Easy one-pan pasta

For once, I am sitting in a quiet house. My boys are peacefully napping, which means I have time to get some work done. But I am having a hard time finding words today. Apparently I am only able to be productive when, "MOMMY! My toe just fell off!" is being screamed across the house. Productive under pressure. That should be the subtitle of my life. 

Last night after I ran across the idea of a one-pot meal in the most recent issue of Martha Stewart Living Magazine, I threw one together myself. Why had I not ever thought of this? Throw everything into a single pan and 10 minutes later, dinner is ready! The version I made last night was so easy and delicious. The leftovers are sitting in my fridge, begging me to come take a bite. I can't wait till dinner!

And there goes my quiet, so certainly now the words will flow with ease!

Click to read more ...

Chili paste

Dan and I found ourselves sitting across the table from one another a few nights ago at one of our favorite restaurants. Alone. Without children. It was surreal and delightful. We have not been on an official date in months. As we took turns reaching for the chili paste that sat upon our table, we began to wonder out loud about why we had never made chili paste of our own. At restaurants, we devour it like the apocalypse is tomorrow, so imagine what it must be like to have it in our very own kitchen!

So we formulated a recipe and gave it a whirl. It is deLICIOUS. I cannot wait to throw it in some scrambled eggs tomorrow morning!

If you are a spice freak like I am, then you will not be dissapointed in this chili paste. Go to your local grocery store and go crazy picking out the prettiest hot peppers you can find. The peppers I have in my ingredient list are merely suggestions. Cater them to your spicy desires!

Again, these are just suggestions, but here are the peppers I used:

2 Serrano chili peppers

3 red chili peppers

1 Thai chili pepper

1 Habanero chili pepper

Remove the stems (not the seeds!) and cut the peppers into chunks.

Add the following to the bowl of a food processor:

The pepper chunks

2 shallots, cut into chunks

3 cloves garlic, cut in half

1 1/2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon kosher salt

Juice from 1 lime

3 tablespoons canola oil

1 tablespoon white vinegar

Splash or two of Worcestershire sauce

Pulse until a chunky paste forms.

Transfer the paste to a small skillet or saucepan.

Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Let simmer for 7 minutes, or until the aroma of garlic is noticeable.

Remove from the heat and let cool. Store covered in a sealed glass container in the refrigerator. Serve with.. well, what wouldn't you serve it with? Pasta, chicken, sandwiches, burgers..

This recipe makes about 1 cup, which will last you a while unless you are my husband who immediately started eating it as if it WERE SALSA. I know it's good, but please leave some for me!

Enjoy, my spice-loving friends!

Printable recipe: Chili paste

Grilled peppers with mascarpone and fudge

I received a box of fudge from Swiss Maid Fudge in the mail a few days ago, and in return I was asked to include fudge in some of my recipes. This is the second of my five fudge recipes, and by far the most unique of the bunch. Dan and I both thought it was a fun little bite. I loved all of the different flavors bouncing off my tastebuds. 

Start out by lighting a grill and setting it to medium heat.

Remove the stem and innards from the pepper and discard the seeds. Cut the pepper into 8 equal strips and pat the insides dry with a paper towel.

Using a butter knife, spread a thin layer of mascarpone cheese onto the inner sides of the pepper slices.

Top that with a layer of softened milk chocolate fudge.

From there, you can get creative. I threw some finely diced red onion and thinly sliced fresh basil leaves over top. Kinda crazy! But when you are cooking with fudge, crazy is allowed!

Place the pepper boats on the grill and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the cheese and fudge begin to melt. Remove from the heat and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Printable recipe: Grilled peppers with mascarpone and fudge

Green chile bacon burgers with goat cheese

This is Week #21 of my 2011 cooking challenge! Click on the above graphic to view all P&TC recipes. All recipes created for this challenge come from the Food and Wine Annual Cookbook 2010: An Entire Year of Recipes.

I need to take a picture of The Infamous Pile of Snow because, sadly, it still stands. It plays mind games with me. I'll be cruisin' out of work on a beautiful day, excited to get home and spend time outside with my family. And there it sits, around that first curve, staring at me. I find it impossible not to look back. Then I ask myself a series of questions: What season is it? Where do I live? Will that thing ever go away? Then I turn up the radio, roll down my windows and hurry home.

If I'm lucky, by the time I get home, my husband is starting to grill up some sort of delicious meat or veggie for dinner. At this point I am able to answer my questions with confidence: It is spring! I live in Minnesota! The snow will melt! Let's eat!

This burger was delicious. It made me happy. I ate some edamame salad along with it, so that made me doubly happy.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange 8 thick-cut slices of bacon on the paper and brush both sides with mango chutney. I couldn't find the chutney and I didn't have time to make it, so I used Jalapeno Strawberry Jam instead and it was awesome. It was the perfect happy accident.

Bake the bacon for about 30 minutes, turning once, until it is caramelized. Let cool.

Rub a poblano chile with olive oil. You might notice that I rubbed two poblano chiles and two jalapeno peppers with olive oil. I don't like to follow the rules when it comes to chiles and peppers. Grill the pepper(s) over medium heat until charred, about 5 minutes. Transfer them to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let stand for 10 minutes.

Peel the skin(s) off and coarsely chop the pepper(s).

Brush the cut sides of 4 hamburger buns with olive oil and grill just until toasted, about 30 seconds.

Brush 4 large tomato slices with oil and grill until lightly charred, about 1 minute. Place the grilled tomato slices on the bottom half of the buns.

Form 1 1/2 pounds of ground beef chuck (we used venison) into four 1-inch-thick patties and brush them with oil. Season with salt and pepper and grill over high heat, turning once, until the burgers are nearly medium-rare, about 6 minutes.

Top each burger with a slice of fresh goat cheese and the chopped peppers. Close the grill and cook until the cheese is completely melted and the burgers are medium-rare, about 1 minute.

Set the burgers on the buns, top with the bacon and a handful of watercress and serve immediately!

It is spring it is spring it is spring!

Click here for a printable recipe!

Bacon & pepper infused vodka

I love heat. All forms of it. I love sweating profusely as I lie on the beach and I love wrapping a warm blanket around myself while I lounge on the couch (neither happens often enough). My love for heat applies to food, as well. I love food that makes my mouth burn and my nose run. The spicier, the better!

When I read about the new trend involving infusing vodka with flavor, my first thought was that I wanted to try adding heat as my "flavor." I researched vodka infusion and found that creating spicy vodka is not uncommon! So, thinking in terms of a good spicy base for a bloody mary, I purchased three of the hottest peppers available at the grocery store and I kindly asked my husband to fry me up some bacon (for some reason, this is always a task he does).

In a large jar, I placed:

Two slices of peppered bacon, cooked

1 serrano pepper, halved

1 green chile pepper, halved

1 habanero pepper, halved

I poured vodka over the bacon and peppers until the jar was almost full (somewhere around 32 oz. of vodka). I used a middle shelf vodka. There's no need to go top shelf, but I tend to stay away from the bottom shelf, as well.

And then I screwed the lid on tight and put the jar in my garage, where it is dark and cool. And dirty. But nevermind the dirty part.

I let the vodka absorb the peppery, meaty flavors for 48 hours. If you love spice like I do, 48 hours is the perfect amount of time for the infusion. If you like just a little bit of spice, cut that time back to 24 hours.

I strained the liquid using a coffee filter that sat inside a hand strainer. Actually, my husband did the straining so I can't take credit for that part.

At the end of the 48 hours, my concoction SMELLED hot, so I was afraid to taste it. I took a tiny little sip and it was most definitely hot, but also full of flavor! For me, this will always be an addition to bloody marys. I don't plan to drink it alone or mix it with anything else. It is, through and through, a bloody-mary-only vodka.

And let me tell you, it makes a killer bloody mary. Delicious!

Click here for a printable recipe!