Roasted Garlic Beef Stew

My sweet friend Anna Rose got me a Bon Appétit magazine daily calendar for Christmas... last night I made one of the recipes and it turned out great! I made a few variations...

Roasted Garlic Beef Stew

(4 servings)

15 garlic cloves (unpeeled)

6 tablespoons butter, divided

2 large parsnips, peeled and cut into 1/2" pieces

2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2" pieces

1 large or 2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2" pieces

1 rutabaga, peeled and cut into 1/2" pieces

1/3-1/2 lb beef tenderloin, cut into 1" pieces

salt and pepper

2 tablespoons flour, divided

2 beef bouillon cubes stirred into 2 cups hot water

1 cup red wine

Herbes de Provence

Preheat oven to 350. Place garlic in a small baking dish and top with 2 tablespoons butter. Bake for about 15-20 minutes (butter melts, garlic is tender and beginning to brown). Remove from oven and allow to cool. Meanwhile, peel and dice vegetables and set aside. Next, melt 3 tablespoons butter in a heavy large pot over high heat. Sprinkle beef with salt and pepper and dust with 1 tablespoon flour. Add beef to pot and saute until no longer pink, about 6 minutes. Transfer beef to a bowl. Add vegetables, broth, wine, and herbes de Provence to pot. Peel garlic and add to pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer covered for 25 minutes. Return beef and juices to pot. Mix remaining 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon flour in a small bowl. Whisk flour paste into stew. Simmer uncovered until sauce thickens, about 2 minutes.

Chicken, Red Potato, Green Bean salad

We had this hearty salad tonight... it was very good! I changed a few things based on ingredients I had and since our market has really good and inexpensive rotisserie chicken, I used that instead of boiled chicken.

Chicken, Red Potato, Green Bean Salad

Dressing:

3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar

• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 garlic clove, minced
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• Salad:
• 1 pound small red potatoes
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 pound frozen green beans
• 1 1/2 cup rotisserie chicken, chopped
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 2 avocados, diced
• 1 or 2 heads of lettuce, washed and chopped

Whisk together dressing and refrigerate. Place potatoes and salt in a pot, cover with water and bring to a boil. Simmer for 5-10 minutes or until just soft. Add green beans and simmer for another 4 minutes. Drain and rinse in cold water. Cut potatoes into fourths and toss all salad ingredients with salad dressing in a large bowl. Serve immediately.

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Pear Cake

Made this recipe yesterday afternoon... we liked it so much we have almost eaten half of it! (and notice my poor job of greasing the dish...)

Doug says he likes it even more than the tried and true apple cake. I don't know, I'm pretty fond of the apple cake! But pear is a nice change, and it is a fluffier cake than the other one.

Pear Cake

1 cup white sugar

1 cup brown sugar

3 eggs

1 cup oil

2 teaspoons vanilla

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons cinnamon

4 cups diced fresh pears

Mix ingredients together in order above. Pour batter into a greased 9x13 baking dish. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Then poke holes in the cake (all over), pour on topping (recipe below) and bake for an additional 5 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.

Topping:

1 cup brown sugar

5 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup milk

Heat topping in saucepan just to boiling, stirring constantly. Set aside for a couple of minutes before pouring on the cake.

Pressed Potatoes

Tonight Doug made The Pioneer Woman's Crash Hot Potatoes... we'll just call them pressed potatoes. They turned out really well- crispy on the outside, soft in the inside, great flavor with the fresh rosemary.

Pressed Potatoes

15 or so small round potatoes

olive oil

coarse salt

pepper

fresh rosemary, chopped (or other herb)

Turn the oven to 450. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add salt and potatoes and boil for 10-15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Meanwhile, oil a baking sheet (or two if you are making a lot!). Drain potatoes and place on baking sheet. With a fork or potato masher, press down to smoosh the potatoes slightly. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and rosemary. Bake at 450 for 20 minutes or until potatoes are browned and outsides are crispy.

Rustic Pear Tart

Just made this recipe... very quick, easy, and good... I made a couple of adjustments:

Rustic Pear Tart

-1 refrigerated pie crust (I used pate brise)

-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

-3 teaspoons brown sugar

-1 teaspoon flour

-5 pears, cored and sliced

-1 teaspoon honey

-1/4 teaspoon boiling water

Preheat oven to 425. Take pie crust out of the fridge and let it sit for a few minutes. Meanwhile, mix cinnamon, brown sugar, and flour in a mixing bowl. Dice pears and add to brown sugar mixture, coating well. Unroll pie crust onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Trim parchment paper around crust. Pile pears into center of crust, leaving 2 inch border. Fold pie crust over outside of pears. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes, then decrease temperature to 350 and bake for an additional 35 minutes. Remove tart from oven and transfer to a plate to cool. Whisk together honey and boiling water and brush onto pears and crust. Cut into 6 wedges and serve hot or room temperature.

Couscous Stuffed Zucchini

Made this recipe last night... didn't have crushed tomatoes or basil so I used some chunky tomato sauce and it worked just fine!

Couscous Stuffed Zucchini

4 medium zucchinis

1/2 cup dried couscous

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion, diced

1 garlic clove, minced

1 cup chunky tomato pasta sauce

salt and pepper

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Boil the zucchini for 10 minutes. Remove and set aside until cool enough to handle. Meanwhile, cook couscous according to package directions. And meanwhile, sauté the onion and garlic in olive oil until tender. Cut zucchini in half lengthwise and scoop out center. Place the hollowed zucchinis in a greased baking dish. In a large mixing bowl, combine scooped out zucchini, prepared couscous, sauteed garlic and onion, and tomato sauce. Pile into zucchini shells. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated.

Winter Tuna Pasta Casserole

This recipe was relatively quick and easy and pretty good, too! Next time I think I'll add more veggies maybe add some more mushrooms and green pepper... and maybe some peas for some added color.

Winter Tuna Pasta Casserole

-Spaghetti or other pasta (I used about half a box)

-4 tablespoons butter

-1/4 cup flour

-2 1/2 cups warmed milk

-salt and pepper

-3 tablespoons olive oil

-8 mushrooms, sliced

-1 small yellow onion, diced

-1 red bell pepper, diced

-handful of frozen peas

-2 cans of tuna, drained

1) Cook pasta according to package directions, drain well and set aside.

2) While pasta is cooking, make the sauce: Melt butter in a sauce pan, whisk in flour and cook for 1 minute. Slowly add milk, whisking constantly, season with salt and pepper, and cook for 4 minutes or until thick and bubbly. Remove sauce from heat, cover and set aside.

3) Cook veggies: Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large sautee pan. Cook mushrooms for one minute, then add onions, and red pepper, adding olive oil as necessary. Add frozen peas and sautee for several minutes until all veggies are tender. Season veggies with salt and pepper. Add drained tuna and drained pasta to the sautee pan and toss to combine.

4) Assemble casserole: Pour the veggie/pasta/tuna mix into a greased casserole dish (I used 9x13). Then pour the reserved sauce on top evenly.

5) Bake at 375 for 25 minutes or until bubbly and thoroughly heated.

Serve with toast or crusty baguette.

Spaghetti with tuna

A while back I tore out an article from Bon Appetit magazine called "5 Things to do with a Can of Tuna." I am not a tuna lover, so I was hoping to find one good recipe... and I did! Doug made this and it turned out pretty well! Adjust the quantities to your preferences.

Spaghetti with Tuna

-spaghetti

-1 can high quality tuna

-garlic

-lemon peel

-dried crushed red pepper

-dried bread crumbs, or grated cheese

-fresh parsley

Cook spaghetti to al dente. While spaghetti is cooking, empty tuna and it's oil in a skillet over medium heat. Mix in garlic, lemon peel, and parsley. Drain pasta and toss tuna with cooked spaghetti. Top with breadcrumbs/cheese, and fresh parsley.

Apple Bundt Cake

Just made this tasty apple cake! It turned out great... I added cinnamon and nutmeg to the original recipe, and I poured brown sugar glaze from my regular apple cake recipe on top.

Apple Bundt Cake

1 1/4 cups oil

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

3 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

dash nutmeg

1 1/4 teaspoons soda

3 cups chopped apples (I used a combination of different kinds)

1 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans)

Preheat oven to 325. Grease and flour a Bundt pan. In a large bowl, whisk together oil and sugar. Add eggs one at a time, blending well. Stir in vanilla. In another bowl, sift and mix flour, salt, baking soda. Slowly add flour mixture to the egg mixture, blending well. Stir in apples and nuts. Pour batter (which will be very thick!) into the prepared Bundt pan. Bake for 1 1/2 hours, or until toothpick comes out clean. Let cool for 20 minutes, then invert onto a cooling rack and pour on glaze.

Tartiflette

Doug made this French winter classic dish a few weeks ago- it is perfect for a cold day!

Tartiflette

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup chopped onions

1/3 lb chopped bacon

2 1/4 lbs sliced white potatoes

½ cup white wine

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon black pepper

1 lb sliced Reblochon cheese

Heat oil in a skillet and cook the onions for a few minutes. Add the bacon and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the potatoes, wine, salt, and pepper, bring the mixture to a simmer, and cover for another 8 minutes. Place half of the potato mixture in a baking dish and cover with half of the cheese. Cover with the remaining potato mixture and remaining cheese. Bake for 25 minutes or until thoroughly heated and bubbly (and cheese is melted!).

in the oven it goes... cheese is just starting to melt

and now melty-bubbly-cheesy-potato bliss...

Quiche Combos

We've made 2 good quiches this week with our basic quiche recipe (3 eggs and about 6oz creme fraiche)....

Quiche #1:

Paris (white) mushrooms, quartered and sauteed

yellow onion, diced and sauteed

bacon, diced and cooked

gruyere cheese

Quiche #2:

Broccoli florets, steamed and diced

yellow onion, diced and sauteed

deli ham, diced and sauteed

emmental cheese

Prepare the basic quiche filling in a large bowl, season with salt, pepper, herbes de provence, nutmeg, etc. Add cooked veggies/meat and then pour into prepared crust.