Time to Cook!

Inspiration for wholesome weeknight & weekend cooking.

Posts tagged ‘easy’

Spaghetti and Meatballs

I love this very simple recipe for spaghetti and meatballs.  Next time, I would make twice the amount of sauce.  I don’t think I would ever tire of this ultimate comfort food.

Spaghetti and meatballs

Recipe from The Saucy Apron.

Spaghetti and Meatballs

“There’s something oddly therapeutic about making meatballs. Which means when Monday rudely crashes the party on my weekend I sometimes find myself elbow deep in meatball therapy.  The result, a spicy, saucy, juicy, meaty, cheesy dish thats a few hundred bucks cheaper than a therapist.”

Start with the love-made sauce:
Two cans of tomatoes
1/4 cup olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic chopped
A good sprinkle of red pepper flakes
A bay leaf
Salt and pepper

Puree tomato in blender.  Cook onion and garlic in oil until soft. Add tomato, pepper and bay leaf, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil then simmer for 30 minutes.

Now the Meatballs:
1 pound of beef
1 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon of oregano
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 egg
Salt and pepper

Using your hands mix beef, bread crumbs, cheese, oregano, garlic, egg, salt and pepper. Roll into large ping pong balls.  Now fry the meatballs until brown then simmer in the sauce until the inside is no longer pink.  About 30 more minutes. Stir a few times while cooking.

Serve over spaghetti with a big glass of red.

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Lemon Pepper Shrimp Scampi

My goal is to serve seafood once (or even twice) a week, but it requires me to get to Whole Foods or the fish market the day of … and life seems to get in the way of that.  I do think extra large raw frozen shrimp is great to have on hand for a last-minute dinner.  After all, many times when I buy raw shrimp, it’s already been previously frozen anyway.  I simply defrost it in a bowl filled with slightly cool water in the sink, peel and devein it … and I’m ready for our recipe!  This one is nice and simple and tastes great.

Shrimp Scampi

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light.

Lemon Pepper Shrimp Scampi

Serves 4.

Ingredients:

1 pound uncooked orzo

3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

7 teaspoons unsalted butter, divided

1 1/2 pounds peeled and deveined jumbo shrimp

2 teaspoons minced fresh garlic

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Cook orzo according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. Drain. Place orzo in a medium bowl. Stir in parsley, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and olive oil; cover and keep warm.

2. While orzo cooks, melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle shrimp with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Add half of shrimp to pan; sauté 2 minutes or until almost done. Transfer shrimp to a plate. Melt 1 teaspoon butter in pan. Add remaining shrimp to pan; sauté 2 minutes or until almost done. Transfer to plate.

3. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in pan. Add garlic to pan; cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Stir in shrimp, juice, and pepper; cook 1 minute or until shrimp are done.

4. Toss shrimp and butter-lemon sauce with orzo and serve.

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Orecchiette with Veal, Capers & White Wine

I know this dish might sound a little strange, but we LOVE it.  It has the most delicious taste and it’s not hard to make.  I could eat this once every two weeks!  Two quick notes: 1) I add a bit more capers than the recipe calls for below and 2) If I ever have leftover white wine that would go to waste, I freeze it in little baggies for cooking.  This way, if a recipe calls for just 1/2 cup of white wine, I don’t need to open a new bottle just for this (although, that would be a good excuse!)  Hope you like this dish as much as we do!

Orecchiette with Veal, Capers and White Wine

Recipe from Food and Wine (contributed by Grace Parisi).

Orecchiette with Veal, Capers and White Wine

TOTAL TIME: 40 MIN
SERVINGS: 4
“The sauce fits the pasta,” said judge Marc Vetri in praise of this tender veal ragù flavored with white wine, capers, thyme and rosemary, then tossed with the little ear-shaped orecchiette. “The meat, the capers—they hang on to the pasta when you lift up your fork.”
  1. In a large, deep skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the chopped onion and minced garlic and cook over moderately high heat, stirring frequently, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the veal, season with salt and pepper and raise the heat to high. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the veal is no longer pink and any liquid has evaporated, about 8 minutes.
  2. Add the white wine to the skillet and boil over high heat until nearly evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken stock, thyme, rosemary and capers and simmer over moderate heat until the liquid is reduced by half, about 10 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, cook the orecchiette in a large pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain the pasta well and add it to the skillet along with the Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, chopped parsley and butter. Cook over moderate heat, stirring frequently, until the sauce is thick and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer to bowls and serve right away.
MAKE AHEAD The veal sauce can be covered and refrigerated overnight. Rewarm the veal sauce before serving.
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Lemon Lentil Soup

My friend Leanne introduced me to her favorite lentil soup from this Canadian cookbook.  I’ve tweaked it and it has become one of our family’s favorites.  The bright lemony taste balances well with the earthy, starchy taste of the lentils.  I could eat this once a week!  Sometimes I make twice the recipe and freeze the extra in gallon ziplock freezer bags.

Lemon Lentil Soup

Recipe adapted from Canadian cookbook Company’s Coming (May 16, 2008).

Lemon Lentil Soup

Serves 6.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 cups chopped onion

2 cups chopped carrots

2 ½ teaspoons oregano

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, chopped

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 bay leaves

12 cups chicken stock

3 cups dried red split lentils

4 tablespoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons grated lemon zest

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¼ cup fresh parsley, finely chopped (optional)

Directions:

Heat olive oil in Le Creuset on medium-high. Add onion and carrots. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring often, until onion starts to brown.

Add oregano, garlic, rosemary, salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, red pepper flakes, and bay leaves. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring often.

Add chicken stock and lentils. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer, partially covered, for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lentils are very soft.

Discard bay leaves. Stir in lemon juice, lemon zest and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Top individual bowls of soup with fresh parsley, if desired.

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Katharine Hepburn’s Brownies

When I came across Katharine Hepburn’s family recipe for brownies in Gourmet Magazine, my curiosity was piqued.  Katharine Hepburn — wouldn’t you think she would hold something to the highest standards and be associated with something very classic, old-fashioned, and American as a delicious homemade brownie?  I did…  Indeed, this is the best brownie recipe I’ve tried. You can really taste the butter, salt, chocolate and nuts in each bite and they are nice and moist in the middle yet crispy on the top.  Delicious!  The recipe only makes 9 brownies, and that’s just not going to be enough (trust me), so you might want to double the recipe.  Note:  I thought 1/2 cup chopped walnuts was plenty.

Brownie

Recipe from Gourmet Magazine.

Katharine Hepburn’s Brownies

Makes 9 brownies.

Ingredients

  • 1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter
  • 2 squares unsweetened chocolate (2 ounces)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preparation

1. Melt together 1 stick butter and 2 squares unsweetened chocolate and take the saucepan off the heat.

2. Stir in 1 cup sugar, add 2 eggs and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, and beat the mixture well.

3. Stir in 1/4 cup all-purpose flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt. (In the original recipe, 1 cup chopped walnuts is added here as well.)

4. Bake the brownies in a buttered and floured 8-inch-square pan at 325°F for about 40 minutes.

You can cut these brownies into squares, once they have cooled, and eat them out of the pan, but it is so much nicer to pile them on a fancy plate, from which people are going to eat them with their hands anyway. If you want to smarten up your act you can put a square of brownie on a plate with a little blob of créme fraîche and a scattering of shaved chocolate.

Original source: “A Harried Cook’s Guide to Some Fast Food” by Laurie Colwin

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Kale Chips

Although you can’t tell from the picture, these kale chips are light as air!  They are delicate and crispy and dissolve in your mouth when you eat them.  They are really a healthy replacement to potato chips and fun to have out as a snack or appetizer before dinner.  My friend Ashley made them for us and the kids and adults all loved them.  It’s great to have yet another way to serve this superfood.

Kale Chips

Kale Chips

Ingredients:

1 bunch fresh kale

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:

Wash kale and dry thoroughly with paper towels.  Drying the kale well is key or your kale chips will turn moist and chewy just hours after you bake them.  Remove the large ribs and roughly tear the leaves into 2 inch pieces.  Spread them out onto 2 rimmed baking sheets (so they are not too crowded or they will steam) and toss with olive oil and salt.  Bake at 375 degrees for 13 minutes.  Season to taste with additional salt  if needed.  Serve warm or at room temperature within an hour or two of baking (or they may turn chewy).

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