Ve(getari)an Lemon-Basil Orzotto

After seeing this recipe pop up on my blog roll yesterday, I just knew I had to make it... with a few little tweaks.

I'm definitely no stranger to making risotto the traditional way and here's what I've learned: It's not so much about the ingredients as it is about the technique. Once you understand that, you can have fun playing around with the ingredients and change things up from the standard arborio rice (which, truth be told, I'm not a huge fan of rice if another option is available) that the Italian's use. Essentially, you start by toasting your grain of choice in a little bit of olive oil or butter, add in a splash of white wine (or not), stir it until the liquid has absorbed, and then add your liquid of choice in small doses, stirring occasionally while the liquid absorbs and starches are released from your grain of choice thereby creating a rich, creamy dish without a drop of cream. I've used this technique with the standard rice, but also with orzo, barley, and spelt, each time with the same rich results.

Ve(getari)an Lemon-Basil Orzotto

that brand of veg stock gives a deep color to the dish

Ingredients:
1 Tbs. olive oil
1 cup orzo (that's the little pasta that looks like rice)
1 shallot, diced
3 Tbs. lemon juice (that's about how much I got from 1 lemon)
2 cups of vegetable stock (you might need more or less depending on how long you let the orzotto cook)
asparagus, sliced on the bias (I used 6 spears, but you can use more or less depending on your taste)
peas (you guessed it- straight from the freezer!)
3 Tbs. parmesan, grated *omit for vegan
1 Tbs. lemon zest (from the lemon I juiced)
2 Tbs. fresh basil, shredded
salt & pepper to taste

Directions:
In a heavy-bottomed saute pan over medium heat, toast the orzo in the olive oil until it starts to turn golden brown and smells nutty, about 2-3 minutes. Add in the shallot and lemon juice, stirring until absorbed, another minute or so. Now, here's where you need a little patience: Add 1/2 cup of vegetable stock at a time, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has been absorbed before making the next addition. Each addition will take a little bit longer to absorb (orzo cooks MUCH quicker than arborio rice does- about half the time), but you need to resist the urge to add the liquid too soon. With the 4th addition, toss in the asparagus and peas, as well as the parmesan if you're using it. Continue to stir until the liquid is mostly absorbed, then remove from the heat and add in the lemon zest and basil. By the time it makes it to the plate, your orzotto will have this amazing creaminess... and you didn't have to add a single drop of cream.

Enjoy!

Quinoa & Chick Pea Salad

Another no-recipe recipe coming at you... the beauty of this particular dish is that you can use whatever fresh produce you have on hand and make as much or as little as you want. (I made enough for 1-2 servings, depending on whether you count it as a side-dish or entree.) This "recipe" lends itself beautifully to swap outs so you can make it with just about anything in your pantry if you don't like quinoa: couscous, bulgar wheat, wheat berries, barley, brown rice, or any short cut pasta.

Quinoa & Chick Pea Salad

Ingredients:
quinoa
cooking liquid of choice (water, vegetable stock, chicken stock... whatever floats your boat)
carrot, diced
shallot, diced
cucumber, diced
roasted red pepper, diced
cherry tomatoes, diced
chick peas, drained and rinsed
extra virgin olive oil
red wine vinegar
any combination of fresh/dry herbs (I used parsley, thyme, basil, pinch of oregano)
salt & pepper to taste

Directions:
In an appropriately sized pot, cook the quinoa in your liquid of choice, adding the carrots about half through the cooking time. (For my single entree serving, I used 1/4 cup quinoa + 1/2 cup veg stock.)

Meanwhile, combine the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl. (I like to make my vinaigrette with 1 part vinegar to 2 parts oil.) Stir in the quinoa once it's absorbed all of the liquid and then cooled slightly. Finish with fresh herbs and enjoy at room temperature or, if you have the patience to wait, it's even better after it's been refrigerated for a couple of hours.

Enjoy!

Simple Carrot Cupcakes

Although I remember carrot cake being my dad's favorite kind of cake and the one he requested for his birthday every year (my mother actually made cakes from scratch for family birthdays), I was never a fan of it myself... not even the cream cheese frosting that my finicky sister liked to scrape off by the fingerful. The few times I tasted carrot cake as an adult- in a bid to expand my culinary palate, so to speak- I just wasn't a fan of the cloying sweetness coupled with spice that seemed to overwhelm the natural sweetness of the star ingredient. That being said, since tomorrow is Easter and I have to work, I decided to tackle the recipe myself so I could tweak it more to my taste... which doesn't include raisins, pineapple, or coconut. AND, the only nuts are the few that I sprinkled on top. Also, instead of making a big cake, I decided to make individual cupcakes to share with my co-workers.

Simple Carrot Cupcakes

Ingredients:
3/4 cup AP flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
3/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
2 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups shredded carrots (and no, I didn't bother to peel them first, just scrubbed 'em)

cream cheese frosting (recipe to follow... or you could cheat and use canned frosting... I'm not judging)
1 Tbs. walnuts, finely chopped (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 12-cup muffin tin by spraying with non-stick spray and lining with paper cups.

In a medium bowl, whisk (or sift) together the flours, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

In a large bowl, stir together the remaining ingredients. Dump in the dry ingredients and mix until well combined. Fill the muffin cups about 3/4 full and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick blah blah blah. Cool the cupcakes in the muffin tin for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled, slather on the cream cheese frosting and top with a sprinkle of nuts if desired.

Cream Cheese Frosting: (whip the following ingredients together until light and fluffy)
4 ounces of cream cheese, room temperature (I used neufchatel instead of the full-fat version)
1 Tbs. unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar

Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Scones

2nd batch: crisp exterior, light and airy on the inside

I came across this interesting article written by L.V. Anderson while doing some research on scones a few weeks ago and decided to give the recipe a try; I liked the taste of the scones (not too sweet), but the texture was a little off. Perhaps this was one of those times when environment/weather played a part in the final product, but I found the dough to be entirely too wet (and yes, I actually followed the recipe *mostly* as written) which then led to scones that were more cake-like in texture with a barely there nod to the biscuit-like texture I was expecting. Well, after much thought, I made the scones again this morning with several tweaks to the original recipe... you can decide which you prefer. But trust me, mine are better. ;)

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Scones

1st batch: soft and cake-like

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups AP flour
3/4 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
7 Tbs. cold butter, diced (*use non-dairy butter for vegan)
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (*non-dairy for vegan)
1/2 cup fat-free half & half (*use soy or almond milk for vegan... and in case you were wondering, I keep half & half on hand for my dairy tolerant, coffee-loving friends)
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 Tbs. vanilla soy milk (you can always use more half & half, milk, cream... whatever)
1 tsp. sugar

1st batch: incredibly wet dough needed LOTS of bench flour

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together all of the dry ingredients until well mixed then rub in the cold butter with your fingers (or cut in with a pastry blender, if you have one) until the mix resembles coarse crumbs. Toss in the chocolate chips. Pour in the half & half and vanilla and stir just to combine (I find a fork to be most effective). Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and kneed it 4 or 5 times until it comes together. Using your hands, pat out the dough into a rectangle, roughly 8"x 10" and about 1/2" thick (make sure you have easy access to more AP flour, sprinkling it on the dough as needed to prevent sticking). Once the dough is shaped, use a sharp knife (I actually use a pizza cutter) to cut out 12 triangles. Carefully transfer the triangles to the prepared baking sheet, making sure to leave about an inch of space around each scone since they puff up as they bake. Brush the tops of each triangle with your dairy product of choice and sprinkle on a very scant dusting of sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until the scones are light golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack and store in an airtight container... that is, if you can resist eating them right away. ;)

Enjoy!

*Cook's note: The traditional British scone is meant to be eaten warm, straight from the oven, the same day it's made. However, I've found that these particular scones hold up very well texture-wise for up to a week when stored in an airtight container which makes them a little more accessible to my mind.

Ricotta & Spinach Stuffed Shells

for one...

A couple of weekends ago, I had the luxury of spending quite a bit of time playing in the kitchen and took full advantage of it by making several dishes. This was my first time making stuffed shells and for the life of me, I can't figure out why I've never made these before given just how easy they were. What I really like about this dish is the that you can make up a whole batch and eat them right away, or you can do like I did: freeze them individually so you can pull out as many or as few as you want on a day that you just don't feel like cooking.

Ricotta & Spinach Stuffed Shells

for a crowd...

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. olive oil

1 shallot, minced

6 ounces spinach (I used fresh, but you could always use frozen/defrosted)

1 tsp. lemon pepper

1/2 tsp. garlic powder (go ahead... you know you want to use fresh)

1 tsp. dried basil

pinch of nutmeg

salt & pepper to taste

15 ounces ricotta cheese (I used part-skim instead of whole milk ricotta)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

18-24 jumbo shells, cooked shy of al dente and tossed in olive oil to prevent sticking  (different brands of pasta make different size "jumbo" shells)

Directions:

In a saute pan over medium-low heat, cook the shallot in olive oil until slightly softened, about 2-3 minutes. Stir in the spinach and all spices, continuing to cook until the spinach has wilted and most of the moisture has cooked out, about 6-8 minutes. Set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, combine the cheeses and the cooled spinach mixture. Fill each of the shells with the cheese mixture. Once all of the shells are stuffed, you've got a couple of options...

Option #1: Cover the bottom of a glass baking dish with your favorite marinara and nestle the stuffed shells down into the sauce. Drizzle on some olive oil , cover tightly with foil, and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes before removing the foil and baking for another 10 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and bubbly.

Or, Option #2 (what I did): Spread out the stuffed shells on a lightly oiled baking sheet and place them into the freezer until they are frozen solid, about 2 hours. Once they're frozen, you can transfer them to a freezer bag and not worry about them sticking together. When you're ready to eat them, you can pull out as many as you want (bake up a big pan to feed a crowd, or pull out a few and bake in an individual casserole dish for one) and follow the directions in Option #1, although you'll need to add to the cooking time if they're frozen.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Almond Biscotti

I really like the classic Italian biscotti cookie, but I don't make them very often. Why, you ask? Essentially, I'm just too lazy. It's not that they're difficult to make, it's more so because they're time consuming what with the whole twice baking thing and my attention span (when it comes to baking) usually doesn't allow for something that takes longer than, say, 20 minutes. So saying, I found this recipe on one of my favorite food blogs (Closet Cooking) and really liked the fact that it's sort of a scaled down version; it only makes one log which translates into about 12 cookies. Yes, you still need to bake them twice- otherwise, they wouldn't be called biscotti- but hey, that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make every once in awhile. And of course, I had to tweak them ever so slightly... I swapped out the pistachios for almonds, and used plain ol' vegetable oil instead of olive oil. Now, if only I'd had some dried cherries on hand... oh, well. Next time, eh?  ;)

Chocolate Almond Biscotti

Ingredients:
1 cup AP flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking powder
pinch of salt
6 Tbs. sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
splash of vanilla extract
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup chocolate chips (I used dark chocolate)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients. (In this case, the sugar counts as a "dry" ingredient.) Stir in the remaining ingredients until just combined. Pour the dough onto a baking sheet and, using slightly damp hands (it helps to combat the stickiness of the dough, trust me), form it into a log about 8 inches long and about 2 inches wide. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes then allow the log to cool on a wire rack for 35-40 minutes.

Drop the oven temperature to 325 degrees.

Once fully cooled, use a serrated knife to slice the log into 1/2 inch cookies. Place the cookies cut-side down on the baking sheet and bake at 325 degrees for 10 minutes, flip them over, and bake on the other side for another 10 minutes. Allow the biscotti (twice-baked cookies) to cool on a wire rack then pour yourself a strong cup of coffee and dig in.

Enjoy!

*Cook's note: These aren't overly sweet cookies so you may want to use milk chocolate or even semi-sweet chocolate instead of the dark that I used. *I* happen to like the fact that these turned out deeply chocolatey without being terribly sweet, but I can see where the addition of dried fruit (like cherries, prunes, or even apricots) would make for an interesting contrast in flavor.

(Addendum: So it's now been several days since I made these cookies, and I have to say that I'm not as impressed with them as I was when they were just an hour out of the oven. The texture is just not quite right; they're not nearly as crisp as they should be even though I've stored them in the same air-tight container I've put previous batches. So, while I do like the flavor, I don't think I'll be using this particular recipe again... instead, I'll probably just use this flavor profile and apply it to one of the other biscotti recipes I've used in the past that I know hold up well.)

Pasta e Fagioli (-ish)

This no-recipe recipe is sort of a pasta e fagioli meets cassoulet meets pasta bake. Basically, I used the flavor profile of the Italian sausage cassoulet I made awhile back but combined it with pasta and turned it into a baked casserole.

Pasta e Fagioli (-ish)

Ingredients:
olive oil
onion, diced
garlic powder (or fresh if you prefer)
dried rosemary, crushed
herbes de Provence
salt & pepper to taste
fire-roasted tomatoes, diced (I had the remains of an open can in the fridge)
hot Italian sausage, pre-cooked and diced (again, leftover in the fridge)
cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
pasta of choice, cooked shy of al dente (I used whole wheat shells)
Parmesan cheese, grated (fresh is best but the stuff in the green can will do)
panko bread crumbs

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a saute pan over medium heat, cook the onion in olive oil until slightly softened, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in all of the spices and tomatoes and continue to cook for another 2-3 minutes before adding the Italian sausage, beans, and pasta. Give a big stir to combine everything before dumping it all into an appropriate sized casserole dish. Top the pasta with the Parmesan and bread crumbs, drizzle on some more olive oil, and bake at 350 degrees until the top is golden brown and nice and crusty.

Enjoy!