I was browsing through one of my favorite food blog sites, Smitten Kitchen, and I stumbled upon this recipe. I liked the idea of it because it was a one pot meal, which means easy clean up, and it was nutritionally balanced with protein, veggies, calcium, and carbohydrates.

I also liked the idea of it because she talked about how her husband actually made this dish for her. I related to this because the other night, I came home from a performance of Twyla Tharp's "Nine Sinatra Songs", and Erik had an entire dinner made for me when I got home! He made soft tacos with organic ground beef. He cut up tomatoes, onions, cheese, and lettuce to top the tacos. I know this does not sound like much, but I was surprised and thrilled. This might become a new tradition:) Now that I know he actually CAN cook, he might have to help me a little more in the kitchen!

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Serves 4
*Adapted from Martha Stewart

1 14 oz. can tomatoes, in juice
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 lb. hot italian sausage, casing removed
1 small onion, finely chopped
Kosher salt and Cracked black pepper
1 c. arborio rice
1/2 c. dry white wine
5 oz. bag baby spinach
1/2 c. grated parmigiano reggiano
2 tbsp. salted butter

In a small sauce pan, combine tomatoes with 3 c. water. Heat until just simmering.

In a medium sauce pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add in the sausage and onion and break into small pieces with the back of your spoon. Season with salt and pepper and cook until onion is softened, about 3 minutes, and sausage is browned.

Add in rice and stir to coat for about 1 minute. Then add in the wine, and cook until absorbed, about 1 minute. Add in the tomato juice, 1 cup at a time, until risotto absorbs the liquid. Repeating until the juice is gone, and the risotto is creamy and just cooked through. About 25 minutes.

Remove pan from heat, stir in spinach, parmigiano, and butter. Season with salt and pepper. Adjust seasonings if necessary. Let risotto cool for about 5 minutes, until thickened.

Serve immediately and sprinkle with additional parmigiano cheese.

This week, I finally started rehearsing for my performance this weekend. This is slightly abnormal. Usually, you prepare for weeks on a part.

Due to injuries, my partner for Twyla Tharp's "Nine Sinatra Songs" had to learn another part in the ballet, which made me have to learn the part with a brand new person. Our performance is tomorrow, and we just started rehearsing yesterday. I went from having two hours of passive rehearsal where I was basically observing, to five hours of rehearsal where I was intensely dancing.

At 7:00 when I got home, you can imagine how tired I was. I created this dish from what I had on hand. Bacon, Kale, Onions, Gorgonzola, and Hazelnuts. I loved it, and I was very impressed by my creation. Erik had some improvements he would have made. He is not a huge fan of whole wheat pasta (even though he has given it a chance!), so that is certainly an easy change. He also doesn't LOVE kale, but I could substitute spinach next time.

The dish felt hearty, yet healthy and was a perfect meal to end a long day of rigorous activity. Whole wheat pasta has tons of protein and omega 3's, and Kale is rich in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, and Beta Carotine. Also, hazelnuts are a good source of fiber. The bacon and the gorgonzola....well they are just for flavor.

You will see this dish again. It has not had it's day yet! Back to the drawing board for me....

Serves 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes

8 pieces of center cut bacon, chopped
1 onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 lb. pasta (I used whole wheat shells, but you could use anything)
1 bunch of kale, chopped and blanched
1 c. gorgonzola or blue cheese crumbles
1/2 c. half and half
1/4 c. chicken stock
1/4 c. hazelnuts
2 tbsp. chives, minced
Kosher salt and Cracked black pepper

Bring a large pot of water to boil.

In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium-high heat until crispy. Drain on a paper towel. Reserve 1 tbsp. of bacon fat.

In bacon fat, cook onion over medium-low, occasionally stirring,for about 10 minutes. Add in garlic the last 1 minute and stir. Add in chicken stock to deglaze the pan.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the gorgonzola and the half and half. Mix together with a fork until a creamy sauce forms.

Once the water is boiling, salt it generously and put in the pasta. Cook for 9 minutes or until al dente. Reserve 1/2 c. of cooking liquid and drain the pasta.

Add the kale into the onion mixture and increase heat to medium. Saute for two minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add in the gorgonzola mixture. Cook until creamy sauce forms, about two minutes.

Toss the pasta with the reserved cooking liquid and bacon into the gorgonzola and kale mixture. Season again with salt and pepper to your liking.

Serve in bowl and top with hazelnuts and chives.

Content originally posted at Anticiplate

I love the idea of hazelnuts and spinach in a pesto. It sounds so healthy, and delicious.

Hazelnuts have been popping up everywhere in my monthly cooking magazines. But, I never would have thought to put them in pesto. For years, my sister and I have begged for my Mama's pesto recipe. She always just says, "I put a little of this, and a little of that. Whatever, I have on hand." One time, my Sister was making pesto at her house and she had my Mama on the phone telling her exactly what to do. After she tasted the pesto, it tasted nothing like what she remembered it to be. Maybe it is the fact that my Mama grows all of her own herbs.

I feel like this recipe would be right up my Moma's alley. Sometimes she uses almonds or walnuts in her pesto, instead of pine-nuts. I will now have to tell her that she can successfully substitute hazelnuts!

I made this meal for my best friend, Lindsi, while we waited around for a dress rehearsal that we were not in. She proclaimed that is was her new favorite pasta dish:)

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Serves 4
*Adapted from Rachael Ray out of "Everyday with Rachael Ray"

2 tbsp. salted butter
1 large onion, halved and sliced
Kosher salt
1 lb. whole wheat spaghetti or any cut of pasta you prefer
1/3 c. extra virgin olive oil
1 large clove of garlic, smashed
1 sprig rosemary
1/4 c. peeled hazelnuts, toasted
10 oz. spinach (two 5 oz. bags)
1/4 c. fresh basil
Cracked black pepper
Dash of freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 c. parmigiano-reggiano cheese

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Caramelize the onions for 20-25 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to boil. Salt generously and add the pasta. Cook until al dente and drain, reserving 1 c. of pasta water.

While the pasta is cooking, heat a small sauce-pan over medium-low heat. Add in the garlic, olive oil, and rosemary sprig. Let steep for 5 minutes, making sure not to brown the garlic. Let cool and discard the rosemary sprig. In a food processor, add in the oil, garlic, nuts, spinach, basil, and 1/4 c. parmigiano and process into a thick paste. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg.

Stir the pasta water into the onions, and then stir in the pesto mixture. Add the pasta and toss to combine. Top with extra cheese.

Serve immediately.

Content originally posted at Anticiplate

Erik finally decided yesterday that he wanted to open his 29 year old Cragganmore Single Malt Scotch. So, he needed me to cook a fantastic meal for all of his buddies that were going to partake in the sampling. I am not a huge fan of scotch, so I just watched.

I also just like an excuse to cook a roast every once in a while, and feed the masses.

I have never brined meat before, and now I feel stupid for even eating meat all these years without knowing of this amazing trick. Brining makes the meat more tender by hydrating the cells of the muscle tissue through osmosis. It makes a huge difference with the flavor and consistency of the meat. Especially pork, chicken, and turkey, which can be dry and bland if cooked improperly.

There seem to be many brining formulas. Mostly though, I have noticed they all start with water, salt and sugar. Then, adding the herbs and spices seem to be the cook's preference. What is your formula for brining?

Prep time: 15 minutes
Inactive prep time: 6 hours
Cook time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Serves 6
*Adapted by a recipe from Tyler Florence

1 center cut bone in pork roast (6 bones), about 4 lbs.
1 gallon water
1 c. kosher salt
1 c. brown sugar
1 tbsp. whole peppercorns
1 bunch of fresh thyme, divided
Kosher salt and Cracked black pepper
Olive oil
4 carrots, peeled
1 head of garlic, split (skins left on)
1 onion, halved
2 shallots, halved
1 lb. sweet italian sausage
2 garlic cloves, slivered
Pinch of red pepper flakes
Pinch of fennel seed
1 1/2 lbs. broccoli rabe, trimmed (or you could substitute spinach)
2 c. chicken stock
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. whole mustard seed
2 tbsp. fresh basil
6 large pieces, cut into 4 pieces each
2 c. apple juice
1 tbsp. salted butter

Line a large stockpot, or bucket, with a trash bag. Pour water into the bag with the salt and the sugar. Add peppercorns and a few thyme sprigs. Place the pork roast in the bag of brine and close the bag. Refrigerate for 6 hours. Remove the pork from the brine, and dry thoroughly with paper towels.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lay thyme sprigs all over pork roast and season generously with salt and pepper. Then, secure with butchers twine to maintain shape. Coat a roasting pan with olive oil and set 2 burners over high heat until just smoking. Sear the pork, fat side down, until caramelized. Then, sear all of the other sides of the pork to caramelize the entire roast. Scatter carrots, shallots, onions, more thyme sprigs and garlic in the bottom of the roasting pan to flavor the pork drippings. Roast until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat registers to 150 degrees (about 55 minutes to 1 hour).

Heat 2 tbsp. olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Brown sausage links on all sides until cooked through. Remove links from pan and let cool. Slice then on an angle. Add slivered garlic, red pepper flakes, and fennel to pan. Then add the sausage back in. Let cook 1 minute. Add broccoli rabe, and chicken stock and cook until the rabe is wilted, about 5 minutes. Season with cracked black pepper and kosher salt, if needed.

Whisk together the vinegar, honey, mustard seed, basil, and 1/4 c. olive oil. Toss peaches in the marinade. Place peaches, cut side down in a separate baking pan and roast with the pork for the last 15 minutes of cooking.

Remove the pork from the oven, and let rest on the cutting board. Prepare pan sauce by removing all the aromatic vegetables and setting the pan over two burners over medium high heat. Deglaze the drippings with apple juice scraping up brown bits stuck to the bottom. Reduce by a third. Season with salt and pepper and swirl in 1 tbsp. of butter.

Cut the twine off of the roast and carve. Serve with broccoli rabe, and peaches. Drizzle sauce over the meat before serving.

Summer is over. Enter Spaghetti Squash.

I wait for that day each year when I see the first batch of Spaghetti Squash at my local market. My mom used to grow them in her garden in Virginia, and I took for granted not having to pay for them by the pound. But, even though they can get expensive as far as vegetables go, they are well worth the extra change!

I have rarely seen a recipe for spaghetti squash that does not consist of a red sauce, and turkey meatballs. Are we really trying to trick our taste buds into thinking that spaghetti squash tastes like pasta? I am not arguing with the delicious taste of those dishes, but I would love for the spaghetti squash to be a bit more showcased, without masking it's buttery flavor with tomato sauce.

How do you like to cook spaghetti squash?

Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes
Serves 4
*Adapted from Emeril Lagasse

1 lb. spaghetti squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
4 tbsp. unsalted butter
2 tbsp. plus 1/4 c. minced shallots
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 c. all purpose flour
1 tbsp. garam masala
Kosher salt and black pepper
4 (8 oz.) lamb steaks, I used lamb shoulder but you could also use chops
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 firm but ripe pears, peeled and chopped
1 tsp. fresh ginger root, minced
1 tsp. lemon zest, grated
2 tbsp. dry white wine
2 tbsp. brandy or pear brandy
1 c. chicken stock
1/4 c. fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 c. toasted pumpkin seeds, chopped

In a large pot, place the squash, cut side down, and fill the pot with 2 inches of water. Bring to a boil. Cover and reduce to simmer. Cook for 25 minutes or until skin can easily be pierced with a knife. Remove, drain, and cool.

After the squash is cool enough to handle, using a fork, scrape flesh of skin into long spaghetti like strands. Discard the skin.

In a large saute pan, heat 2 tbsp. butter over medium heat. Add 2 tbsp. of shallots and cook for 2 minutes or until softened. Add the cinnamon and the nutmeg. Add the squash, stirring to coat. Cook, stirring for 1 minute. Remove from heat and keep warm until ready to serve.

In a shallow dish, season flour with garam masala. Season lamb steaks or chops generously with salt and pepper. Then, lightly dust lamb in flour, shaking off excess.

In another large skillet, melt 1 tbsp. of butter and 1 tbsp. of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the steaks and cook until golden on each side, about 4 minutes. Remove and cover to keep warm.

Add the remaining shallots to the pan and cook stirring for 1 minute. Add the pears and cook for another 2 minutes, or until softened. Add the ginger, zest, wine, and brandy. Bring to a boil. Stirring to deglaze the pan. When the liquid is reduced by half, add the stock. Swirl in 1 more tbsp. of butter and add accumulated juices from the resting lamb. Stir and remove from heat.

To serve, place spaghetti squash in the middle of 4 plates. Top with lamb steaks or chops and spoon sauce over the top of the whole dish. Garnish with parsley and pumpkin seeds.

Erik, Cashew, and I have a frequent outing that we take most weekends. We walk from our house to Greenlake (1.5 miles), around Greenlake (3 miles), and back (1.5 miles) . The whole trip takes about two hours because we walk leisurely, but it is one of my most cherished times that I get to spend with my husband

The first mile, or so, of our walk, we talk about what we are going to have for dinner, or maybe about our plans for an upcoming trip. But, as the time passes we get into topics of child rearing, what we want to be when we grow up, and what city to live in next. I find that walking is very therapeutic. I don't think Erik and I would have enough patience to sit on the couch for two hours and have talks like these.

I think that my next step after dancing will be something with food. I don't want to cook in a restaurant, or even own one, but I would love to be a personal chef. Of course my ultimate pipe dream is to be a celebrity chef on the Food Network. Dream big, right?

We ate this meal after our long, therapeutic walk, and it hit the spot. I served the steak with sauteed bok choy and snow peas, and sticky rice.

Serves 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes

1 1/2 tbsp. five-spice powder
2 tsp. brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
Freshly cracked black pepper
1 hanger steak, about 2 lbs., center gristle removed

1/4 c. tamari soy sauce
1 tbsp. rice vinegar
1 tbsp. water
1 tbsp. fresh ginger, minced
2 tsp. packed brown sugar
1 tsp. shallot, minced
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tbsp. cilantro, chopped

Preheat broiler to high.

Combine the five-spice powder,brown sugar and salt in a small bowl. Pat the steak dry and sprinkle spice mixture evenly over the steak. Season with cracked black pepper. Broil steak 2-3 inches away from heat, turning once, about 10 minutes for medium-rare. Let steak rest on a plate.

While steak rests, heat the remaining ingredients, except cilantro, with meat juices from plate in a small pan over low heat. Stir until warm. Add in cilantro.

Slice steak against the grain and top with sauce.

It officially feels like summer is coming to an end, and fall is sneaking up on us. It does not have to do with the temperature (it has been a solid 70 for about a week in Seattle), but there is a crispness in the air that was not there before. The sun is slowly setting faster each day, and those summer vegetables seen displayed ubiquitously in the grocery store have taken a back seat.

Summer is also over for me as it pertains to work. I have one more weekend left until the start of the new year. I start performing in two weeks and before you know it, Nutcracker will be upon us.

But back to the summer chowder....

This was an excellent example of a summer soup. Zucchini, corn, leek, and potatoes complimented each other beautifully in a creamy, but light chowder.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Serves 6

8 slices center-cut bacon
6 ears fresh corn, kernels cut from ears
2 leeks, diced (white and light green parts only)
2 zucchinis, skin peeled and chopped
2 russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
4 c. low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 c. half and half
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 tbsp. fresh chives
2 tbsp. red bell pepper, finely chopped
Kosher salt and Black pepper

Saute bacon in a large soup pot over medium-high heat until crisp and brown. Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a paper towel and drain.

To the bacon drippings, add corn, leeks, zucchinis, and potatoes. Saute 5 minutes or until just softened. Add 3 c. of broth and simmer, uncovered for 20 minutes until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes.

Transfer the soup to a food processor (or you could use an immersion blender). Puree until just smooth, or the consistency that you like.

Return soup to pot and stir in half and half, cayenne, and season with salt and pepper. Bring chowder to a simmer. Adjust consistency with more chicken broth if too thick.

Serve in big bowls and top with bacon, chives, and red bell pepper.

Cafe Lago kept presenting itself to me in many ways. First, the owner's brother works as one of our stage crew at the Pacific Northwest Ballet. Everyone at the ballet knows that I am a foodie, so I had been told many times about the restaurant by many of the stage crew. I just never got around to going there.

Second, I read about the restaurant in the most recent issue of Bon Appetit. And, the most important is that my favorite blogger, Molly Wizenberg, at Orangette, wrote about it and her favorite recipe on her blog today. Well, I guess that was not much of a coincidence because she was also the one who wrote the article in Bon Appetit.

So, when I went last week, I had to try the recipe that Molly had raved about in her monthly column. It was stunning, just as promised, but that was not all. The food and wine was out of this world. Our waitress even recommended a wine that came specifically from her Grandmother's small Italian town.

And, I had been resisting for so long....

Here is my attempt at Cafe Lago's recipe. I will have to go back soon to see if I am even in the ballpark.

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Inactive Cook time: 2 hours

Serves 6
Adapted from Bon Appetit
1 c. olive oil, divided
2 pounds Roma (Plum) tomatoes, halved lengthwise, and seeded
1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
3/4 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
2 tsp. flat leaf parsley, minced
Goat cheese
1 baguette, thinly sliced cross wise and toasted

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Pour 1/2 c. olive oil in a 13x9 inch glass or ceramic pan. Arrange tomatoes cut side up. Drizzle with remaining olive oil. Sprinkle with oregano, sugar, and salt. Bake for 1 hour. Using tongs, turn tomatoes over. Bake for another hour. Turn tomatoes over again. Bake for another 15 to 45 minutes until tomatoes or deep red and very tender.

Transfer tomatoes to a plate and top with garlic and parsley. Drizzle tomatoes with some of the reserve oil in the baking dish. Let stand at room temperature for 2 hours.

Served on slices of a toasted baguette spread with goat cheese. Top with the pomodoro.

This past weekend we shipped the kid (Cashew) to my Mom's, drank as much water as we could, and headed to Sonoma to celebrate Erik's 30th birthday. We rented this amazing Italian Villa with a huge gourmet kitchen which I had planned to cook in. But, I actually did not saute or dice the entire weekend (thanks to Dane, Michael, and Eddie). We did many wine tastings, spent hours in the hot tub, and it turned out to be one of the best weekends I have ever experienced.

Well, last night, even though I was itching to cook again, my exhaustion got the best of me, which means Erik cooked. And by that I mean, he ordered a pizza.

Tonight, however, I made no excuses. I went to the grocery store to see what inspired me, and this seemed like my last salute to summer. Summer squash, corn, and grape tomatoes. I had also seen this "pressed chicken" by many of my favorite chefs, and I felt that at some point, I needed to jump on that bandwagon and try it. Enjoy!

Serves 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes

4 chicken breast halves with skin and bones (about 3 lbs. total)
Kosher salt and Cracked black pepper
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 yellow squashes, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
1 pint of tomatoes, cut in half
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 kernels of corn, stripped
1/2 c. flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
3 tsp. of thyme, divided

Pat chicken dry. Season with a generous amount of kosher salt and black pepper.

Heat oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers.
Add chicken, skin side down. Cover with parchment paper and top with a heavy skillet or pot (such as a Le Cruset or another skillet with two 15 oz. cans). Cook 8 minutes, remove pot and parchment. Then flip over and cook another 8 minutes with parchment and pot on top.

Transfer chicken to plate to keep warm with foil.

Add squash, tomatoes, garlic, corn, parsley, and 2 tsp. of thyme to the chicken renderings in the skillet. Scrape up the brown bits with the back of a wooden spoon. Cook for 6 minutes until squash is soft and tomatoes are saucy. Season with salt and pepper.

Place chicken on each plate. Top with vegetable mixture. Sprinkle remaining chicken with 1 tsp. of thyme.

I know I have told you before, but tomatoes could quite possibly be my favorite food. I like them cooked or uncooked, seasoned or not, and my favorite is right off the vine in my Moma's garden.

One of my favorite dinners of all time is my Steak with Tomato Pan Sauce. I was thinking of how I could incorporate that pan sauce into a lighter dish using pasta. And this is what I created....

I love summertime because you can get cherry tomatoes inexpensively in all assorted colors. In the winter, all though they are available, they just don't taste the same.

What is your favorite way to use cherry tomatoes in cooking (or not)?

Serves 4
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes

Kosher salt
1 lb. penne rigate
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
6 oz. of sliced pancetta, diced into small pieces
1 red onion. chopped
4 cloves of garlic, finely minced
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes ( I think I used one teaspoon!)
1/2 c. chicken broth
2 pints cherry tomatoes, assorted colors
2/3 c. flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
Splash of balsamic vinegar
Cracked black pepper
1 c. basil leaves, torn
2/3 c. parmigiano reggiano cheese, grated

Bring a large pot of water to boil.

Meanwhile, heat a large skillet with 2 tbsp. oil. over medium-high heat. Add in the pancetta. Cook until golden and crisp about 5 minutes. Add the chopped red onion, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Cook 4 minutes, or until onion is softened. Stir in the broth and scrape up any brown bits off of the bottom of the pan. Let cook for 1 minute more. Add the tomatoes and the parsley and season with salt and pepper. Cook tomatoes until they burst, about 10 minutes. At the very end, splash a little balsamic vinegar.

While tomatoes are cooking, salt the pasta water generously and add in the pasta. Cook until al dente, or about 8 minutes. Reserve 1/2 c. of pasta water. Drain pasta.

Add the pasta into the tomato pan sauce. Sprinkle with some of the basil and cheese. If the pasta needs more liquid, add in some of the pasta water until the sauce is to your desired consistency.

Serve on individual plates and top with more cheese and basil.