Rachael Ray's Pasta with Pumpkin and Sausage
RR's Pasta Puttanesca
Figs Poached in Port (From The Vineyard Kitchen, Maria Helm Sinsky)
See my Cocktails, Wine, and Chocolate page for a pomegranate cosmopolitan recipe
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Make RR's EASY Cran-Apple Sauce and you'll NEVER buy canned cranberry sauce ever
again!
I've been making this sauce for several years now. I make a triple batch and can it for
xmas gifts, and for the middle of spring or summer when I crave some fall foods.
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Michael Chiarello's Pork Chops with Home Made Spice Rub and Roasted Apples, Onions
& Pears
I used Michael's recipe for the spice rub except I did not have coriander SEED on hand,
so I used coriander powder, and I added in cumin seed. I toasted only the peppercorn,
cumin seed and fennel seeds, not the pepper flakes. I use a little coffee grinder, which
is dedicated to spice grinding only. Easy, since I do not do coffee. Caffeine and me do
not get along. I made a big batch to keep for next time, I just used 2 TBS of every
ingredient and added them all to a Tupperware with lid and shook them up. It's
semi-spicy in a spice way, not a hot way.
I made my own way when it came to the roasted apples..I used about 4-5 apples green
and red, I used 3-4 pears (because no one was eating them and they were turning), and
I used 1/4 of a yellow onion. I seasoned them with salt and pepper and a little
cinnamon and olive oil. Roasted them for about 1 hour. I did add them to my searing
pan which I added a couple of turns of the only dry white wine I had on hand Giesen
Sauvignon Blanc, reduced for a while and then poured in most of the apple pear onion
mix till it simmered, and then turned off..OH DEAR GOD was it good. So good that every
time I go in the kitchen I still smell it and want more. Even though it's gone.
We used pork steaks not chops because that is what he picked up. Seared 4 mins on
one side and 1 on the other just like the recipe. Very tasty. You could totally use
chicken here. But, pork and apples are a marriage in heaven. Especially when cinnamon
is in the mix.
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My Favorite Soup of the Season: Imagine Foods Organic Creamy Butternut Squash Soup.
I add 1 TBS of applesauce, and 1 TBS of heavy cream, stir well and top with chives. A
restaurant on the coast makes a pumpkin apple soup and this tastes just like it for me.
The Rendezvous B&B in Fort Bragg. Ask for Kim, and tell him I sent you!
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Pumpkin Crunch: recipe donated by Victoria
1 Can pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling, just pumpkin)
1 Can evaporated milk
3 Eggs (beaten)
3/4 Cup granulated sugar
1 Box yellow cake mix
1 Cup chopped macadamia nuts
1 Cup melted butter
Whipped cream
Preheat oven to 350*
Mix pumpkin, milk, eggs and sugar in a bowl and then pour into a 13"x 9" pan. Sprinkle
the cake mix and nuts over the pumpkin mixture. Spoon the melted butter on top. Bake
at 350 degrees for 1 hour.
After it has cooled completely, turn out onto a serving plate. Serve with whipped cream.
* You can also bake this in a four-section cake mold and made 4 desserts, instead of
one!
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Hawaiian Sweet Potato Pie: recipe donated by Victoria
2 large peeled sweet potatoes (baked or boiled)
1/2 stick salted butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
1/2 TBS. pure vanilla extract
5 oz. Can evaporated milk
1/4 cup crème of coconut
1/2 tsp. salt
Preheat oven to 350*
Mix all ingredients except eggs with whisk or mixer until cream texture.
Next add beaten eggs to mixture. Stir. Pour into an unbaked 9 inch pie shell. Bake at
350
degrees for 1 hour to 1 hour, 15 minutes. Cool thoroughly before slicing.
Makes 1 pie.
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Eggplant & Orzo Pasta:
1 Package Orzo pasta
1 Large eggplant
1 Jar marinara sauce (any brand, any flavor)
1 1/2 cups Italian style bread crumbs
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper
3-4 Eggs, beaten
Parmesan cheese
Prepare orzo following package instructions and set aside. To keep the orzo from
sticking together too much, toss with some olive oil. Heat marinara sauce in a small
covered sauce pot on low medium-low. Fill a large deep pan with about 2 inches of olive
oil and heat over medium high heat. Slice eggplant into 1/2" thick slices. Beat the eggs
in a small bowl and pour the bread crumbs onto a small plate. Dredge the eggplant in
the eggs, then the bread crumbs, then back to the egg, and back to the bread crumbs.
Essentially double coating the eggplant. When the oil is heated, add eggplant to it and
fry flipping once until golden brown. Remove from oil and let drain on a plate with some
paper towels. Once all the eggplant is fried, assemble the dish as follows: Orzo pasta,
a couple of spoonfuls of sauce, then a few slices of fried eggplant, then top off with a
little more sauce and parmesan cheese.
*Replace the eggplant with boneless skinless chicken breast tenders and follow exact
recipe, cooking chicken until fully cooked.