I am about to try this out for the first time. Yay!
Edit: Tried it…. I need to reassess my strategy before attempting again.
Happy National Filet Mignon Day!
Here’s the recipe for a Pepper-Crusted Filet Mignon, paired with a Blue Cheese Chive Butter.
Yes please.
Waffle bacon fries from Bruxie’s on Flickr.
Fried Bocconcini with Spicy Tomato and Garlic Chutney
Chutney
8 cloves garlic, peeled
1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 (15-oz) can diced tomatoes
Fried Bocconcini
16 (1-inch diameter) balls bocconcini mozzarella cheese
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 large eggs
3 cups seasoned Italian-style bread crumbs
4 cups vegetable or peanut oil, for frying
To make the chutney: Combine the garlic, ginger, salt, red wine vinegar, sugar, olive oil, cumin and cayenne pepper in your blender. Blend until smooth and well combined. Transfer the mixture to a medium saucepan along with the tomatoes (and their juices). Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated and the mixture is thick, about 45-55 minutes. Gently break up the tomatoes with the back of a wooden spoon as the chutney cooks. Season the mixture to taste with salt. Allow the chutney to cool to room temperature before serving.
To make the fried bocconcini: Drain the bocconcini well and place on a paper towel-lined plate. Pat the tops dry. Refrigerate (uncovered) for 2 hours to allow the bocconcini to dry completely.
Preheat oven to 200 F. Place a wire rack inside of a rimmed baking sheet and set aside.
Gather three wide, shallow bowls. Add the flour to the first, and season with salt and pepper. Beat the eggs together in the second bowl. Place the bread crumbs in the third bowl. Coat each ball of cheese with the flour, then dip in the eggs and roll in the bread crumbs until evenly coated. Dip the coated balls in the eggs and bread crumbs a second time. Repeat with all of the bocconcini. Freeze the breaded bocconcini for 10 minutes (don’t be tempted to leave them in there longer, or the mozzarella will still be cold after frying).
Meanwhile, pour the oil to a depth of about 3 inches into a large saucepan. Set the pan over medium-high heat and heat the oil to 375 F on a deep-frying thermometer. Working with just a few bocconcini at a time, fry the balls until they are golden brown, about 20-30 seconds each. If the temperature of the oil drops, allow it to rise back to 375 F before frying additional balls. Transfer the balls to a paper towel-lined plate briefly then place them on the wire rack and keep warm in the oven while you fry the remaining cheese.
Serve with the chutney.
And now, it is time for a food recipe that I look forward to making at my next party. I want to have a nice little dinner party. Italian food, with several courses. Now, who to put on the guest list.
This week’s meal
I’ve been trying very hard lately to stay on a food budget and a good part of that is taking the time to plan my meals. Most of this is so that I don’t just waste tons of money on eating out and I make the best use of the food that I buy. This week is Italian themed. That is, however, a very loose theme.
I made a broccoli salad with dried cranberries, sun flower seeds, onion and bacon tossed in homemade mayo. The mayo did not turn out quite as expected. I think I added the oil into the blender a little too quickly so the emulsification did not quite take.
Then I made a summer pasta salad with bell pepper, tomato, onion, and roasted broccoli tossed in an Italian vinaigrette.
Lastly, I made a creamy tossed pasta with peas and asparagus and some more bacon. The sauce was an experiment that I am happy to say, turned out pretty damn well. So let’s get rolling with recipes!
I got the broccoli salad from here. I followed the recipe pretty exactly. The mayo, however, came from here. Take your time very carefully pouring the oil into the blender. I have learned from this, don’t rush it! What I got tasted just like mayonnaise but did not quite have the right consistency. It was a little watery and prone to separating.
The Summer Pasta Salad was a great success. I replaced the mushrooms with a second bell pepper and the Roma tomatoes with grape tomatoes cut in halves. Super tasty, even when I left off all the garnish.
My creamy pasta toss was loosely based on this recipe. I did not have any creme fraiche or heavy cream to make a good thick cream sauce so I thought a good deal about how to proceed. I thought well, something like mayo is creamy like what I am looking for, so I based the sauce on I made on that idea and the idea for Cesar dressing.
Creamy Pasta Sauce
2 egg yolks
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1-2 cups olive oil
salt and pepper
Place the yolks, lemon juice and salt and pepper into the blender and process for about 30 second or so until the mixture starts to thicken. Then slowly add the olive oil into the blender in a thin stream. The whole mixture will thicken up into a very creamy consistency.
I boiled the pasta (medium shells) and strained them. Then I cut the asparagus into bite sized pieces, tossing all but the tips into boiling water. Next I tossed in a bag of fresh frozen peas. Just before this mixture was tender I tossed the tips into the mix. Finally I strained the veggies and tossed them with the cooked pasta. I poured the creamy sauce I made over this and stirred in some crisply cooked bacon pieces.
Next time, you’ll see a recipe for Parmesan herb snack mix and lemon pepper chicken tenders with roasted potatoes.
Creamy pasta toss, broccoli salad, and parmesean herb snack mix.
Back into the swing
So I’ve been out of the food blog game for…. well months and months. A lot has happened in that time. We celebrated the new year, a couple birthdays and a few more holidays. This post has nothing to do with all of the special occasions but is a recipe for just a nice and tasty weeknight meal.
Pasta in a white wine garlic sauce served with Kielbasa and oven roasted Parmesan green beans. What a mouthful! It was a great meal that ended up lasting us a couple days.
2 packages of Kielbasa sausages (I wait until they go on sale and then keep them in the freezer until I am ready to use them.)
1 cup of a light white wine
2-3 cloves of garlic minced
1 box of thin spaghetti
1 lb package of green beans
Olive oil
salt and pepper
1-2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Trim all of your green beans into bite sized pieces and place them on a baking sheet. Drizzle with a little bit of olive oil, salt and pepper and your Parmesan cheese. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes. You should see a little crisping around the edges and the beans are tender.
Slice your sausage into about 1/4 inch thick rounds and pan fry over medium heat until a little crispy on each side.
Meanwhile, boil your pasta according to package directions. When pasta is done, reserve one cup of the pasta water, and then strain the pasta.
Once you have cooked all of your sausage rounds, set them aside. Deglaze the pan you cooked the sausage in with your pasta water and the white wine. Add the minced garlic and stir until all the crispy bits come off the bottom of your pan. When your sauce begins to bubble turn the heat to low and add the strained pasta into the pan. Toss to coat. Add your sausage slices and your roasted green bean pieces and serve!
Sweet Treats
Pull out recipe cards created for the food section of Pretty Little Things MagazinePhotography, styling and PP: Jen Rich
