Penne Pasta Crab Louie Salad

It's salad season and I'm excited to share this new one with you. It's quick, inexpensive and looks oh-so pretty on a plate. I was going to make it with shrimp but came across some imitation crab on sale at my market. All I can say is, what a difference in price, and it's worth a try! I used to be a snob about the Pollack/King Crab mixture and wouldn't give it a second thought. Well, times have changed. I'm a big girl now and have to admit, it's really quite delicious. The brand I bought is Trans Ocean Crab Classic and I'll buy it again.

Penne Pasta Crab Louie Salad
Serves 4-6

The Salad
6 oz uncooked penne pasta
8 oz imitation crab
1/2 cup finely diced celery
4 scallions (white and light green parts) chopped

The Sauce
1-1/2 T cocktail sauce
1/2 cup mayonnaise (I used lite)
1/4 cup sour cream (optional)
1/2-1 lemon
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 T capers
salt and pepper to taste

The Garnish (use one or all)
hard boiled eggs
baby spinach
grape tomatoes halved
Olde Thompson Steak & Burger Seasoning

Prepare penne according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, prep your crab, celery and scallions. When penne is cooked, drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking. To make the Louie sauce, combine all ingredients, mix well and taste to see if you need additional salt, pepper or lemon. I like my Louie sauce on the lemony side. Mix your sauce with the cooled pasta, crab, celery and scallions and refrigerate until chilled.

Right before serving, I give the salad an additional squeeze of lemon to loosen it up a bit and regenerate it. Plate this baby up and enjoy, I sure did!

A Berry Good Baked Pancake

Some of you may have seen the King Arthur baked pancake post on face book the other day. This is the link I saw. Blueberry pancakes cooked in the oven. Brilliant!! But does it work? I'm happy to say in capital letters, "YES, YES it does". Great for breakfast, brunch, dinner or anytime. I had 12 ounces of fresh raspberries and thought I'd go for it. I think this recipe should feed 6 people, but after my two helpings I snuck in a third one. So plan on a meal for 4, just saying... So simple and ready in a half hour.

King Arthur Inspired Baked Raspberry Pancakes
Serves 4

1 T unsalted butter for greasing a 9" x 13" pan (I used a glass dish)
2 cups Bisquick original pancake/baking mix (any pancake mix will do, or from scratch)
2 eggs
1 cup milk (I used 2%)
12 oz fresh raspberries divided

1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
1 tsp maple extract
Approximately 1/4 cup milk
dash of salt

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease your pan with butter. Set aside and make your pancake batter according to package directions. Add in 6 ounces of the fresh raspberries and pour into baking dish. Place on middle rack in oven. Set timer for 35 minutes.

While the pancakes are cooking make the glaze. With whisk, combine the confectioner's sugar, maple extract and 1/4 cup of milk (or even less, depending how thick you like your glaze). Set aside and wait for pancakes to come out of the oven.

When pancakes are done (test them as you would a cake, with a toothpick) set aside and let cool a bit. When warm and not too hot anymore, brush with at least half the glaze. Slice into 12 squares, garnish with the additional berries and drizzle on some more of that decadent glaze.

Since this was a test recipe for me, I pretty much followed King Arthur's directions to the letter. I'm thinking next time a little orange or lemon zest would be a happy addition to the batter. And call me crazy, but even some mini chocolate chips in the batter would work nicely, with a small little squirt of chocolate sauce on the side. Thanks King Arthur, I'm a happy gal tonight.

Make Yourself Comfortable

Craving comfort food? I sure am. This little gem managed to get me out of the bad mood I've been in due to the constant snow that has invaded New England for 2-1/2 weeks. Oh yes, 2 or 3 more days of shoveling, salting, are sanding are in the forecast, not to mention an additional 12 to 15 inches of the white stuff. When we have a snowy winter like this one, I always try to keep bread, eggs, cheese, cream and butter in the house.  One of the reasons is so that I have an excuse to comfort myself with this decadent strata. It's great right out of the oven, and almost as good at room temp. Here's the recipe.

Ham and Cheese Strata
Serves 9

Cooking spray
2 T unsalted butter
8 slices hearty white bread cubed 1" pieces
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
4 oz honey ham sliced 1" pieces
2 scallions chopped
5 large eggs
1-3/4 cups fat free half and half
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Ready to assemble this cheesy, buttery, savory concoction? I sure am.

Spray an 8" x 8" baking dish and set aside. On stovetop on low, melt butter in small saucepan and remove to cool. Place half the bread cubes on top of the sprayed baking dish.

Sprinkle with 1-1/2 cups of cheese. Top with all the ham and chopped scallions. Add the rest of the cubed bread and the remaining cheese.

Set the baking dish aside and make the custard: Whisk together eggs, half and half, melted butter, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper. Pour this liquid gold over your ham, cheese and bread mixture.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 2 hours (or longer shouldn't hurt), letting the custard soak into all the elements of the dish. About an hour before you're ready to bake, remove dish from fridge and let come to room temperature.

Pre heat oven to 325 degrees. Bake 50-60 minutes in middle rack on oven. All ovens are different, so start checking for brown-ness at about 40 minutes. Remove from oven, let rest about 10 minutes before serving. I slice into 9 squares. Doesn't that look comforting?

There are so many ways to re-mix this recipe...add some Dijon mustard to the custard. Place a layer of roasted red peppers or softened sun dried tomatoes on the ham and cheese. Of course some chopped, cooked bacon would be heavenly as well. One of my favorites is blue cheese and caramelized onions. You can even make this on a sweet note, with cottage cheese, raisins and cinnamon. There are so many ways to make yourself comfortable, I suggest you give a strata a try!

Egg Nog and Bananas Foster French Toast

 

My fabulous cooking friend Kim has been posting "25 Days of Egg Nog Recipes" and she inspired me last night. Oh did she inspire me!!! I fed myself a decadent dinner and packed up the leftovers for friends at work today.  Who doesn't like French toast? And who doesn't want to jazz up this simple dish every once in a while? Well, the bananas in my fruit basket were calling my name and the egg nog was already in my fridge anticipating Kim's suggestions. I'm happy to share this simple, yet decadent recipe. Oh, and it's a one dish meal, how nice is that?

 

Bananas Foster French Toast

Serves 3

 

Ingredients

Toast:

6 slices firm white bread

3 large eggs whisked

1 cup eggnog

1 tsp vanilla extract

Pinch of kosher salt

 

Banana Syrup/Sauce:

3 bananas sliced 1/4 inch

1/3 cup brown sugar

4 T unsalted butter

3-4 T water

 

Additional:

Butter and Canola Oil for sautéing the toast

 

Ready for some simple instructions and mediocre pictures?

 

Combine eggs, egg nog, vanilla extract and salt. Whisk together until you have a smooth custard. Soak each piece of bread in the mixture.

 

 

I didn't let them get too soggy, and placed each piece of bread on a tray until I was ready to fry them. In large sauté pan, add some butter and canola oil and heat on medium low. I did not measure the amount, but you know me, I was pretty careful not to over do it. Now add your egg-noggy soaked bread and cook a few minutes until slightly brown on each side. I was able to cook 3 at a time.

 

 

Remove cooked bread from pan and set aside. Now it's time to cook the bananas. In same pan that you cooked the toast, add the butter and brown sugar and cook until they are combined. Now add the sliced bananas and let them caramelize in the sugary mix. I wanted to stretch the sauce, so I added some water which seemed to work fine for me.

 

I did a double decker plate for myself. I took one slice of toast and topped it with the bananas.

 

 

Then I added another slice of toast and topped it with more bananas. Of course I topped the whole shebang with powdered sugar.

 

 

How can you make this even better? Add a few slices of bacon. That would do it for me. Or a shot or two of whiskey or rum to the banana sauce. I love being decadent during the holiday season!



Sweet Potato Hash with Baked Eggs and Cheese

I love having sweet potatoes in the house. They're such a healthy vegetable and so tasty. And they're not just for Thanksgiving. But sometimes I just don't know what to do with them besides simply baking, shredding for latkes or adding mini marshmallows. Last night I put on my thinking cap, took a tip from Pat and Gina Neely from Food Network and made their Mother's Day Hash. I used their recipe almost to the letter except I added Sazon Azafron seasoning to the vegetable mix (flavor explosion!!) and sauteed everything in a small amount of bacon fat (why did they leave that out?) and canola oil. I omitted the smoked paprika and parsley which I did not have. Here's my version and lots of pics.

Sweet Potato Hash
Inspired by the Neely's
Serves 4

2 large sweet potatoes peeled and cubed about 1 inch
salt
1T bacon fat
1T canola oil
1/2 large onion chopped 1/4 inch
1 red bell pepper chopped 1/4 inch
1/4 cup scallions chopped (white and green parts)
2 cloves garlic minced
1 package Goya Sazon Azafran
Additional 2T bacon fat and 1-2T canola oil for crisping the potatoes
Kosher salt and pepper

4 fresh large eggs
Additional salt and pepper for seasoning the eggs
4 T shaved parmesan cheese

Lets get cooking with some pictures. I'm loving re-living this meal. In medium sauce pan add cubed sweet potatoes, a generous amount of salt and cold water. Place on high heat until water boils. Lower heat to simmer and cook uncovered about 10 minutes until potatoes are mostly tender. (We'll be sauteeing them later).

Drain cooked potatoes and dry on a kitchen towel or paper towels. While potatoes are cooking, prep your veggies. Now grab a saute pan and add 1T of bacon fat and 1T canola oil. Heat to medium and add your pepper, onions, and scallions. Cook for a few minutes (4-5) to soften, and add the garlic and the Azafron. Cook a few minutes more to let the veggies absorb the seasoning. Remove mixture from saute pan and set aside.

Now it's time to put this hash together. In the same pan that you cooked the pepper mixture, add about 1-2T canola oil and 2 T bacon fat. What we're doing here is crisping up the cooked sweet potatoes. Place a layer of the cubed potatoes in sauce pan. Don't crowd them, You want them to get crispy, not steamed. And gently turn them so they are browned on all sides (or almost all sides). Sprinkle with a bit more salt and pepper.

We're almost there, so now add back the pepper/onion mixture and add a sprinkle of kosher salt and pepper.

Gently mix together and your hash is done and ready to serve. But if you want to take it to a different level, grab a large muffin tin, spritz 4 of the indented tins with cooking spray and divide your hash to fit each halfway up each large crevice. Pre heat oven to 425 degrees.

You see where I'm going with this. Crack an egg over each prepared muffin tin and liberally sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper.

Add some shaved parmesan cheese. And anything else your little heart desires. I could only think of cheesy, sweet potato hash and a semi runny egg.

Bake for 9 to 10 minutes. Let cool a bit before you serve. I dug right in and was happy I did. What a simple dinner. And a great little brunch entree for guests or family.

To me this is comfort food. I'll be re-heating the rest in the microwave for brunch tomorrow after my workout and I'm thinking (hoping) if I don't break the eggs they're going to be great.

My Magic Pan

Is there anybody besides me old enough to remember the restaurant "The Magic Pan"? It was my go-to place for lunch in the 80's. You could get crepes for lunch, dinner or dessert and salads that were fresh and innovative at the time. I got hooked on their wilted spinch and bacon salad and was so in the mood for that today. But I made it into a sandwich. I'm a hungry girl these days and I'm happy to say, "It worked!!" Here's the recipe:

Wilted Spinach and Bacon Salad Sammies
Serves 6

6 Hoagie rolls or small French bauguettes
6 eggs hard boiled and sliced
6 slices bacon (I used thick cut) cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 pound baby spinach
1/2 onion diced
1 clove garlic chopped
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp black pepper
Pinch of salt
3 T cider vinegar
Mayo (optional)

Boil eggs, cool in ice bath and set aside. In large skillet over medium heat, fry bacon until cooked (about 10 minutes). Drain on paper towel lined plate.

Pour bacon fat into a separate bowl and measure out 5 tablespoons of bacon fat back into your skillet. Add onion and cook over medium heat until softened (about 3 minutes). Now add your sugar and garlic and cook another 1/2 minute. Now add the vinegar, stir into bacon fat/onion mixture and remove from heat. Loosen brown bits with spoon and pour dressing over spinach, add bacon and toss until spinach is slightly wilted.

Time to make the sandwiches. To pan that bacon was sauteed in, grill the inside of your rolls, one or two at a time.

Slather a little mayo on top and bottom halves of bread and generously place spinach/bacon mixture on the bottom of the bun. Top with sliced egg, and a little salt and pepper.

Yum. I can't think of a better way to start the work week than packing one of these tasty sammies for tomorrow's lunch. And that's exactly what I'm going to do!

Mediterranean Inspired Tuna Hoagies

It's hot today. And going to be hot again tomorrow, so there's no major cooking happening here. But good eating is on the menu. This is basically a pantry/fridge clean out, but boy oh boy was I happy to bite into this protein filled sammie. So easy, and you can put it together in no time. Ready to basically not cook?

Tuna Sammies with a Mediterranean Twist
Serves 2

2 Hoagie rolls toasted on both sides on indoor grill
1 can tuna in water or oil drained
2 scallions chopped
1/4 tsp celery salt
2 hard boiled eggs sliced
2 T mayonnaise
1/4 c Kalamata olives sliced
1/3 cup canned artichoke hearts chopped
1 cup baby spinach
freshly ground pepper

Toast your bread either in the oven or stove top grill. Slather a bit of mayo on the bread so the spinach leaves have a place to rest.

To make the tuna salad, combine the rest of the mayo, celery salt and scallions with the tuna that you've broken up into small pieces. When it's smooth to your liking, add equal amounts to both rolls. Now add the olives, chopped artichoke hearts, and sliced egg. Sprinkle with some black pepper and close up this little gem and dig in. Very satisfying for a sultry night. And if your pantry has more ingredients than mine, please feel free to add some roasted red peppers. And maybe even some fresh tomatoes, feta cheese and cilantro.

This was so good, I packed the second sandwich for lunch tomorrow. I'm on a roll!

Tortilla and Egg Bake

I was doing a bit of experimenting last night. I love to cook ahead and then reheat because it just makes my life so much easier. And I was curious if eggs baked in tortilla shells would stand up to the reheating process of nuking at the office. I have a large muffin pan that contains 6 muffin holes that measure 4 inches in diameter that I used to use for mini quiches. I pulled this rarely used dinosaur out of the cupbaord and got to work. I had 4 six inch corn tortillas on hand, warmed them a few seconds in the microwave and nestled them inside four of the round indentations that were misted lightly with cooking spray.

They seemed to fit okay, so I proceded to sautee a few veggies in canola oil that I thought would go well with the tortillas and eggs. I used 1/2 a red pepper chopped, 1 small onion chopped, 1 jalapeno pepper chopped, 1/4 cup or so of black beans and some spices: salt, pepper, and 1/4 tsp each of cumin and chili powder.

I added this aromatic mixture to the bottom of the tortillas, and topped each with about a tsp of store bought salsa. So far so good. At this point I pre heated the oven to 425 degrees.

How could I make any Tex-Mex dish without adding cheese? Had to do it, so I added as much shredded sharp cheddar as I could fit in, still leaving room for the eggs.

I added a splash of half and half, some salt and pepper and topped each tortilla with a few extra black beans and baked them for 12 minutes which seemed to be the perfect time. The eggs were still soft, the tortillas were crispy and the insides were hot. After they cooled a bit I wrapped them up, put them in the fridge excited for the morning experiment.

I did not bring my camera to work so I do not have a picture of the re-heated, microwaved egg tortilla, and I must say, for once- one of my experiments actually worked on the first try. The tortilla stayed crisp, the egg was still soft and the inside veggies were warm and delicious. If I weren't eating this on the run at work I would have garnished with sour cream, a little more salsa, more cheese of course and cilantro leaves. Give this a try and get even more creative than I was. The possibilities are endless.

I'm egging myself on

Since last week I've been pantry and fridge/freezer shopping. I barely spent anything in the market except cat and cleaning supplies. So tonight I re-mixed Melissa's French eggs and had a fabulous dinner. This time, kind of with an Italian theme.

Melissa's French Eggs Italian Style
I made 8 eggs this time because I did some experimenting.  You see some of my friends do not like to know there is a yolk in their egg. As a test I scrambled 2 eggs with this recipe and they'll be going to work with me tomorrow to see whether I can convince them that yolks are yummy. Here's my recipe but the possibilities are endless. This is just what I used from the ingredients I had on hand.

3 Italian sweet sausages crumbled
1 T olive oil
3/4 red pepper sliced
3/4 green pepper sliced
2 scallions chopped
8 large eggs
8 tsp half and half
cooking spray
salt
pepper
red pepper flakes
Parmesan cheese

Spray your muffin tin (I used my new square brownie pan) with cooking spray. Set aside and pre heat oven to 425 degrees. In large skillet over medium/low brown sausages, peppers and scallions in the little bit of olive oil. Add a dash of salt and pepper and some red pepper flakes. Make sure the sausage is cooked through.

Remove from heat, let cool a bit and get ready to assemble. You'll be utilizing eight of your compartments. In each of the eight holes place a small helping of the sausage/pepper mixture.

Top 6 of the sausage filled tins with an egg and top each with 1 tsp of fat free half and half.

And if you're experimenting like me, beat 2 eggs with a tsp of fat free half and half. That's what I had on hand., but you know any milk product will work.

 And top all with cheese.

Bake nine minutes. Let cool a bit because they're a little hard to get out of their little nooks when they're super hot. I garnished my dish with some leftover cooked sausage and raw scallions, but I do believe a teaspoon or 2 of marinara sauce would be heavenly.

I say give this a try and I'll let you know how the scrambled version went over, reheated at work tomorrow. Thanks for reading!

*****Here's my update on the scrambled version. When I took them out of the tins last night, they seemed like they had set up properly, so I wrapped them up and reheated them the next morning in the microwave for 1 minute like I do with the "yolky" eggs. Well, they were slightly under cooked  So if you're scrambling, cook about 12 minutes in the oven, and nuke for 1 minute to re-heat. I believe that will work.****

Melissa's French Eggs

On Friday night I never plan an elaborate dinner. It's the end of the work week and I just like to let the chips fall and see what's leftover in the fridge or throw a quick sandwich together. So wasn't I delighted to read Melissa's blog post today for the simplest and most heavenly baked egg dish ever. She makes her eggs in a muffin pan. I still don't have one so used my new square "whatchmacallit" pan and the dish was great. I added spinach because I had some, and was very happy with the results. If you're looking for a quick breakfast, lunch or dinner, here it is.

Baked Eggs
Makes 2 servings

4 large eggs
1/4-1/3 cup fresh baby spinach
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

Pre heat oven to 425 degrees and mist muffin pan with cooking spray. Melissa uses butter flavored spray, but I didn't have any so just used the regular canola. Add spinach to 4 of the cups.

Now crack an egg into each cup and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Top with parmesan cheese (or any cheese that you like with eggs). These are looking great already.

Bake for 9 minutes and serve on toast. I enjoyed mine on a slice of Arnold Sandwich Thins. Yummy delish! I could have eaten all 4 eggs but contained myself. I'm saving the other two for sometime over the weekend. Then I will nuke them for a minute, and enjoy the meal all over again.

Thanks Melissa, another fabulous recipe that tastes as good as it looks. You rock, fellow blogger!