Smoked Chorizo Bean Soup
Swear to the gods, cooking beans never turns out the same. Soak them 24 hours and put them in the pan and half of them are still hard hours into it. This is why every woman/man wants to crockpot cook their beans. I am just not a huge crockpot person. It takes the talent out of cooking or at least I kind of feel that way about it. My picture of smoked chorizo bean soup looks so red from the chorizo.
Today, I want to tell you how I cook beans and make sure that they do not turn out hard. The no fail method is soak them for 36 hours not 24 hours. Drain them a few times and replace the water. Give them plenty of room to grow in the water by putting them in a larger bowl with a lid. After soaking, cook them for four hours and then let cool. Store them over night and cook for four hours again the next day. This allows for the oils and flavor to settle and you will have some of the best beans you’ve ever tasted. Adding a tad of liquid smoke really kicks in the flavor of the beans along with the bacon adding additional smoke flavor.
Ingredients
Instructions
In a large bowl, soak beans for 36 hour replacing the water two to three times.
In a large pot, add in onion, garlic, bacon, and jalapenos. Saute until onions are half way translucent. Add in chorizo and saute for about three minutes. Add in beans and broth; cover with water to 3/4 of the pot. Add liquid smoke and Worchester sauce along with salt and pepper. Cover and cook on low heat for four hours. Let cool and refrigerate over night. Cook again four hours on low before you plan to serve.
Serve with corn bread and top with cilantro or parsley.
http://mooshujenne.com/smoked-chorizo-bean-soup/Bucatini all’Amatriciana
After months of promising this recipe for bucatini all’amatriciana it is finally here. Guanciale (pork cheek) is not common in the US, which means you must replace it with the closest item, that item is pancetta. Pancetta in a block is also hard to locate but at least we have one Italian market and deli in town. Finding the pancetta was the simple part.
I would eventually go on a three month endeavor to find bucatini pasta. Bucatini is a No. 12 pasta that resembles spaghetti but has a elongated hole running complete through it. Luckily, World Market is renovating their stores and recently stocked it with bucatini. I purchased five packages I was so excited!
Bucatini all”Amatriciana is a dish that made it popular in Rome. It is named after the tiny town of Amatrice. It is said that the shepherds love this meal to warm up from the chilly mountain air.
I just love any excuse to have fresh basil in the house as the aroma is delightful! If anyone is interested, I can add the recipe of how to make your own peeled tomatoes to replace the canned tomatoes within this recipe. Canned can be bought but are sometimes hard to locate.
Ingredients
Instructions
Fill a large pot with water, one tablespoon olive oil, and salt. Bring to a boil and cook pasta until done while cooking the sauce.
In a pot or saute skillet, add onions, pancetta (guanciale), garlic, and two tablespoons olive oil and tad of salt; cook on medium heat for three to five minutes. Add in dried red chili pepper and saute for about a minute. Drain just the top juice of the cans, not all, as you want the sauce to be a bit thick rather than runny. Add peeled tomatoes and the white wine. Break up the tomatoes while cooking. Cook for about ten minutes reducing the tomato juice off. Salt and pepper to taste.
Drain pasta reserving some of the pasta water; add sauce to pasta. Toss and plate. Top with freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese and garnish with basil.
http://mooshujenne.com/bucatini-allamatriciana/Cracked Pepper Andouille Pasta and Book Giveaway
One day Robert and I were tweeting, yes I said tweeting, back and forth and he truly grabbed my attention when he mentioned gouda and pancetta in mac and cheese. I love experiencing different mac and cheese recipes; especially if they have pancetta. We also would discuss how to make blackened chicken with out burning it. Many don’t know that there is a difference. Though, I am a bit strange and like both blackened and burnt!
So, I had this brilliant idea, why not share his cookbook with one lucky winner. I quickly tweeted Mr. Medina and asked if he would be interested in a giveaway and to my enjoyment he said of course! He sent the book to me in a snap but due to finals this week I have been procrastinating. Finally, I had a few quick moments to try a recipe out of his book. Let me tell you it wasn’t easy to pick one. Roasted garlic butter! Boom! That was it, Medina gave me inspiration in the kitchen. So without further ado here is the Cracked Pepper Andouille Pasta and a chance to win Mr. Medina’s lovely book “If You Can’t Stand The Heat”. Oh and did I mention he is ex-firefighter from NOLA!
(Not the best picture. No natural light eek!)
Ingredients Instructions In small pan start to fry the andouille. While the sausage is cooking, put on a large pot of water to boil for the pasta. Once the water is ready add in your pasta; salt the water. After the andouille is cooked well, pull off the sausage to a cutting board and slice in rounds. Save the grease and leftovers in the pan; do not dispose. Add garlic and butter to pan and remove from heat. This will melt the butter and lightly roast the garlic.
Meanwhile, drain the pasta. Add in salt to taste, paprika, and cayenne pepper. Pepper (cracked black pepper) well till pasta is coated. Add in sausage, butter sauce, and stir well.
The giveaway!
Winner is Phil Terry! Congratulations!
How you win:
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Leave a comment below. Tell me what your favorite holiday dish is and a memory behind it. If you have your favorite dish on your blog please post a link.
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For each item below that you do, you will get one extra chance to win. You must leave one comment per task that you do as each counts for one entry. If you already have us added on Twitter or Facebook it still counts as an entry.
- Follow @MedinaLite on Twitter
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Important Details:
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-Winner(s) will have until 12/12/11 to claim their cookbook or we will choose another winner.
-Winner will receive one autographed copy of If You Can’t Stand The Heat {$29.99 MSRP}. Product will be shipped by Mooshu Jenne.
Disclosure:
This giveaway is provided to you by Mooshu Jenne. I was given the product free of charge to test and review it; however, I was not monetarily compensated for the review or giveaway.
Sun Burst Tomato Pasta
My son, Chance, told me he was tired of the same old food. With the next Summer Fest for the FN Dish coming up; I thought why not come up with something different! While looking for inspiration, I came across these little bad boys, Sunburst Tomatoes. I just love the color! Color in a dish means so much! Those colors scream Fall is coming, but Summer is yet still here. Some days your just looking for quick and easy meal, without the overload of ingredients, this dish is it! Creamy Parmesan sauce with bursting tomatoes and spunky aromatic spring onions; it is a super food dish! Oh, did I mention the left over ham? Yes, just keep your left over ham from any occasion and toss right in. You can always substitute the ham for bacon if you would like. Not sure if my son ended up liking the dish but I know my grandmother fell in love with it! (she’s picky).
Ingredients
Instructions
Fill a large pot with water, olive oil, and salt; bring to a boil. While you are waiting for the water to boil; slice the sun burst tomatoes in halves. Chop the spring onions. Use both the chives and whites. Add them to a large bowl.
In a large sauce pot add in two cups of heavy whipping cream and bring to a low boil. Then add in Parmesan (or romano) cheese to the cream. Stir till slightly melted, add in ham till warmed, salt and pepper to taste, and remove from heat.
Remove, strain, and rinse pasta. Add it to the large bowl and top with sauce. Toss lightly in bowl and serve.
http://mooshujenne.com/sun-burst-tomato-pasta/
This post is part of Food Network’s Summer Fest! Check out the other great tomato dishes below.
Summer Fest is a season long, bi-weekly event where Food Network editors team up with blogs to share tips and recipes about what’s available at the market.
Big Girls Small Kitchen: Seared Chicken with Cherry Tomato Pan Sauce
Haute Apple Pie: Heirloom Tomato & Three Cheese Tart
What’s Gaby Cooking: Zebra Tomato and Burrata Crostini
Zaika Zabardast: Balsamic Roasted Tomato-Basil Ice
And Love It Too: Healthy Lunchbox – Garlic Tomato Basil Pesto Bruchetta
Chez Us: Roasted Tomato Sauce
Daily*Dishin: Refreshing and Rustic – Tuscan Bread Salad
Glory Foods: Fresh Tomato Salsa
Dishin and Dishes: Tomato Tart Tatin
The Purple Cook: Eggplant Parmesan Caprese Salad
I Am Mommy: Tomato Crudite
Cooking With My Kid: Gluten-Free White Bean Chive Cakes with Heirloom Tomatoes
FN Dish: Easy Tomato Appetizers
Add a Pinch: Simple Caprese Salad Skewers
Sweet Life Bake: Salsa Cruda
Virtually Homemade: Farfalle with Roasted Tomato Sauce, Bacon and Shaved Romano
Dixie Chik Cooks: Tomato, Basil and Olive Bruschetta
The Sensitive Epicure: Yemista – Greek Stuffed Tomatoes & Peppers with Potatoes
Mooshu Jenne: Sun Burst Tomato Pasta
Napa Farmhouse 1885: Book Club, Tomatoes and a Recipe for Chicken Provençal?
Cooking With Elise: Tomato Parmesan Biscuits
From My Corner of Saratoga: Cooking from the Garden – Bruschetta Pizza
Fritos and Foie Gras: Tomato Terrine
Creative Culinary: Fresh and Savory Tomato Pie
Big Apple Nosh: Caprese Salad/Tomato Carnage
Spices and Aroma: Quick and Easy Paneer Curry
Zaika Zabardast: Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Breakfast Rolls
