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
Review: Cucina Povera: Tuscan Peasant Cooking
Title: Cucina Povera
Subtitle: Tuscan Peasant Cooking
Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
Pages: 192
Goodreads:
Italian cookbook authority Pamela Sheldon Johns presents more than 60 peasant-inspired dishes from the heart of Tuscany inside Cucina Povera. This book is more than a collection of recipes of “good food for hard times.” La cucina povera is a philosophy of not wasting anything edible and of using technique to make every bite as tasty as possible. Budget-conscious dishes utilizing local and seasonal fruits and vegetables create everything from savory pasta sauces, crusty breads and slow-roasted meats to flavorful vegetable accompaniments and end-of-meal sweets.
The recipes inside Cucina Povera have been collected during the more than 20 years Johns has spent in Tuscany. Dishes such as Ribollita (Bread Soup), Pollo Arrosto al Vin Santo (Chicken with Vin Santo Sauce), and Ciambellone (Tuscan Ring Cake) are adapted from the recipes of Johns’ neighbors, friends, and local Italian food producers. Lavish color and black-and-white photographs mingle with Johns’ recipes and personal reflections to share an authentic interpretation of rustic Italian cooking inside Cucina Povera.
My Review:
Peasants are the most important part of any country. They are the backbone and it is no wonder why some of the best foods come from peasant cooking. These recipes, cooked for generations, are grown with love. I really loved this book! Coming from a long linage of Italians, I specifically know a few good recipes myself. Pamela Sheldon Johns brings the heart of Tuscany to your table. The photography is gorgeous; sets you in the middle of Tuscany’s beautiful countrysides. There is so many great recipes in this book it is hard to pick a favorite! Cucina Povera is a lovely cook book with simple ingredients and fantastically easy recipes. If you pick up this book, try the Ribollita (Bread Soup), it would be the closest to my favorite!
Review: Food From Many Greek Kitchens
Title: Food From Many Greek Kitchens
Publisher: Andrews Mcmeel Publishing
Pages: 336
Goodreads:
Food, culture, celebration, and memory are inexorably tied together inside Tessa Kiros’s Kouzina. As the follow-up to her best-selling Venezia and Falling Cloudberries, Kouzina explores Kiros’s Greek-Cypriot heritage and takes readers on a colorful journey into the Greek kitchens of her friends and family as she catalogs the traditional foods for fasting, festivals, and feast days.
My Review:
This is not a cookbook, it is a cooking journey. With gorgeous landscape pictures and information about the culture of the recipes, I felt like I was in Greece learning to cook. The baklava was absolutely stunning and I can not wait to try it again! Simple recipes that are authentic and memorizing. Put this one on the coffee table and your guests will think they just vacationed in Greece!
V&J’s Philly Cheese Steak
I really love twitter but it is definitely bad to look at midday, when you are hungry, and follow tons of foodies. The issue this morning was I saw gravy and then from that point I wanted chicken fried chicken with white pepper gravy. Then I remembered there was something I was craving a few days ago and it was a Philly! Here’s the deal, chicken fried chicken is really not a challenge for me to make. I make fried everything, except fried butter (that’s just wrong on so many levels). So the Philly won in the wars of what to cook and blog. The largest challenge of a Philly Cheese Steak is the meat. Problem is that you need sliced rib eye from a boneless rib eye. Not that hard you would think but some meat departments do not have a deli slicer in the back near the raw meat. I got lucky after calling around to three places, not only found someone who could cut the meat for the Philly but also cooked a Philly themselves at home. The process is pretty easy once you find someone that will cut it for you. If you do not have a griddle then I highly suggest you get one. This can be cooked in a iron skillet but the temperature does not stay even in a skillet versus an electric griddle. Once you have the griddle (or iron skillet) and your meat then follow these simple steps below. Remember no Philly is better then the one you create yourself. Why? Cause you can have anything you want on it!
Do not forget mise en place!
Get the griddle nice and hot with a tad of olive oil and two spatulas.
Do not fry any longer then 8 minutes. Just cook till you see no red and it is lightly browned. Cooking too long will make the meat tough. And after a few minutes you should have something that looks like this.
Ingredients
Instructions
On the hot griddle ( or skillet) just add your guilty pleasures of a Philly and fry. Once browned pull off the meat and add it to the bread with cheese underneath; if you want cheese that is.
http://mooshujenne.com/vjs-philly-cheese-steak/Rainier Cherry Panna Cotta – Summer Fest!
It’s just HOT here in Texas! Today with the heat index is over 111 degrees. So, to break the extremely unbearable heat and have a sweet summer fest in your mouth; I give you Rainier Cherry Panna Cotta. Rainiers are sweet cherries with creamy-yellow flesh. The cherries are very sensitive to temperature, wind, and rain. About 1/3 of a Rainier cherry orchard’s crop is eaten by birds. Well, if it is good enough for the birds then they are good enough for me!
Ingredients
Instructions
Place the milk, cream, and sugar in pot over medium heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Meanwhile, place the gelatin in the bowl and add the reserved 1/4 cup milk, stir to combine. Add the gelatin mixture to the simmering pot and cook while stirring for 3 minutes. Pour the panna cotta into ramekins and chill for 4 hours or overnight if you would like. Once your panna cotta is set, pull it out, and drop some halved Rainier cherries over the panna cotta then drizzle caramel. Serve immediately!
http://mooshujenne.com/rainier-cherry-panna-cotta/
- What’s Gaby Cooking: Cherry Chocolate Truffle Ice Cream
- Big Girls Small Kitchen: Cherry Cornmeal Cake
- Cooking With Elise: Roasted Cherries with Lavender and Almond Panna Cotta
- Daydreamer Desserts: Cherry Crumble Cake
- Ingredient Challenge Monday: Black Forest Ice Cream Done Two Ways
- Spices and Aroma: Dilkush with Cherries
- And Love It Too: Cherry-Pecan Chicken Salad
- FN Dish: The Ultimate Cherry Pie
- Daily*Dishin: Simple French Cherry Clafouti
- Glory Foods: Collard Greens and Cherry Reduction
- Chez Us: Gluten-Free Cherry Clafoutis
- Food for 7 Stages of Life: South Indian Hot and Sour Soup
- Virtually Homemade: Dark Chocolate Cherry Kuchen
- In Jennie’s Kitchen: Cherry Conserves
- The Sensitive Epicure: Gluten-Free Cherry Almond Clafouti
- Cooking Channel: Very Cherry Sangria
- Napa Farmhouse 1885: Cherry Balsamic Vinegar
- Zaika Zabardast: Balsamic Cherry and Peach Crisp
- Mooshu Jenne: Rainier Cherry Panna Cotta
- Food2: A Very Cherry Recipe Round-Up
- Virtually Vegan Mamma: Fresh Cherry and Almond Scones
- CIA Dropout: Italian Cherry Cake
- Sweet Life Bake: Honey-Tequila Pickled Cherries
- Cooking With Books: Cherry Cooler
- Recipe Girl: Cherry Limeade Pound Cake
Pick Your Heat Salsa
Salsa is just not something that stays very long in my house. It seems that a jar of good salsa at $5 a jar is just not worth the cost when you can make triple that amount with this simple recipe. Of course the guys (Chance & V) in the house were not sure if this salsa would be as good as the jarred variations. Of course I told them it won’t be as good, it will be even better because the salsa is fresh, all except the canned tomatoes of which you can eliminate, and just use fresh tomatoes in the place of them. However, I love the taste of the fire roasted tomatoes the best. So, if you are going to use some fresh tomatoes do not forget to throw them on the grill or roast them in the oven.
As far as picking your heat! If you want a spicy burn use more jalapenos. If you want a soft heat add more serranos. When I make this for people who can’t handle the heat I use one jalapeno and two serranos. If you want a bunch of heat then leave your seeds in the jalapenos. Now off to make some yummy cold desserts to beat this 100 degree month of heat in Texas!
Ingredients
Instructions
In a food processor drop in your garlic, cilantro, and peppers. Pulse till garlic is minced and cilantro is fine. Add your onion and pulse. Squeeze the juice of the lime and add in the two cans of fire roasted tomatoes. Pulse for a few second and then add in the large can of tomato sauce. Salt and pepper and pulse till well mixed. If you would like this to stay longer then a week just add a half of a cup of vinegar to your salsa. Vinegar will act as your preservative. Store in large container in fridge.
http://mooshujenne.com/pick-your-heat-salsa/Grandma Toni’s Made Over Goulash
Gosh, the aroma! I just love cooking Italian Goulash because of the aroma. It is seriously intoxicating. I generally only make it in the Fall and Winter but I thought why not, it is a great stove top recipe, and with the Texas heat; I definitely do not want to run the oven. This recipe is adapted from my Grandmother Toni’s goulash recipe. I grew up eating this yummy dish; however, she isn’t a spice queen like me. So, I decided to try and perfect her recipe and add a little me into it. And when I say me, I mean orange! I have the greatest new obsession with orange bell peppers; not habaneros. I just want to add them to everything but never know what to add them to. While preparing for the goulash I realized all I had was the orange peppers and usually I use green peppers. The orange peppers were fantastic and super tasty! Cooked up sweet and added a great flavor and color to the dish. Enjoy my comfort food!
Ingredients
Instructions
Fill a large pot with water and a few drops of olive oil. Salt your water bath and bring to a boil. Drop in pasta and cook till done.
In a large sauce pot add in your chopped onions, peppers, garlic, and olive oil. Saute for about 2 minutes. Add a little salt and then add in your ground beef. Stirring frequently, breaking up your meat while browning. Once your meat is browned add in paprika and Worcester sauce. Then add in your four cans of stewed tomatoes and large can of tomato sauce. Bring to a low boil and your sauce is ready.
Mix your pasta and sauce in a large bowl and serve!
http://mooshujenne.com/grandma-tonis-made-over-goulash/
Mini Taco Salad
With the heat wave stretching across all of the states and from what I hear from my friend Jen, even Canada is warmer then usual; I thought it would be great to post a simple stove top recipe. Slaving over the stove after being in the Summer heat is just not my forte! So, I brought back a recipe we used to make when the kids were little. However, I used to make it with baked tortillas over foil balls in the oven. This time I wanted to actually fry the tortillas, since my frying skills are better, and to make mini taco salads. Perfect for small dinners in the hot Summer heat or a super fun appetizer for a house party!
Ingredients
Instructions
In a stir fry pan or deep frying pan put in a tablespoon of olive oil, chopped garlic, half of the chopped onion, and ground beef. Brown the meat till you see no pink. Add in taco seasoning, this should dry up some of your grease. You do not want to dry up all the grease as it will make the tacos dry.
Preheat oven to 180F. In a second large pot fill about half way with vegetable oil and heat to about 350F. Using a large spoon or ladle, put your tortilla underneath and press down into hot oil. The tortilla will then curl around the spoon forming a small taco salad bowl. You can also use tongs to pull up the sides. Having someone else help is key in preventing either of you getting burned by hot oil. After you pull the bowls out of the hot oil just put them upside down on a baking sheet lined with paper towels. You can have the baking sheet in the oven to keep shells warm. As soon as your done be sure to turn off oven or the towels will burn!
Once your shells and meat are done just add the ingredients to the bowls that you would like. Sour cream, avocado, tomatoes, and salsa are great options.
http://mooshujenne.com/mini-taco-salad/Boeuf Bourguignon
In honor of Bastille day, I thought it would be best to post you my son’s favorite French recipe. Boeuf Bourguignon also known as Beef Burgundy. It is a beef stew braised in wine. My son and I just love the fresh ingredients that go into this recipe. The fresh basil and thyme keeps the dish so rustic! My version of this dish is cooked in a dutch oven pot on stove top. If you don’t have a dutch oven you can use a larger sauce pot. If you would like the recipe of how to cook this in a oven or over camp fire in a dutch oven just leave me a comment and I will send you the recipe.
Ingredients
Instructions
In large pot start out by frying your bacon a little till crisp reserving the oil. With bacon grease still in pot, drop in your garlic, pearl onions, carrots, mushrooms, and olive oil. Saute for about 5 minutes just till carrots have tenderized a bit on the outsides. Add in your beef, salt, pepper, and cook till browned on the outside. Add in the flour stirring quickly to help the thicken the juices. Add in your potatoes and pour in wine to cover all ingredients. Add in 4 cups beef broth. Drop in your thyme, parsley, and bay leaves. Cover and bring to a boil. Once it is boiling you can bring down to a low simmer and cook for about 2 hours till the meat is tender.
You can cook your potatoes on the side if you prefer. Sometimes I cook them in with the rest and other days I will cook them in the oven in dill and butter. I really do suggest fingerling or small petite red potatoes so the skin keeps the starches from ruining the sauce.
http://mooshujenne.com/boeuf-bourguignon/How To Cut A Blooming Onion
One of my favorite items on a appetizer menu is the Blooming Onion also known as the Awesome Blossom. With onions on sale at my local market, I wondered if I could really make a blooming onion at home. I thought for sure the hardest part would have to be the cutting. Actually, the hardest part is getting it in and out of the frying pot! Here is a how to cut a blooming onion video and I will follow up soon with a recipe on how to dust your onion.
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