Flank Steak Stir Fry with Snow Peas and Peppers

As I was devouring this stir fry I was asking myself "Why dont I make this more often"?  Its easy, quick, and absolutely delicious!  Plop it over a mound of rice and you have a really hearty and tasty dinner. A great tip I have learned about flank steak is to put it in the freezer for about 15 minutes before you slice it.  It will firm up the meat and make it easier to cut.

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound flank steak, sliced into bite size strips
2 medium red or yellow peppers, cut into bite size pieces
2 cups snow peas
2/3 cup stir fry sauce
3 tbsp olive or peanut oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 cups cook rice

DIRECTIONS:

Heat oil on high heat a wok or stir fry pan.  Let pan get very hot.  Add garlic and cook about 1 minute.  Add steak, turning often, about 3 minutes. Lower heat to medium-high and add peppers and snow peas and cook until soft but still crisp, about 3-4 minutes.  Add stir fry sauce and toss to coat.  Cook about another minute.  Pour over rice and serve.

Baked Ziti

In my opinion, this is comfort food at its best. Serve with a side of garlic bread and you have the perfect winter night supper.  You can use ground beef or sausage in this recipe, both are equally good.  I usually just use whichever I have on hand.  Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS:

1 (16 oz) package ziti
1 pound ground beef or sausage
2 (24 oz) jars marinara sauce
1 tbsp fresh basil
12 oz ricotta cheese
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1 lb mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cook pasta according to package directions minus one minute. 

Brown meat in a large skillet over medium-high heat adding onions and garlic when meat is mostly browned.  Cook until onions are soft. Drain, and set aside

In a separate saucepan, heat marinara sauce until hot.  Add basil and Italian seasoning and stir until mixed in.  Combine ricotta with salt, pepper, and Parmesan cheese.

Spread the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking pan with a little of the sauce.  Layer half the ziti, half the meat, half the ricotta, and half the sauce.  Cover with half the mozzarella.  Repeat layer.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove foil and bake another 5-10 minutes or until cheese is melted and slightly browned.

Creamy Mushroom Risotto

Ah...risotto.  The thought of trying to make risotto has always intimidated me for some reason.  So many times I have heard how difficult it is to make, how time consuming it is, and so on.

I have had a jar of arborio rice (this is the type of rice that is used to make risotto) sitting in my cubbard for longer then I am willing to admit.   I purchased it many months ago with the very brave intentions of making a fabulous risotto for me and my husband.  Every time I opened the cabinet door, there it was, calling out to me.  "Sarah...please try me...do not be afraid Sarah...you can do it"

So I did.  And the results were nothing short of  impressive.  While it certainly was time consuming, I would not call it difficult.  I cant wait to make it again!

INGREDIENTS:

4 tbsp butter
2 cups shiitake mushrooms, cut into half inch pieces
2/3 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup heavy cream
7 cups chicken stock
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup minced shallots
1 3/4 cups arborio rice
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

DIRECTIONS:

Melt half the butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat.  Add mushrooms and saute about 4-5 minutes.  Add white wine and bring to a boil.  Allow liquid to reduce by about half, about 3 minutes.  Lower heat to medium and allow to simmer5 minutes.  Remove skillet from heat and set aside.

Bring stock to a simmer in a deep pot.  In a deep saucepan, heat oil and remaining butter on medium-low heat.  add shallots and cook until soft, about 3 minutes.  add rice and stir to coat.  Add hot stock, about 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly until stock is mostly absorbed into rice before you add another 1/2 cup.  Continue this process until all stock is used (this will take about 25 minutes).  When done rice should be slightly chewy.

Stir in the mushroom mixture and the Parmesan cheese.  Season with salt and pepper and garnish with parsley.

Bow Tie Pasta with Sausage

This is one of the first meals I learned to make.  Actually, the recipe is from the first cookbook I ever owned.  The hubby requests this dish more then any other, I could probably make it blindfolded (Hmm, I'm gonna have to try that).  Its really tasty and easy to make which makes it perfect for a week night.  Its especially good with Maglios sausage, if you can find it.

INGREDIENTS:

8 oz Bow Tie pasta

1 pound Italian rope sausage

2 large sweet red peppers, seeded and sliced into 2 inch strips

1/2 cup vegetable broth

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

DIRECTIONS:

Cook pasta according to package directions.  Meanwhile, cut sausage into 1 inch pieces.  In a large skillet over medium high heat cook sausage and red peppers until sausage no longer pink, about 10 minutes.  Drain well.  Stir broth and pepper into skillet.  Bring to boiling and cook, uncovered about another 5 minutes.  Drain pasta and return to pot.  Pour sausage mixture over pasta, add basil and toss gently to coat.

Twice Baked Potatoes

Is there a better combination of foods then Potatoes and Cheese? I really don't think so. Take any type of potato, prepared any way, and top it with some cheese, and you are guaranteed to enjoy it.  What are your favorite food combos?

INGREDIENTS:

4 medium baking potatoes

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

3/4 cup finely shredded cheddar cheese

2/3 cup bacon, cooked crispy and chopped

1 - 2 tbsp milk

1/4 cup chives, chopped

DIRECTIONS:

Scrub potatoes with water and pat dry.  Prick potatoes with fork and bake at 425 degrees for 40 to 60 or until potatoes are soft when pricked with a fork.  Let potatoes cool for about ten minutes or until they are cool enough to handle.  Cut a lengthwise slice off the top and discard.  Scoop the pulp out of the potatoes and place in a bowl.  Mash the pulps with a masher.  Add the sour cream, garlic salt, pepper, and milk and stir until smooth.  Stir in 1/2 cup of the cheese, the bacon, and chives.  Divide evenly among the potato shells and place in a 2 quart baking dish.  Bake, uncovered in a 425 degree oven for 20-25 minutes.  Sprinkle with remaining cheese and bake for another 2-3 minutes or until cheese melts.

Apple Spice Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze

The smell of this cake baking in the oven was AMAZING!  My entire house smelled like apples and cinnamon and all of the different spices.  This is a great recipe for Fall.  It made me want to carve a pumpkin or go for a hay ride!

INGREDIENTS:

Cake
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 3/4 pounds Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, coursely grated (2 cups grated)
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel

Glaze
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and place rack in the center.  Spray a Bundt pan with with nonstick cooking spray.  Sift flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice into a medium bowl.  Drain grated apples to remove excess moisture.

Beat butter, both sugars, and lemon peel in a large bowl until fluffy.  Beat in eggs one at a time.  Mix in vanilla and lemon juice.  Beat in flour mixture.  Mix in grated apples and transfer mixture to pan.  Bake the cake until tester inserted near center comes out clean, about 1 hour.  Cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes. 

While cake is cooling, prepare glaze.  Stir sugar, butter, cream, vanilla, lemon juice and salt in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook stiring frequently until sugar disolves and mixture is boiling.  Reduce heat to medium and whisk until glaze is smooth, about 1 minute.  Remove from heat. 

Invert cake onto a rack over a baking sheet.  Using a small skewer, pierce holes all over top of warm cake.  Pour hot glaze over top, allowing it to absorb before adding more.  Cool cake for 30 more minutes.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Cheesy Potato Gratin

So as I started this entry, I asked my husband how "potatoes" is spelled.  He said  it is spelled
p-o-t-a-t-o-s.  As I was typing it out, I realized it didnt look right to me...so I asked him if he was sure. 

He insisted this spelling was correct.

We talked about the Dan Quale incident where he misspelled "potatoes" at a spelling bee and my husband laughed about the fact that the vice president could not spell a word as simple as
p-o-t-a-t-o-s.  I asked again if he was sure.

He continued to insist.

When I question him one last time, he began to feel the need to prove it to me.  So he goes into the kitchen and gets a bag of potatoes.  He reads the front of the bag. 

"Oh crap...you were right...its spelled p-o-t-a-t-o-e-s"

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 Yukon Gold potatoes (about 5 cups sliced)
1/3 cup sliced green onion
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups Gruyere cheese, shredded
1 cup whipping cream

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 2 quart square baking dish.  Wash the potatoes thoroughly and slice into thin slices (no need to peel the potatoes).  Layer half the potatoes in the baking dish and cover with half the salt, pepper, garlic and onions and cheese.  Repeat layer and pour whipping cream over top.  Cover and bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes.  Uncover and bake for another 20-25 minutes or until top is golden brown and potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork.