Pasta with Bacon, Brussels Sprouts

I love pasta! I could eat it every night. There are so many combinations and possibilities; I think you could go years without ever preparing the same recipe. I’ve been trying to use more whole grain pasta and make recipes that have vegetables. At least that way it’s sort of good for you. If you’re a brussels sprouts fan, you know they are so good prepared with bacon. I had brussels sprouts that needed to be used up and a couple of slices of leftover bacon, so I decided to see if I could find a recipe to use them up. I wish I was better at just creating a recipe myself!! The flavors in this recipe are so clean and crisp. The sage and the brussels sprouts are delicious together!



Pasta With Brussels Sprouts and Bacon
Courtesy of Martha Stewart Living
6 ounces bacon (about 7 slices), cut into 3/4-inch pieces
Up to 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 large garlic cloves, minced
4 large shallots, cut into thin rounds
1 1/4 pounds brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved (quartered if large)
1 1/4 cups homemade or low-sodium store-bought chicken stock
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
12 ounces rigatoni pasta
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
1/3 cup coarsely chopped fresh sage leaves, about 20 leaves
Directions
1.Heat a dry large skillet over medium heat. Add bacon; cook, stirring occasionally, until crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain. Add enough oil to bacon fat in skillet to total 2 tablespoons. Add garlic, shallots, and sprouts; cook, stirring occasionally, until pale golden, about 3 minutes. Add stock; season with salt and pepper. Cook until most of the liquid has been absorbed and sprouts are tender, 10 to 12 minutes.
2.Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil; add 1 tablespoon salt and the pasta. Cook according to package directions until al dente. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid; return pasta to pot.
3.Stir in sprouts mixture, reserved 1/2 cup cooking liquid, and cheese. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil; add sage and bacon. Toss until combined. Serve with more cheese.

I am linking this to Tasty Tuesday's and Tuesday's at the Table.

Pacific Rim Chicken

Do you participate in the Tuesday blog party, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday's? If you don't, you should check it out. Not only is it a great way to showcase your blog, you can find all sorts of great recipes to try!

A couple of weeks ago Lisa posted a recipe for Pacific Rim Chicken. The flavors in this recipe are some of my favorites and as a bonus this recipe goes in the crock pot. I've mentioned before the crock pot is my friend. Especially on a Monday or any other day when I know I may not feel like cooking after work.

I prepared this recipe with chicken thighs. Until recently, I never cared much for chicken thighs. Besides their nice flavor, they're so reasonably priced. I just bought a large package at Costco for .99 cents a pound. Seriously, it doesn't get any better than that!!!

I served this with brown rice. One of the challenges with brown rice is the cooking time. I've read recently if you soak brown rice prior to cooking, it cooks much faster. After soaking mine for four hours, it cooked in about 25 minutes in the rice cooker.

Pacific Rim Chicken

1- large onion, finely chopped
1-large green bell pepper, chopped
4-5 large chicken breast halves, skin and fat removed (about 3 1/2 lbs)
1- 8oz can crushed pineapple, including juice
3/4 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup dry sherry (I used Mirin)
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp packed light brown sugar
2 tsp rice vinegar
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt (optional)
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 1/3 cup long-grain white rice, cooked according to package directions (I used brown rice)

In large crock pot, combine onion and green pepper. Arrange chicken over vegetables. In medium bowl, combine pineapple and juice, broth, sherry, soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, ginger, salt, if desired, and black pepper. Stir to mix. Pour over chicken.

Cover and cook on high 1 hour. Reduce heat to low, stir chicken into sauce, and cook an additional 5-6 hours or until chicken is done.

Remove and reserve chicken in medium bowl. Transfer liquid and vegetables to saucepan. Quickly boil down sauce, stirring frequently, to thicken slightly. Meanwhile, slice chicken meat. Arrange rice on serving platter. Arrange chicken slices over rice. Pour sauce over all.

I am linking this to Tempt My Tummy Tuesday's, Tasty Tuesday's and Tuesday's at the Table.

Cheese Tasting 101

Tim gave me a cheese board for my birthday this year. Having grown up eating ColbyJack and Gouda, I want to learn more about cheeses. I decided to check out the cheese selection at Whole Foods. Don't you just love that store? The cheese monger was so helpful. I knew I wanted a soft, hard and goat cheese. A lot of articles say to include a blue cheese but I knew most of my guests didn't like blue cheese. After some discussion and several suggestions, we settled on Appenzeller for the soft, Parrano for the hard and Humbolt Fog as the Goat Cheese.

What should you serve with your cheese? In addition to the baquette, we had grapes, nuts and if you chose a drizzle of honey. What else do you need to know? Be sure to take the cheese out of the refrigerator an hour or two prior to serving to allow it to come to room temperature.

Which cheeses would we would like? Would there be some we didn't like at all? Which one would be the star?

Each of the cheeses had their own unique flavor. My favorite was the Humbolt Fog. I love that it looks like a beautiful piece of layer cake. The flavor is tart, yet mild. The texture is beautifully creamy. I think the rest of the group was partial to the Parrano. The parrano had a buttery texture and a nutty flavor. It reminded us all of gouda. I guess it was our comfort zone cheese. The Appenzeller was our "stinky" cheese. The aroma comes from the washing of the rind.

This was such a fun and interesting experience. I can't wait to do another cheese tasting!

I am linking this to Tuesday's at the Table and Tasty Tuesday's.

Rhubarb Cake

I am not a rhubarb fan, so my recipe files don’t contain rhubarb recipes. Tim loves rhubarb, especially rhubarb desserts. On an envelope in his scribbles is his mother’s rhubarb dessert recipe.

I didn’t have cream so I substituted evaporated milk. I remember Tim’s daughter making this a few years ago and thinking it was a little runny, so I didn’t put in two full cups of milk.

Tim says this dessert is a yummy combination of cake and rhubarb. Even with the decreased amount of milk, it was still a little runny. Maybe it’s just supposed to be that way? Since this recipe was scribbled on an envelope, it didn’t have any instructions for storage. I think it keeps longer if you store it in the fridge.

Rhubarb Cake

Yellow Cake Mix
4 cups rhubarb, sliced
1 cup sugar
1 pint of cream or half and half

Mix cake mix as directed on the box. Pour in the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 pan. Put rhubarb on top of cake mix. Sprinkle sugar over rhubarb. Pour cream over the top. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

I am linking this to Tasty Tuesday's, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday's and Tuesday's at the Table.

Red Wine Balsamic Grilled Chicken

I am always looking for new ways to grill chicken. A few weeks ago, I spotted this recipe over at Good Things Catered and bookmarked it for future grilling. Katie's recipe called for chicken breasts. I used skin on chicken thighs. This is a quick and easy recipe to put together. The balsamic vinegar and honey give the chicken a wonderful flavor.



Red Wine Balsamic Grilled Chicken

Ingredients:
4-5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, about 3 lbs
(I used chicken thighs)
1/4 c. balsamic vinegar
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp honey
Juice of 1/2 a sweet lemon (or orange)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp dried mined onion
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper

Directions:
-Pound chicken breasts down to uniform thickness throughout (about 1-inch thickness throughout)
-Place in large, deep dish and top with remaining ingredients.
-With tongs, flip chicken and move around to coat evenly.
-Cover and place in fridge for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
-When ready to cook, remove chicken from fridge and place on sideboard to remove chill while starting grill.
-Preheat gas grill on high for 10 full minutes.
-Clear grates, turn heat to medium-low and place chicken on grates n a diagonal.
-Cover and cook untouched until nice grill marks form, about 5 minutes.
-Flip and continue cooking until cooked through, about 10 minutes.
-Flip one more time, on opposite diagonal, 2 minutes before cooking is complete to obtain grill cross-marks, if desired.
-Remove from heat and let meat rest, covered, on cutting board for 3-5 mins before cutting and serving.

I am linking this to Tempt My Tummy Tuesday's, Tasty Tuesday's and Tuesday's at the Table.

Snickerdoodle Bars

Snickerdoodles are one of my favorite cookies! When I saw this recipe on Crazy Daisy, I couldn't wait to make them. I decided to make them for my step son Michael's soccer banquet. Of course, as I cut them, I had to taste. These bars are so good. The flavor of a snickerdoodle cookie and the texture of a brownie. Thank goodness I made them to take somewhere or I would have eaten way too many. Next time you're searching for a cookie to make, try these you won't be sorry!!!

Snickerdoodle Bars
2 1/3 cups flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

Cinnamon Filling
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon

Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1-2 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Heat oven to 350. Spray or grease the bottom only of a 9x13-inch pan with cooking spray. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl and set aside.

Beat butter on high speed until creamy. Beat in sugars. Gradually beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Add dry ingredients and beat on low speed until combined.

Spoon half the batter into the pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle with Cinnamon Filling evenly over batter. Dollop teaspoons of remaining batter evenly over Cinnamon Filling. Gaps are okay, they let the filling peek through leaving a fun marbled look.

Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely, about 1 hour.

In a small bowl, stir glaze ingredients until smooth and thin enough to drizzle. Drizzle over bars.

I am linking this to Tempt My Tummy Tuesday's, Tuesday's at the Table and Tasty Tuesdays.

One Year Ago Roasted Dill Potatoes.

Sesame Grilled Asparagus

You've probably noticed we eat a lot of asparagus at our house. Besides the warmer weather, it's one of my favorite things about Spring. My go to recipe for asparagus is either grilled or roasted in the oven. Either way it's so simple to prepare, just olive oil, salt and pepper. This Sesame Grilled Asparagus takes my go to recipe to the next level. The sesame oil and soy sauce are a wonderful compliment to an already delicious vegetable.

Sesame Grilled Asparagus
Recipe Courtesy of Steven Raichlen

Wooden toothpicks or bamboo skewers
1 pound asparagus
2 tablespoons dark sesame oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
Salt and black pepper
Directions
In a shallow pan, soak skewers in cold water for 1 hour, then drain and set aside.

Preheat grill to high. Snap off the woody bases of the asparagus and discard. Skewer 4 or 5 asparagus spears together, using the toothpicks or 2 bamboo skewers, forming a raft shape.

In a small bowl, combine the sesame oil, soy sauce, and garlic and stir with a fork to mix. Brush this mixture on the asparagus rafts on both sides. Season the asparagus with a little salt and lots of pepper.

When ready to cook, place the asparagus rafts on the hot grate and grill until nicely browned on both sides, 2 to 4 minutes. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds as they grill. You can serve the asparagus as rafts or unskewered.

I am linking this to I am linking this to Tempt My Tummy Tuesday at Blessed With Grace, Tuesday's at the Table at All the Small Stuff and Tasty Tuesday's at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam.

Tabasco Quinoa with Asparagus

I am trying to incorporate quinoa into our diet whenever possible. I am thrilled when I see a quinoa recipe. Although, you're starting to see more and more quinoa recipes, there's still not nearly as many as other side dishes like rice or potatoes. I found this recipe on 101 Cookbooks. Thanks Heidi, I love your blog!!

I read some staggering statistics the other day about how much food we throw away. While I've never felt like I am a wasteful person, I am trying harder to not throw away food. Asparagus is a great example. When I make roasted asparagus, I use only the top 1/2 or so of the aspargus. Except for the very end of the asapargus, the rest of it can be used in recipes such as this one. It works great if you chop it in 1/4" pieces.

Tabasco & Asparagus Quinoa
Recipe courtesy of 101 Cookboks

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
25 drops Tabasco sauce
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1 pound asparagus, cut into 1/2 inch segments
4 cups cooked quinoa*
1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted
more Tabasco sauce to taste

Start by making the Tabasco butter. In a food processor, or with a hand blender, whip the butter until it is light and airy. Add the mustard, Tabasco sauce, lemon juice and salt. As I mention above, you can make it stronger if you like, adding more hot sauce to taste.
Boil the asparagus in a large pot of well salted water, for just for a minute or so -depending on the thickness of your asparagus. Drain. If you are serving this immediately you can leave the asparagus hot, but if you are going to wait to serve this, or think you'll have leftovers I recommend you stop the cooking with cold water or a dunk in an ice bath, then drain well before using.
Take the 4 cups of hot cooked quinoa and toss with 3 tablespoons of the tabasco butter. You'll have leftover butter - you can serve that on the side or use it for other purposes. Stir in the asparagus, pine nuts, and dollop with creme fraiche. Serve with more Tabasco sauce on the side.
Serves 4 - 6.
*To cook quinoa: Combine 2 cups of well-rinsed dried quinoa with 3 cups water and 1/2teaspoon fine grain sea salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for 25 - 30 minutes or until quinoa is tender and you can see the little quinoa curliques.

I am linking this to Tasty Tuesday's at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam, Tuesday's at the Table at All the Small Stuff , Tempt My Tummy Tuesday at Blessed With Grace .