Christmas Pasta

Looking for something to serve on Christmas day? Here's a flavorful sauce with pancetta, Italian sausage, veal, pork and beef!

Cook Time: 20 min
Level: Intermediate
Yield: 4 servings


Ingredients

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
1/4 pound pancetta, thick cut, chopped into small bits (Italian cured pork, ask at deli counter)
1/2 pound bulk hot Italian sausage
1 pound combined ground beef, pork and veal
1 medium carrot, peeled and finely chopped
1 rib celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup good quality dry red wine
1 cup prepared beef stock, paper container or canned
2 (32-ounce) cans chunky style crushed tomatoes
A handful chopped flat leaf parsley leaves
1/4 teaspoon (a couple of pinches) allspice or cinnamon
Coarse salt and black pepper
2 pounds penne rigate, cooked to al dente
Grated Pecorino Romano, as an accompaniment
Fresh, crusty bread, for mopping


Directions

Heat a deep pot over medium high heat. Add oil, garlic, bay, and pancetta bits and brown for 1 minute. Add meats and brown and crumble them for 5 minutes.


Chop carrot, celery, and onions near the stove and add to the pot as you work. Cook vegetables with meat 5 minutes and add wine. Cook for 1 minute; add stock and tomatoes to the pot.


Stir in parsley, allspice, or cinnamon and season sauce with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring sauce to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, and cook 10 to 15 minutes minimum before serving. Reheated sauce only improves.


Toss pasta (cook off only as much pasta as you need at the time: half a pound for every 3 people) with a couple of ladles of sauce to coat, then top bowl with extra sauce. Top pasta with lots of cheese and pass bread at the table.


From: foodnetwork.com

Grilled Chicken with Arugula Pesto

Quick, light and delicious pasta!

Cook Time: 10 min

Level: Easy
Yield: 4 servings


Ingredients

1/4 cup sliced or slivered almonds or shelled pistachios
1 cup packed fresh arugula leaves
1/2 cup packed fresh basil leaves
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 clove garlic, grated or minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 small pieces boneless, skinless chicken breast (tenders removed)


Directions

Heat a grill pan to high.

Toast the nuts lightly in small skillet over low heat, then add them to a food processor.

Add the arugula, basil, lemon juice, garlic, and salt and pepper, to taste, and pulse to combine.

With the processor on, stream in the extra-virgin olive oil to form thick pesto.

Lightly pound out the chicken, then rub all sides with the pesto. Spray the grill pan with cooking spray or rub with a little oil and grill the chicken 2 to 4 minutes on each side.

From: foodnetwork.com

Penne-Wise Pumpkin Pasta

Cook Time: 10 min

Level: Easy

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients

Salt

1 pound whole-wheat penne

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3 shallots, finely chopped

3 to 4 cloves garlic, grated

2 cups chicken stock

1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin puree

1/2 cup cream

1 teaspoon hot sauce, to taste

Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste

2 pinches ground cinnamon

Salt and black pepper

7 to 8 leaves fresh sage, thinly sliced plus more, for garnish

Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Directions

Heat water for pasta, salt it and cook penne to al dente.

Heat the oil, 2 turns of the pan, over medium heat. Add shallots and garlic to the pan, saute 3 minutes. Stir in chicken stock and combine with pumpkin, stir in cream then season sauce with hot sauce, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer 5 to 6 minutes more to thicken. Stir in sage, toss with pasta with grated cheese, to taste.

From: foodnetwork.com

Autumn Potato Gratin

Cook Time: 35 min

Level: Easy
Yield: 8 servings


Ingredients

4 pounds mixed baby potatoes, such as Red Bliss, Peruvian Purples, and Fingerlings
2 cups heavy cream, plus some to cover
4 tablespoons butter (1/2 stick)
2 sprigs each fresh thyme, sage, and rosemary
2 garlic cloves, cracked
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan


Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.


Halve the potatoes and toss them into a large baking dish and season with salt and pepper.


Meanwhile, put the cream, butter, herbs, and garlic in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes, to infuse the cream with flavor. Season with salt and pepper.


Pour the hot cream mixture through a strainer over the potatoes, (discard the herbs and garlic), if there is not enough cream to go 3/4 of the way up the potatoes then pour some additional cream on top to make up the difference. Sprinkle the Parmesan evenly over the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the potatoes are cooked through and top begins to brown. Cover and keep warm until ready to serve.

From: foodnetwork.com

Chili-Garlic Roasted Broccoli

Cook Time: 20 min

Level: Easy

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, eyeball it

5 to 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 tablespoon grill seasoning blend (recommended:Montreal Steak Seasoning by McCormick Grill Mates)

1 large head broccoli, cut into thin, long spears

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Place extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, chili powder and grill seasoning in the bottom of a large bowl and add the broccoli spears. Toss to coat broccoli evenly then transfer to a large nonstick baking sheet. Roast the broccoli until ends are crisp and brown and stalks are tender, 17 to 20 minutes.

From: foodnetwork.com

Indian Summer Turkey Chili

Cook Time: 25 min
Level: Easy
Yield: 8-10 servings


Ingredients

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan
2 1/2 pounds ground turkey (85 percent lean) or ground turkey breast (99 percent lean), 2 packages
4 tablespoons dark chili powder, 2 palm fulls
2 tablespoons grill seasoning blend, any brand, 1 palm full
1 tablespoon cumin, 1/2 palm full
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 to 3 tablespoons hot sauce, medium to extra-spicy
1 large onion, quartered
2 large peppers, any color combination, red, green, purple, yellow or orange, chopped
1/2 bottle beer (the alcohol cooks out), about 1 cup
1 (14-ounce) can tomato sauce
1/2 cup smoky barbecue sauce
2 cups corn kernels, optional


Directions

Heat a pot over medium to medium high heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil, 3 turns of the pan, and the turkey meat. Season the meat with: chili powder, grill seasoning, cumin, Worcestershire and hot sauce. Break up the meat with the back of a wooden spoon into small crumbles.


Chop the onion, reserving 1/4 of it for topping the chili. Brown meat 5 minutes, then add onions and chopped bell peppers and cook 10 minutes more. Add beer and deglaze the pan, scraping up the drippings and cooking off the alcohol. Add tomato sauce and barbecue sauce and bring to a bubble. It using corn kernels add them now. Let chili simmer 10 minutes. Adjust seasonings and heat level to your taste. Remove from heat and serve.


TIDBIT:

To make a double batch, heat 2 pots and make 1 batch in each pot, rather than using 1 massive pot that is hard to control.

Dippers:

Choose from any or all of the following for dipping and scooping into your chili:

Pretzel Rods
Yellow, Red or Blue Corn Tortilla Chips, any flavor
Black Bean Tortilla Chips
Polenta Chips, Plain or Guacamole flavor
Pita Chips, Plain or Spicy flavors
Yukon Gold, Red Bliss or Blue Potato Chips, any flavor

All of the above can be found on either snack aisle or natural foods snack section in your market.

Toppers:

Choose from any or all of the following for topping your chili:

Shredded Cheeses: smoked white sharp cheddar, such as Cabot brand, pepper jack, chipotle Cheddar, 5 peppercorn Cheddar, Monterey jack
Sliced canned jalapenos, drained
Salsas
Sour cream
Chopped raw onion
Chopped green olives and pimentos
Chopped cilantro leaves
Diced tomatoes

Defrosted frozen corn or leftover corn on the cob, scraped from cob

From: foodnetwork.com

Jalapeno-Lime Corn on The Cob

A perfect match with your BBQ!

Cook Time: 15 min

Level: Easy
Yield: 6 servings


Ingredients

1 stick butter
1 lime, juiced and zested
1 small jalapeno, seeded
1 clove garlic
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
6 ears corn on the cob, husked
1 slice bread, of any kind
Coarse salt


Directions

Combine butter, lime, jalapeno, garlic and paprika in food processor and pulse process until smooth. Place on waxed paper or plastic and roll. Place in freezer until ready to serve.


Cook corn by boiling, steaming or grilling. Cut disks of butter and rub onto corn, nesting the butter in a slice of bread to apply it to the hot corn. Season ears with salt (and fight over the hot buttered bread slice!)

From: foodnetwork.com