Can opener cuisine

If you're like me, you watch a lot of cooking shows on TV.

What always strikes me as interesting, though not necessarily interesting in a good way, is that cooking with canned (or frozen, or otherwise processed) food is always presented as a "challenge" to professional chefs.  What makes me even more frustrated is the disgust with which they discuss these ingredients: these are things that they "wouldn't be caught dead cooking" if they weren't participating in this particular reality TV show.

First let me say: I get it.  You can do a lot more things with fresh food than you can with things that have been processed in some way.  But let's face it...this kind of "I only cook with fresh organic produce and meat and wouldn't touch canned or processed food with a ten-foot pole" way of thinking is not accessible to your average home cook, either because they do not have access to them, or (more likely) because eating this way can be quite expensive.

So today I'm going to let you in on a little secret: one of my favourite casseroles is made with (gasp!) mostly canned/otherwise processed ingredients.

This is a casserole that my mom used to make when I was little, and I've made a few modifications to the recipe since then.  I love it because the sauce is cheesy and delicious, and it's a complete meal that (1) can be ready in 30 minutes or so, (2) can be made the day before and just re-heated for dinner, and (3) most of the ingredients are things that you can keep in your cupboard/fridge/freezer for a rather long time (making it a great "I didn't have the time/desire to go shopping" meal).

Ingredients

-2 cans of Campbell's "Cream of ________" condensed soup.  I like to use one can of cream of celery and another of cream of broccoli, but feel free to choose any two that you like.

-1 cup of milk

-6 cheese slices (alternatively: use grated cheese, though it doesn't melt quite as nicely)

-3 cans of turkey flakes (you could also use tuna or ham), drained

-2 cups frozen peas

-1 pound of penne (or any other pasta)
-1 cup grated cheddar cheese (alternatively: use more cheese slices)

1) Cook the pasta per the directions on the package.  Drain, and set aside.

2) Combine the condensed soups and milk in a pot over medium-low heat.  Add the cheese slices and cook until they have melted.  Add the turkey flakes and peas.

3) Add the soup mixture to the pasta; mix well.  Pour into a greased 9x13 baking dish.

If you're making this casserole ahead, after step (3) put the casserole in the fridge.  I've left it there for as long as 24 hours (though I wouldn't want to leave it much longer than that).

4) If you'd like to eat right away, sprinkle grated cheese over the top at bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes or so (until bubbly).  If you don't have grated cheese and are topping your casserole with cheese slices instead, add the cheese during the last 5 minutes of baking time.  If you have made the casserole ahead it may need a little extra time in the oven...

As always...enjoy the hot, bubbly (admittedly processed and full of sodium) goodness!

I must apologize...I don't have a picture of this particular casserole, mostly because I tend to dig right in after I put it on the plate (seriously...it's that good).  But these are the ingredients, and I always have them on hand for those "Oh crap I don't really want to go to the store" kind of days....

Think pink

When you think of delicious food, what colours spring to mind?  The rich red of tomato sauce?  The golden brown in the skin of a delicious roast chicken?

The (what can only be described as) magenta of a pasta sauce made with red beets?

I'm guessing that last one probably wasn't your first thought.  It wasn't mine either...until I gave this recipe a go last night.  The original calls for golden beets, but I didn't have any of those.  I used red, and the result was delicious (if a slightly strange colour).  The original also calls for prosciutto and beet greens, but I didn't have either of those either...

Ingredients
-a dozen or so red beets, peeled and sliced into 1/4 inch thick half moons
-3 small yellow onions, thinly sliced
-6 slices of bacon, diced
-8 cloves of garlic, minced
-1 cup chicken broth
-1/2 cup white wine
-1 tsp dried rosemary
-1 lb rotini (or whatever pasta you happen to have on hand)
-3/4 cup grated parmesan (more for serving)

1) Heat a medium large saucepan over medium heat.  Add the bacon and onions and cook, stirring often, until the onion is tender and the bacon has begun to crisp (about 10 minutes).  Add the garlic and stir for 2 minutes.  Add the beets and cook for 5-7 minutes, until just tender.  Stir in the broth, wine, and rosemary; simmer until the liquid evaporates the beets are completely tender (about 15 minutes).

2) Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add the pasta and cook until done.  Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water.

3) Combine the pasta, beet mixture, and parmesan (if needed, add some of the reserved cooking water to moisten).  Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve with more parmesan.

See, I wasn't kidding.  It's PINK!  Delicious, warm, and comforting...but very very pink....

Two of my favourite things

It's no secret that I love macaroni and cheese.  I've dedicated not just one, but two blog posts to the subject...and this will be the third.  Another not-so-secret fact about yours truly?  I like to drink.  Not just anything mind you.  I like the flavours that you can find in different alcohols: like the citrus in white beer, or the berries in red wine.  So, when I came across a recipe that combined the deliciousness of macaroni and cheese with the scrumptiousness of stout I had to give it a go!

Ingredients
-500 g uncooked rotini pasta
-2 tsp canola oil
-200g hot Italian sausage
-1 large onion, diced
-3 tbsp all purpose flour
-1/2 tsp black pepper
-1/8 tsp salt
-1 bottle of stout (341 mL)
-1/2 cup milk
-80g each grated cheddar cheese and cubed Velveeta (or other processed offering...makes for a very creamy sauce)
-1 1/2 cups frozen green peas

1) Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.  Grease a 9x13 casserole dish

2) Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.

3) While pasta cooks, heat a large saucepan over medium high heat.  Add oil, swirl to coat.  Remove casing from sausage.  Add sausage and onion to pan; cook 6 minutes, stirring to crumble sausage.  Add flour, pepper, and salt; cook 1 minute, stirring frequently.  Stir in beer; bring to a boil.  Cook 3 minutes (until thick and bubbly).  Remove from heat.  Add milk and cheeses, stirring until smooth.  Stir in pasta and peas.  Spread into prepare baking dish and bake for 10 minutes (until lightly browned).

Looks yummy....tastes good too.

It doesn't look like your typical plate of macaroni and cheese...and it doesn't taste like it either.  The stout gives the sauce a very interesting flavour that I would describe as "mushroom-y" (what I believe the professionals call "umami").  Next time, I think I would swap the cheddar in for something like Swiss...I think that nutty kind of flavour would go well with the stout.  I might also choose a different kind of sausage: while I love sausages of the hot Italian variety I found that I couldn't really taste the spice (which is kind of the point of hot Italian sausage).  The above recipe would probably work just as well with ground beef, or a most lightly flavoured pork or turkey sausage.

Or a few red pepper flakes.  Because everything is better with red pepper flakes.

Mac and cheese, 2.0

The last time I posted about making mac and cheese the subject of my musing was an ooey gooey oven baked casserole.  Delicious.  However, completely impractical given the summer heat.  Better to do it on the stovetop, and add some fresh veggies for colour and crunch.

And bacon.  Because everything's better with bacon.........

Ingredients
-3 cups broccoli florets (use pre-cut to save time)
-4 cups uncooked rigatoni (or any other pasta that you have in the cupboard)
-2 slices bacon
-1/2 tbsp butter
-1 1/2 tbsp flour
-1 1/4 cup milk
-1/2 cup (ish) Velveeta cheese, cubed (the secret to a creamy sauce)
-1/2 cup (ish) shredded cheddar
-salt and pepper to taste

1) Steam broccoli for 5 minutes or until crisp-tender.  Drain; pat dry and keep warm.

2) Cook the pasta in the same pot.  Drain; return to pot and keep warm.

3) In a small frying pan cook the bacon until crispy; remove to a paper towel but reserve drippings.  Add butter and flour to create a roux and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Slowly add milk (stirring well to incorporate) and then bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Cook for 1 minute, until slightly thick, and remove from heat.  Add Velveeta and stir until incorporated, then add the shredded cheddar.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

4) Add sauce to broccoli and pasta.  Crumble bacon over the top and enjoy!!

Don't worry if broccoli isn't your thing...you can replace it with any other vegetable that you like.  A cup of frozen peas works particularly well, just add them to the sauce at the same time as the shredded cheese so that they heat through!

Thinking outside the box (of KD)

Let's face it: I haven't posted in awhile.

As I alluded to the last time I posted, I've been going out for dinner a lot over the last couple of weeks.  But the other night while staying with my parents I finally found a chance to cook.  The weather was cold and stormy, which called for something warm and bubbly: macaroni and cheese.

Like any good college student, I fell in love with macaroni and cheese in the form of Kraft Dinner, the radioactive orange meal in a box that contains more preservatives than dairy products.  As I grew older, however, I started to desire something that tasted less like sodium and orange number six.

The potential problem with homemade mac and cheese is one of money: good cheese is expensive, and good cheese is what adds flavour.  So I had to find another way to make this casserole taste delicious.....

I found the answer in a recipe by the fantastic Michael Smith.  You can use whatever pasta you have in the cupboard and, better yet, whatever cheese happens to be in your fridge (or on sale).  The flavour comes from the spices added to the sauce: garlic, paprika, cayenne, and dijon mustard (Michael Smith's secret weapon).

Ingredients

-1 pound of pasta (any kind)

-1/4 cup butter

-several cloves of garlic

-2/3 cup flour

-a big splash of white wine

-5 cups milk

-1 pound cheese (any kind)

-2 tablespoons dijon mustard

-2 tablespoons paprika

-cayenne pepper to taste

Directions

Optional step 0......for more flavour, use bacon.  Chop approximately one pound of bacon and toss into a thick bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat (if you add one cup of water, you can allow the bacon to gradually release it's fat and brown evenly without burning).  Cook until the bacon is nicely cooked; remove the bacon, but reserve the fat.

(If you go with the bacon step, omit the butter and use bacon fat instead.)

1) Cook the pasta according to package directions.  Drain (don't rinse...the start helps the sauce stick to the pasta) and set aside.

2) Melt the butter over medium heat.  Add the garlic and cook for several minutes.  Add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon until a smooth paste forms.  Continue cooking the roux for several minutes to add flavour.

3) Add the wine, and stir until the mixture becomes smooth again.  Slowly add the milk and switch to a whisk, stirring until the mixture is smooth.  Then cook a couple of minutes longer until the milk begins to thicken.

4) Stir in the cheese, dijon mustard, paprika, and cayenne pepper.  Stir the cooked pasta into the cheese mixture.  Pour everything into a 9x13 pan and bake at 350 degrees F for about 30 minutes (or until the cheese is bubbly).

For added flavour I like to sprinkle extra parmesan cheese across the top of my mac and cheese....

Then, as always.....enjoy!!

Meatless March: Week 4

The week started out like any other...I did some schoolwork, went to yoga, and made myself a dinner that would provide me with plenty of leftovers.

I hadn't made pasta in awhile, so I decided to play around with something from the macaroni and cheese family.  The problem with classic baked mac and cheese (from the perspective of a person who watches what they eat) is the sauce...while delicious, it's not the healthiest thing around.  I'm always looking for a way to lighten up the recipe and have stumbled upon a foolproof plan: pureed vegetables.

Ingredients
-4 cups cauliflower florets (about 1/2 head cauliflower)
-1 medium onion, sliced
-2 cloves garlic, peeled
-4 cups penne
-2 cups milk
-1 tsp grainy mustard
-2 tsp fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dried)
-salt and pepper to taste
-1 cup grated Gruyere
-1 cup grated Parmesan

Directions
1) Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

2) Put the cauliflower, onion, and garlic in a steamer basket; steam until the cauliflower is tender (about 10-15 minutes).

At this point you can do one of two things.
-if you have a blender, transfer the cauliflower mixture to a blender.  Add milk and blend until smooth, then transfer to a large saucepan.
-if you are using an immersion blender, transfer the cauliflower mixture to a large saucepan.  Add milk and blend until smooth.

3) Cook the penne according to package directions; drain.

4) Add thyme, mustard, salt, and pepper to the cauliflower puree.  Cook over medium-low heat until it is hot but not boiling (about 3-5 minutes).  Add Gruyere and 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, stir until melted.

5) Add the sauce to the pasta and stir to combine.  Transfer to an 8-inch square baking dish and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.  Bake for 20-30 minutes (until the cheese begins to brown).

The plate is covered in veggies!

This meal was so delicious that I had it for dinner again on Monday night!

Tuesday night I stuck with the "plate full of veggies" theme and prepared a delightful Thai curry packed with enoki mushrooms, bok choy, and what asparagus I had left.  And, in the interests of doing things just a little bit differently, I decided to serve my curry with udon noodles rather than rice.

Another meal that earned a repeat performance the next night.

I had a tough time deciding what to eat on Thursday night.  On one hand, I wanted to keep up my record of not repeating recipes.  On the other hand, I'd had a busy day and was just not in the mood to get fancy in the kitchen.  I compromised: ravioli (which I keep on hand in the freezer for nights like this) with lemon brown butter and kale pesto (to prove that you can make something delicious on the fly).

Couldn't forget the garlic toast!

Friday I went out for dinner.  God bless Indian food...all of the vegetarian options are delicious!  I'm not going to lie though, there was more than one moment when all I wanted was some of the chicken tikka that my friend was chowing down on.

When the weekend arrived so did a challenge: feeding my parents.  They are carnivorous types, and I know that my father (in particular) wasn't necessarily giggly about the whole "meat free" idea.  Given that, I'm pretty sure they enjoyed what I cooked for them.

I started off with a variation on a meal I had made earlier in the month: eggs poached in marinara.  The changes I made were to make it a little heartier: I added some sauteed spinach to the sauce (which was in my freezer ready to go) and served it with polenta.

My father was sceptical, but after tasting agreed that it was delicious!

Sunday morning we went out to brunch at the resort restaurant where I was confronted with exactly how much I miss bacon.  I stuck to my guns though, and drowned my sorrows in a waffle with raspberries and creme anglaise (with a mimosa on the side).

Sunday evening (the month's last meatless meal!) we dined on a beautiful butternut squash and kale lasagna!

White sauce, gruyere and parmesan cheese, with pecans on top :)

And with that the month was over!  If nothing else, I hope that I've inspired you to give up meat one or two nights a week.  The options are just as delicious, they're easy to prepare, and going veggie is easy on the wallet.  And as always, if you want any of the recipes that I have not posted just let me know and I'm happy to share.

As for me, I'm having bacon with breakfast tomorrow..... :P

Meatless March: Week 1

Well the first two days of the month went by without too many problems, which left me looking forward to my first full week as a (temporary) vegetarian.

Sunday afternoons I go to yoga, which requires me to consume a larger than normal breakfast (to prevent passing out in the studio).  My usual go-to would be something like bacon and eggs...but that is not a possibility this month.  Slight change: veggie and cheese omelet.  I've got some broccoli stems in the fridge (worth not throwing away...I also used them in the fried rice that I made last week), and no fewer than three different kinds of cheese on hand.  

(Nervous about omelets?  That's what YouTube is for!)

As for dinner...given that I hadn't seen the sun in at least a week I was in the mood for something warm and comforting.  And, as is my Sunday evening tradition, something that would provide me with leftovers for the week to come.  After some careful thought I decided to go with a nice pot of chili (featuring zucchini, quinoa, and chipotle peppers), paired with homemade buttermilk biscuits.

I decided to go with biscuits because (a) I wanted some starch with my meal and (b) I had buttermilk in the fridge from the last time I made muffins.  They are a super easy recipe, which I'm happy to share on request.

Monday was another lazy day...preview for the week, since it's spring break.  So I have more time on hand then usual, leaving me with time to experiment.  I decided that this would be a great time to try out a recipe that's been on my mind for awhile: spinach and kale turnovers.

I used the original recipe as an inspiration, but made several small changes.  For starters, I made my own crust using the fantastic whole wheat and flax pizza dough recipe featured here.  Second, I subbed a mixture of parmesan and mozzarella in place of feta, omitted the nutmeg, and added a little pizza sauce to make the turnovers more calzone-like...

Served with caesar salad.  Lots of green, lots of delicious.

When I opened my fridge to make dinner on Tuesday, extra zucchini (from the chili) and kale (from the calzone) were staring me in the face.  I decided that I had better use these ingredients before they went bad, and so I began to scour the internet in search of ideas.  Before too long I found what I was looking for: I would use the zucchini to make fritters, which I would serve with pasta and a pesto made out of kale.

You're probably at least a little familiar with pesto, at least the classic garlic, parmesan and basil version.  But "pesto" literally just means "paste", and so you can make it out of anything you want.  Here's the recipe that I used to make my kale pesto...

Ingredients
-1/2 bunch kale
-2 cloves garlic
-1/4 cup olive oil
-1/2 cup grated parmesan
-1/2 tbsp lemon juice
-salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Blanch garlic cloves for 2-3 minutes, remove with a slotted spoon.  In the same water blanch kale for about 30 seconds, drain.  Puree garlic and kale in a food processor.  Add olive oil, parmesan, and lemon juice; blend well.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Keep refrigerated in an airtight container for up to one month.

This recipe makes about 1 cup of pesto...enough for several different applications.

The great thing about pesto is that it can be used in any number of ways.  There are the obvious choices, like toss it with some pasta, and the not so obvious choices, like spreading it on fish (or chicken) before covering it in breadcrumbs and baking it in the oven (which is probably what I would be doing with my leftover pesto if I hadn't given up meat for the month) or using it as a substitute for pizza sauce.

Wednesday night was a too-lazy-to-cook-so-will-reheat-leftovers evening, so I didn't venture back into my kitchen until Thursday.  And this was when I hit my first wall...what to cook?  I couldn't decide what I was in the mood for (though I knew I didn't want pasta, since I had it yesterday and was planning on making it again tomorrow), and I was not going to leave the apartment to buy groceries...so whatever dinner was, it was going to be made with things that I already had on hand.  That's when it hit me...tacos.  They require very little effort, are always delicious, and I knew I had the ingredients on hand (tortillas in the freezer, cheese and lettuce in the fridge, taco seasoning in the cupboard with my spices, and chickpeas in the pantry).

Sometimes you just don't have the energy to whip up a masterpiece.

As mentioned in the previous paragraph, on Friday I found myself making pasta for some friends who had come over to study (and drink).  I decided to go with this particular recipe because it's delicious, quick, yields fancy results for little effort, and is relatively light on the calories.  I usually make this pasta with shrimp, but it was just as good sans shellfish...to further change things up, I threw a good spoonful of kale pesto into the cream sauce...

Ingredients
-1 tbsp butter
-1 or 2 cloves of garlic
-1 tsp lemon zest
-2 tsp flour
-1 cup milk
-2 tbsp cream cheese (I like to use the fat free herb and garlic kind)
-3/4 cup parmesan
-1 cup frozen peas

1) Cook whatever pasta you desire as per package directions (I usually use 4 cups of uncooked penne...the quantities given above make enough sauce to comfortably cover that much pasta).  Drain, but reserve 1 cup of the pasta water.

2) Melt the butter in a small saucepan.  Add garlic and lemon zest, cooking until fragrant.  Add flour and mix well to form a paste.  Add the milk slowly to prevent clumping (add a little, stir until smooth, add a little, stir until smooth.......).  Cook until just thickened.  Add cream cheese and parmesan cheese; stir until melted.  Add frozen peas and cook until the peas are warm.

3) Toss pasta and sauce together.  If the sauce is too thick, use some of the pasta water to loosen it.

Looks fancy, but doesn't take a "fancy" amount of effort!

Saturday: Not gonna lie, I cheated a little.  Rather than cook for myself this evening, I took a drive out to the country with some friends for poutine.  

(Why would I drive out into the country for poutine?  If you have to ask me that question, then I obviously haven't brought you with me to this little gem of a place.)

While vegetarian poutine is certainly not outside the realm of possibility, I will admit that I do not know whether or not what I ate for dinner on Sunday night was made without meat.  However it was delicious, and was well worth the drive.

While my poutine may or may not have been vegetarian, I did forgo my usual hot dog in favor of a  delicious vegetable panini!

And that's one full week down...three to go.  Thus far I have not found the change that burdensome as I have simply omitted the meat from recipes that I already know and love.  Next week more challenges await...among them, the quest to make a delicious veggie burger!