (evenly) with the marinara, mozzarella and romano and cover with foil.  Put in oven for about 20 minutes and remove the foil.  Cook for another 15 minutes and remove.  Allow to cool and serve.

Notes:  I was very excited to try this tweaked version of a recipe I love.  I wasn't planning on cooking tonight but the opportunity arose and I thought I would go pretty big with the healthy changes. As mentioned, changing "regular" lasagna recipes has not gone well for me and I thought "What do I have to lose? I wasn't even supposed to see my kitchen tonight."

Tweaks:

I went multi-grain for my noodles tonight!!  This is a Heart Healthy way to go.  I have done whole wheat before and it was just a disaster and a waste of a meal, so this was a risk.

I used skim milk instead of whole which is also a big risk when one is trying to make a thickening agent like the bechamel.

I used part-skim mozzarella instead of plain mozzarella.

I dared to do fat-free ricotta instead of whole milk ricotta.

*I added my family touch of cinnamon to the dish.

Verdict: Success

This recipe is most definitely Neighbor worthy and one that I am VERY proud of.  I dare say this tasted EVERY BIT as good as the original recipe.

Do you want to be on the mailing list or have recipes you want to share with me?  Contact me at themaniccheater@gmail.com.

Baked 'n Chilled Pesto Chicken Salad Sandwich
Mixed Greens w/ Simple Dressing & Romano Pizzelles
(with Healthy Tweaking)

It is HOT out.  I hate heat.  I needed a chilled meal so I picked a really simple thing to make to start: my stand-by salad dressing for a cool mixed green salad and then a hot chicken salad that I tweak to cut out some fat and chill for my own needs.  I also wanted to try something new in lieu of croutons--tried to make a little cheese cracker.

The recipe used to be fatty fatty fatty with tons of mayo and a bunch of cheese.  Not needed for mine....

 

Ingredients:

3 chicken breast cooked and diced to your chunky preference
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 cup mayonnaise 1/4 low-fat cup mayo
1 cup celery chopped 1 large stalk celery chopped
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese shredded 1 handful low-fat shredded cheddar
2/3 cup crushed potato chips 1 handful crushed BAKED potato chips
salt
pepper
2 tablespoons lemon juice juice of 1/2 lemon
+ 1/2 cup pesto (recipe follows)  

+ 1 handful bagel chips crushed

rolls, baguettes, pita or bread--your choice for the sandwich

mixed greens (optional: slices of low-fat swiss)

Pesto:

1/4 cup pine nuts

10 cloves garlic

5 cups fresh basil leaves (packed down)

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon back pepper

1 1/2 cups olive oil

1 cup pecorino romano

Salad Dressing:

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 cup olive oil

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

Pizzelles:

Romano cheese

Preheat oven to 400°

Chicken & Pesto:

Pound and slice your chicken breasts in half and wrap in foil.  Bake for 20 minutes.  While it cooks, put the pine nuts, garlic, basil, salt and pepper into your food processor and "process" on low for about 30 seconds.  While the ingredients break down, stream in the olive oil through that hole thing on the top of the processor.  When the ingredients are pureed, add the romano and puree for another 45 seconds.  Set aside and put the remaining amount,with a layer of olive oil on top, in a tightly sealed container and freeze for later use.

When chicken is done, allow to cool.  Add your celery, cheese, almonds, lemon juice and 2 pinched of salt and pepper to a large bowl and mix.  When the chicken has cooled, chop it up and add to your bowl followed by the mayo and pesto.  Mix and salt and pepper to taste.  Spread out the mixture into a glass baking dish and cover with the bagel chips. Put in the fridge to chill.

Dressing:

Add your ingredients to a dressing mixer and shake (duh) or whisk in a bowl. 

Pizzelles:

Lay parchment paper on a cookie sheet and spoon circles of romano (about a tablespoon each) onto the surface making sure they do not touch.  Cook for about 10 minutes before allowing to cool and peeling them off carefully.

Toast bread, roll, pita (or not) with the swiss and top with some greens and the chicken salad.  Toss the salad with the dressing and serve with the pizzelles.

Notes: I have successfully made this my own by making it a pesto dish.

Tweaks:

I cut most of the mayo (and substituted low-fat for what little I did use) in favor of Pesto.  I think it gives it something and mayo is just oil and egg really.  I don't think we need that in us.  Pesto has oil and cheese but you can control how much you use if you are being health conscious.

I serve this chilled instead of its intended hot state.

I used reduced-fat cheddar cheese.

I used more lemon for flavor .

I used less celery as the almond gives enough crunch and isn't as wet.
I used baked potato chips instead of fried.

Possible Cheat:

If you are a wuss (or just in a hurry), you can use bottled pesto.

Verdict: Success

Neighbor-worthy. 

Do you want to be on the mailing list or have recipes you want to share with me?  Contact me at themaniccheater@gmail.com.