Caprese Lasagna Rollups

Photo cropped from CookingClassy.com

Gerry posted the recipe from CookingClassy.com on Facebook and I sent it to Ciara for Beth's baby shower menu. With a little bit of chopping advice and a few changes, Ciara made a yummy, delicious, pretty and elegant main dish.  In the Cooking Classy link the blog author explains why you wouldn't want to use fresh mozzarella cheese. You also don't want to drown the roll-ups in pasta sauce.

Ciara made a quadruple batch - it was certainly more than enough although I would recommend at least two roll-ups each for a hungrier crowd. The directions below are for one batch.

Cook 1/2 box (8 noodles) organic lasagna noodles (available at Whole Foods) until they are al dente. Drain them and then line them up on parchment paper on the counter.

Whisk together 3/4 c. Ricotta cheese and 1 large egg white.  Stir in 1/3 cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese and about 12 ounces of shredded, low-moisture, part skim Mozzarella cheese and some freshly ground black pepper.  Spread an even layer of the cheese mixture over each noodle.

At this point, you can slice Roma tomatoes VERY thin or dice them. You'll need about 3-4 Roma tomatoes and Ciara diced them. Place equal amounts of the fresh tomatoes on each cheese layer on the noodles. Cover with 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil.

Spread 1/4 cup sauce (see below) in a baking dish.  Roll the lasagna noodles up as tight as you can without squeezing out the cheese and place them seam-side down in the sauce. Top each roll with 2 T. of the pasta sauce and sprinkle all with about 2 oz of Mozzarella.  Bake 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven and then sprinkle with more basil cut into ribbons.

For the sauce, Ciara used one she found at Whole Foods.  Use your favorite or use this CookingClassy one:

Simple Marinara Sauce
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup finely chopped yellow onion
• 2 cloves garlic finely minced
• 1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• 
  
• Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Add onions to hot oil and saute about 3 minutes until soft, adding garlic during last minute of sauteing. Pour in crushed tomatoes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring mixture just to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and allow sauce to cook for about 25 - 30 minutes (which will allow some of the water in crushed tomatoes to evaporate) while you prepare pasta and lasagna filling (you can freeze or refrigerate left over sauce in a small airtight container for later use, adding fresh basil if desired).

Summer Weekend in Marion

I'm planning a relaxing weekend in Marion with Tim and Julie July 12-14. I think I'll surprise them with some tasty goodness. I found recipes in some Taste of Home cookbooks donated to the Friends of the Library book sale and a copy of Sheila Lukins "celebrate!".  

Saturday Afternoon Cocktail Hour

Cranberry-Jalapeno martini

Cook 1 cup turbinado sugar with ¾ cups cranberry juice and ½ cup fresh cranberries and ½ tsp. chopped seeded jalapeno pepper.

Bring to a boil and reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 3 min. or until sugar is dissolved.  Cover and let stand 20 min.

Strain the liquid, discard cranberries and jalapeno.  Cover and refrigerate syrup.

3 oz. vodka,  1 T cranberry syrup and 1 T cranberry juice. Stir, strain and serve over ice with mint and cranberries.

Pistachio Gorgonzola Cheesecake

Chop 2 shallots in food processor and add 2 cups Gorgonzola, 1 cup butter, 1 8 oz. pkg cream cheese, ¼ cup Madeira wine, 2 T. grated orange peel, 1 T. heavy whipping cream, ½ tsp. white pepper and ½ tsp. ground mustard. 

Combine 1 cup toasted, chopped pistachios with 8 thinly sliced green onion, 2 T. minced fresh basil, 2 T. oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, chopped and drained, and 2 cups Gorgonzola.

Spread half the mixture in a parchment lined springform pan.  Top with half of the cream cheese mixture. Repeat layers.  Pat down. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours.

Remove the sides of the pan and unmold.  Press ½ cup finely chopped pistachios over sides. Serve with crackers. 

Late Dinner

Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Chili Lime Dressing

Cube 2 pounds sweet potatoes and toss with 2 T olive oil.  Roast at 400 degrees for 40 min. until potatoes are tender stirring twice.  Combine 1 large red pepper cut into ½ inch pieces, 8 green onions chopped, ½ cup minced fresh parsley and ¼ cup fresh minced cilantro.

Dress with 1/3 c. olive oil, ¼ c. lime juice, 4 tsp. chili powder, ¾ tsp. salt, ¾ tsp. ground cumin, ½ tsp. pepper and 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper.

Tilapia with Basil Oil and Summer Salsa

Combine ½ c. fresh corn, ½ cup chopped nectarine, ½ cup chopped tomato and ½ cup cubed avocado with 2 T. fresh basil, minced, 2 T. fresh lime juice, 1-1/2 tsp. grated lime peel, 1 tsp. finely chopped seeded jalapeno pepper, ¼ tsp. salt and ¼ tsp. pepper.

Place 1 cup loosely packed basic leaves, 2 T. lime juice, 1-1/2 tsp. grated lime peel, 1 garlic clovein food processor and pulse until chopped, adding 1/3 c. oil while chopping.

Serve baked or grilled tilapia with salsa and oil.

Grilled Red Potato Salad with Blue Cheese and Bacon

Toss 3 pounds small red potatoes, quartered, 1 small red onion, thinly sliced, 2 T olive oil and 1 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. pepper and seal up in foil and grill, covered over medium heat for 40-50 minutes.  Turn once.

Toss with 1 c. mayo, ¼ c. minced chives, ¼ cup white balsamic vinegar, 2 tsp. sugar, 2 tsp. Dijon mustard.  Sprinkle with 1 cup blue cheese and 6 bacon strips, crumbled.

Blackberry-Basil Panna Cotta

Combine 2 cups heavy whipping cream and 2 cups half and half with 3/4 cup sugar in a saucepan. Sprinkle with two envelopes of unflavored gelatin and let stand for one minute. Heat over low heat, stirring until sugar and gelatin are completely dissolved. Remove from heat and stir in 1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract and 2 tsp. lemon peel. 

Pour the panna cotta into six ramekins or custard cups coated with cooking spray. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

In a small saucepan, combine 2 cups fresh blackberries with 1 cup sugar and 1 cup blackberry wine or ruby port wine.  Bring to a boil and cook until mixture is thicken.  Reduce to 1-1/4 cups in this process and then remove from heat, stirring in 1/4 cup minced fresh basil and 2 T cold butter.  Cool.

Unmold panna cotta onto dessert plates, serve with sauce and garnish with additional blackberries and basil.

Sunday Morning Breakfast

Grapefruit in honey-thyme sauce – 3 large grapefruit sliced.

½ cup white wine or white grape juice and ¼ c. honey and 2 T minced fresh thyme simmered 15 min.

Overnight Yeast Pancakes

1 pkg active dry yeast or ¼ ounce dissolved in 1-1/2 cups warm buttermilk for 5 min.

Combine 1 cup flour and 1 cup wheat flour and ¼ c. sugar and 3 tsp. baking powder and 1 tsp. baking soda and ½ tsp. salt

Whisk in 2 eggs, 2 T canola oil and 1 tsp. vanilla extract until moistened. Stir in yeast mixture and refrigerate for 8 hours.

OR

Cheese grits and sausage breakfast casserole

2 pounds bulk Italian sausage, cooked

Bring 2 cups water and 2 cups chicken broth, ½ tsp. salt to a boil. And slowly stir in 1-1/4 cup quick cooking grits.

Reduce heat and cook and stir for 5-7 minutes.  Removed from heat and add 1 pound sharp cheddar cheese, shredded, 1 cup milk, 1-1/2 tsp. garlic powder, 1 tsp. sage and stir until cheese is melted.  Stir in sausage and 6 eggs, beaten.  Transfer to a greased dish and bake uncovered at 350 for 40-45 minutes.  Let stand 10 minutes.

16 Age-Busting Power Foods

Today I picked up the library's copy of The Longevity Kitchen : Satisfying, Big-Flavor Recipes Featuring the Top 16 Age-Busting Power Foods  by Rebecca Katz because the cover looked delicious and the book intriguing.  

I figured the top 16 foods would be more of the same foods I've been trying to learn to use - grains and soy-based products or non-dairy ones.  It's true that the list doesn't include cheeses, but I was surprised at the list of foods that offer ' the highest levels of antioxidants, those invaluable nutrients that help sweep the dangerous metabolic by-products known as free radicals out of the body." (p. 2, Katz):

Asparagus, avocado, basil (and mint), blueberries and other dark berries, coffee, dark chocolate, garlic, green tea, kale, olive oil, pomegranates, sweet potatoes, thyme, walnuts, wild salmon and yogurt.

Hallelujah!  With the exception of kale (I'm sure I could learn to enjoy and use it), we are wild about all the others on the list.  Other foods are allspice, almonds, apples, apricots, artichokes, bell peppers, black cod, broccoli, buckwheat, cabbage, cardamom, carrots, cauliflower, celery, cherries, chicken, chickpeas, chile peppers, chives, cilantro and coriander, cinnamon, coconut milk and oil, corn, cranberries, cumin, edamame, eggs, fennel, ginger, halibut, hibiscus, honey (yes!), kombu, leeks, legumes, lemons, lemongrass, limes, maple syrup (yes again!), miso, mustard seeds, onions oranges, oregano, parsley, peas, pistachios, potatoes, quinoa, grass-fed red meat, brown rice, saffron, sage, sardines, scallops, shitake mushrooms, shrimp, sesame seeds and tahini, spinach, winter squash, strawberries, swiss chard, tomatoes, turkey, turmeric and wasabi.  

What a list of delicious stuff. The chard, kombu and miso are the only foods I don't use regularly.

I was surprised at the recipes in the book because they are very similar to the 'recipes' I use all the time when I am putting ingredients together in a weekday rush or a on a lazy Sunday afternoon. I keep most of them on hand all the time.

Here's one using Kale in a way that I might enjoy:

Farro with Kale-Basil Pesto

To make the pesto, add 4 cups stemmed and chopped lacinato kale to rapidly boiling water over high heat.  Cook 30 seconds and then drain and rinse under cold water.    Squeeze the kale to remove water from it.  Place the kale, 1 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley, 1/2 cup shelled pistachios, 1/2 cut olive oil, 1/4 cup vegetable broth, 2 tsp. finely chopped garlic, 1 T. fresh lemon juice, 1 tsp. grated lemon zest and 1/4 tsp. salt in a food processor and process until well blended.  Taste to see if you need to add more lemon juice, zest or salt. 

Cook the farro by placing 1 cup soaked, rinsed and drained farro in 3 cups boiling water with 1/2 tsp. sea salt, stirring well.  Decrease the heat from boiling to medium and cook for 20 minutes.  Drain the farro and return it to the pot.  Add 1 cup of the pesto and 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan or Pecorino-Romano cheese, 1 cup cooked white beans, drained and spritzed with lemon juice and salt, and 1/4 cup diced sun-dried tomatoes.

Serve hot or at room temperature.

Apple, Leek, and Squash Gratin among Other Tasty Things

On June 17th my book group met  on Prospect Street to discuss What My Mother Gave Me by Elizabeth Benedict.  The book was published right around the time I decided to research my mother's antique family glasses and write one of my weekly columns for the  newspaper so I hoped others will share their own memories of mother-gifts while we eat dinner. I'm a huge fan of Ms. Benedict's book and have been recommending it wildly. While others aren't necessarily memoir lovers like I am, there were several hours of conversation last night about our mothers, families and gifts we've received from them. (Or not, I might add.)  One member of the group shared her own essay (worthy of the book!) with us and I was enrapt listening to her read it.

First course was Corn-Celery Chowder which is a variation on the Crab Corn Chowder I have posted on this blog.  I omitted the crab and added diced cooked potatoes simmer in chicken stock.  I made a roux of butter and flour and the soup is creamy and thick and very delicious! (Gerry sat in the kitchen and chowed down two bowls.)  I added our own herbs from the porch  herb pots - tarragon, thyme and chives.

Accompanying the soup was Ricotta Braid with Honey Butter - what would dinner at the Canelli's be without that bread and honey-orange butter (made with honey from our own bees.)  This time I made a four piece braid - something I saw on YouTube recently. It worked perfectly.

I made a big salad with mixed greens, strawberries, tiny red and yellow tomatoes and honey-toasted almonds with Poppyseed Dressing.  I tossed in some fresh cilantro and our own parsley for good measure.

For two more vegetarian courses I found Meatless: More than 200 of the Very Best Vegetarian Recipes from the Kitchens of Martha Stewart Living.   
I'll link the recipes here: Apple, Leek and Squash Gratin (with fresh sage from the porch planter at 305 Prospect Street) and Mushroom, Spinach and Scallion Tart  (fresh dill and cilantro from our Marion herb planters.)  I think the gratin would be a wonderful addition to a Thanksgiving dinner.  The tart needs to be served immediately; the phyllo dough got a bit soggy while it stayed warm in the warming oven for two hours.

Dessert?  Kentucky Bourbon Cake, of course.

Apple, Leek, and Squash Gratin

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a skillet, heat 2 T olive oil over medium heat.  Add 2 leeks sliced thinly and add 2 T water.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cook until leeks are browned - about 10 minutes.  Stir often.  Add 1/2 c. sherry and 1 T chopped sage leaves. Cook until the liquid is reduced to a glaze (3 min.)

Butter a shallow baking dish and arrange thin slices of butternut squash (1 pound).  Season with salt and pepper.  Cover with leek mixture.

Slice and peel about 3 large apples (1/8 inch slices).  Arrange sliced apples such as Gala, Macoun, Cortland over the leeks.  Brush apples with 1 T. olive oil.  Cover tightly with parchment and foil.  Bake 45 minutes.

Uncover, sprinkle with finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Raise oven temp to 450 degrees and back until cheese is melted (10 minutes.)

Garnish with sage leaves.

Mushroom, Spinach, and Scallion Tart

Slice one pound of a mixture of mushrooms - Shitake, Portabello, etc., about 1/2 inch thick.
Place these and 2 T of olive oil on a large, rimmed baking sheet and mix up with coarse sea salt; toss well.  Place in a 425 degree oven and roast for 10 minutes.  Toss with 12 scallions, trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces and sliced in half.  Roast for 15 more minutes.  Push the mushrooms and scallions aside and place 3 cups of baby spinach on the empty side.  Roast about 3 minutes until wilted.

Puree 6 ounces goat cheese with 3 eggs and 1/3 cup lowfat milk.  Add 3 T of mixed herbs such as cilantro and dill.  Set this custard aside and season with salt and pepper.

In the meantime, lightly brush a tart pan (hopefully rectangular but I used a large round one) with olive oil.  Working with one piece of phyllo dough at a time, brush the pastry lightly with oil and fit into the tart pan with an overhang.  Do this for 10 sheets.  Fold the edges over at the top.

Cover the dough with a double layer of foil just to fit the pan leaving about 1/2" at the edges. Bake for about 7 minutes at 425 degrees.  Remove foil and bake another 3.   Lower the oven temp to 375 degrees.

Now, layer the mushroom/spinach mixture on the the phyllo crust which should be golden.  Cover with custard. Bake the tart for about 20-23 minutes until custard is set.  Remove tart from pan (keeping bottom on for support) and place on a serving dish.  Slice.

Jam Cake Proposal

I decided to try the Jam Cake recipe in Cakewalk: Loving Spoonfuls from a Southern Kitchen by Robbin Gourley last weekend.  Beth made a Strawberry-Rhubarb jam and I was a bit nervous about using it because it seemed a bit runny.  In the end I think both the texture and taste would have been terrific.  The recipe calls for a seedless raspberry jam. The frosting might be yummy with cream cheese mixed in, especially if using a  strawberry jam.

I lined four pans with parchment and sprayed with baking spray.  I love a multi-layered cake.

I also love the romantic annotation for this recipe:

Sometime in 1912, Arnet Ireland began walking the seven long miles to town to sit with Miss Mattie Gibson in her family's parlor. 

One afternoon he was served the jam cake Mattie had made that morning.

Call if coincidence, she'd say, but that was the day he asked for her hand.

 Cake:
Sift together - 3-1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsps. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsps. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground allspice*
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. ground nutmeg

Whisk together 1 cup buttermilk, 2 tbsps. lemon juice, 1-1/2 cup blackberry or raspberry jam and 4 eggs.

Cream 1 cup softened unsalted butter with 1-1/2 cups sugar until fluffy.  Alternately, add some of the dry and liquid ingredients to the butter/sugar mixture, beating well after each addition.  Pour the batter into the pans, smooth the tops and bake for 35 minutes or until done.  Cool in pans 10 minutes and then invert onto racks.  Cook completely before frosting.

Frosting:
Place 16 ounces of confectioners' sugar, 6 tbsps of unsalted butter (softened), 1/2 cup of jam, 2-3 tsps. flavored liqueur or vanilla extract in a bowl and beat with electric mixer until smooth.  Frost and decorate with fresh berries, if desired.

*Learned something about Allspice!