Paglia e Fieno (Straw and Hay) Recipe

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This colorful pasta dish has been on restaurant menus as far-back as I can remember.  Patrons love the two-tone pasta, crispy peas, prosciutto bits, and creamy sauce.  Your family and guests will ask for second helpings every time.  But, as traditional as this dish is, feel free to change the vegetables according to seasons; for example, I love adding fava beans in the spring, corn in the summer, mushrooms in the fall, and cooked chestnuts in the winter.


Ingredients:
salt for the pasta pot
4 scallions
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup shelled fresh peas, blanched or frozen baby peas, defrosted
6 to 8 slices imported prsciutto, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick ribbons
2/3 cup chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 pound fresh paglia e fieno fettucine, or 1/2 pound dry egg fettucine and 1/2 pound dry spinach fettucine
3/4 cup freshly grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Preparation:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
2. Trim the roots, tips, and any yellow or wilted leaves from the scallions.  Cut them in half lengthwise, then crosswise into 3-inch lengths.  Cut the scallion pieces lengthwise into thin strips.
3. Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat.  Add the scallions, and cook until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes.  Scatter in the peas and cook until just tender, about 3 minutes.  Add the prosciutto, and toss until it changes color, 1 to 2 minutes.  Pour in the chicken stock, and bring the liquid to a boil.  Reduce the sauce to a simmer, and cook until the liquid is reduced by half.  Add the heavy cream, and continue to simmer until the liquid is lightly thickened, 2 to 3 minutes.
4. Stir the pasta into the salted boiling water.  Return to a boil, and cook the pasta until al dente.  Fish the pasta out of the boiling water with a large wire skimmer, and add it directly to the sauce in the skillet, stirring to coat the pasta with the sauce.  Cook over high heat until the liquid is reduced enough to form a creamy sauce.  Remove from the heat, toss in the grated cheese, and serve immediately in warm bowls.

Recipe courtesy of Lidia's Favorite Recipes by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali.

Italy  [ print this recipe for Paglia e Fieno (Straw and Hay) ]

Wild Mushroom Risotto Recipe

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Everyone thinks of mashed potatoes and gravy or mac and cheese as comfort foods. But after tasting this risotto, you may just have a new favorite.

Ingredients:
6 cups beef stock (or substitute chicken or mushroom stock)
3 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter
1 cup shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and julienned
1 cup oyster mushrooms, sliced
1 cup cremini mushrooms, sliced
salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup finely chopped shallots
1 pound Principato di Lucedio Arborio rice
1/2 cup Courvoisier cognac
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley.

Preparation:

1. Pour the stock into a stock pot and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer.
2. In a medium sauté pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and sauté for 5 minutes, or until tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from the heat and set aside.
3. Heat the remaining olive oil and butter in a heavy bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and sauté until translucent. Add the rice and cook, stirring constantly, until golden brown. Pour in the cognac and keep stirring until it is completely absorbed. Using a large ladle, add the stock one ladle at a time, stirring constantly, until absorbed. Continue this process until all the stock is used and the rice is creamy.
4. Add the mushroom mixture to the risotto and continue cooking and stirring. Stir in the heavy cream and cheese and continue stirring. Risotto should have a very creamy texture. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately, garnished with chopped parsley.

Serves 8

Recipe courtesy of Lobster for Leos, Cookies for Capricorns by Sabra Ricci

Italy [ print this recipe for Wild Mushroom Risotto ]

Happy Valentine's Day!

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Yeah, I know. Nothing says Valentine’s Day like Barley Kale Salad!  I did have visions of posting cookies,cupcakes or something else sweet and gooey, but after thinking aboutValentine’s Day as the day to celebrate love, instead of a day to gorge onsweets, I decided to take a different path.  The love of my life, the one I’ve been married to foralmost 20 years, has been battling high cholesterol for most of his adult life.I’ve made changes in what we eat to help with his cholesterol, so we are now eating more fish,whole grains and good fats, and less meat, white flour and saturated fats.  Some weeks are better than others, buton the whole we have been making progress, and his numbers have been lookinggood!
So, with my Valentine in mind, I decided to share my friendBeth’s Barley and Kale salad.  Beth served this salad to go with my beans, and barbequed tri-tip for acamping trip last June (We eat really well on our camping trips!).   I made her salad this Sunday, so Lesand I could bring it for lunch during week.  I packed Les some for his lunch Monday, and as I was sittingdown to eat my bowl, I received a text from him saying he really liked thesalad, and he hoped there was more for Tuesday.   Awh, how sweet! I’m glad he liked it!
Barley and Kale salad is low fat, tasty and filling.  The dressing adds a tartness thatblends nicely with the kale, the edamame adds a nice amount of protein, and the cranberries are just plain yummy.  Happy Valentine’s Day!  
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Barley Kale SaladPrintable Recipe 1 10-ounce bunch Lacinato (dinosaur kale), washed, leavestrimmed from stem and chopped½ cup chopped parsley, one bunch½ cup chopped red onion½ cup good quality balsamic vinegarJuice of two lemons½ teaspoon kosher saltGenerous grinding of freshly ground black pepper3 cups cooked barley2 cups shelled edamame½ cup dried cranberries
In a large bowl, combine the choppedkale, parsley and red onion.  In a small bowl, whisk together the balsamicvinegar, lemon juice, salt and black pepper. Add the vinegar mixture to thekale and toss together.  Stir the barley, edamame and cranberries into thekale mixture. Taste, and add salt and pepper if needed.  Refrigerate for 1hour to let the flavors combine. Serve.

Country Salad with Barley

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Change and loss are the two words best describing my last few months. August saw us packing up my daughter and moving her across a couple western states to drop her of in Montana for college. Then, three weeks after leaving my daughter in Montana, my dear father passed away. His death was not unexpected, but it was very sudden, and it broke my heart.

One thing that has kept me going in my season of loss and change (besides the support of my family and friends of course) has been cooking. When I first got back from Montana, I jumped into what I described as my "therapy" baking. I made some amazing sweet treats like Southern Living’s Mississippi Mud Cake, Brown Sugar Pecan Coffee Cake, and German Chocolate Pecan Pie Bars.

All of these sweet treats were delicious, and the precise measuring, stirring and timing baking requires, soothed me. But, there were only so many baked goods my family or co-workers could consume, so I had to move on to more savory fare.

I have recently been fascinated by Rachel Ray’s Week in a Day show on Food Network. I loved the idea of devoting a whole day to making food for the rest of the week, so a couple of weeks ago, I organized myself and tried her method. I woke up early on Sunday and made Split Pea Soup with Lemon, Andouille Sausage and Butternut Squash Gumbo, Green Pastitsio, and a big batch of this Country Salad with Barley.

Country Salad with Barley is my own take on a Trader Joe’s salad Les and I both love. I worked on the recipe until the salad tasted like the Trader Joe’s Salad, and I have it on good authority that I “nailed it.”

The original salad has a base of cabbage the grain salad rests on. I chopped the cabbage and mixed it into the salad. I also used barley rather than bulgur because I like the texture of barley better than bulgur, but be sure not to overcook the barley as it becomes gummy. The dill and cumin mix with the balsamic vinegar to create a deliciously unique salad with a nice chew from the barley and a crunch from the cabbage. I make a big batch of this salad so we can have it for lunch during the week, and it keeps really well.

I spent the weekend in Montana with my daughter and Lynn (my late dad's wife), and we had a great visit. I think with time and a lot of cooking I will start to feel less raw, and I'll feel even better when my daughter comes home for Christmas break (she will love this salad)!

Country Salad with Barley
Printable Recipe
4 to 6 cups of cooked barley (I use this technique for cooking the barley)
6 cups chopped cabbage (from one medium head)
1 cup of chopped cucumber
1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1 roasted red pepper, chopped
1 14oz can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

Dressing
½ cup olive oil
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
½ teaspoons ground cumin
2 Tablespoons chopped dill
1 teaspoon kosher salt

Stir together the barley, cabbage, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red pepper and garbanzo beans in a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, cumin dill and salt. Pour the dressing over barley mixture and stir to combine. Chill the salad for at least one hour to let the flavors combine. Serve.

Pumpkin Pancakes with Cinnamon Sauce and Cream Cheese Icing

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As I mentioned in my last post, I visited my daughter in Montana for Parent’s weekend. In order to squeeze as much time together as possible, I insisted my daughter get up “early” on Sunday, so she could have breakfast with Lynn and me before we left. She didn’t protest since there was going be more shopping involved as well. We didn’t have time to research breakfast places (when we travel, we like eat at places where we can’t eat at home), and since Lynn and I had to get to the airport before noon, we decided to eat at Ihop.

Lynn and I had some delicious pumpkin pancakes, and my daughter got the French toast Cinnastacks. We shared bites of our breakfast, and my daughter let me dip my pumpkin pancakes in her Cinnastack sauce. Her French toast was delicious with topped with the cinnamon sauce, but the pumpkin pancakes were amazing dredged in the sauce! They tasted like pumpkin cinnamon buns. I knew I needed to recreate the sauce.

There are a few sauce recipes out there, and I don’t know where the recipe for this sauce originated since it was in so many places. After trying this sauce, I think it is a good match for Ihop’s sauce. Serving the cream cheese icing on the pumpkin pancakes along with the cinnamon sauce is absolutely gilding the lily, but my husband insisted it was worth the effort.

Pumpkin Pancakes
Printable Recipe
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
pinch of clove
4 tablespoons melted butter
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 eggs
1½ cup milk

Whisk together the flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and clove in a large bowl or 8 cup measuring cup. In a small bowl, mix together butter, pumpkin, eggs and milk. Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour the wet ingredients into the well. Stir together until just incorporated. Do not over mix.
Heat a non-stick griddle on medium-high heat. Add the batter to the pan for desired-sized pancakes. Cook until bubbles no longer flow to the surface of the batter, then flip. Serve with Cinnamon Syrup and Cream Cheese Icing or maple syrup.

Cinnamon Syrup
¼ cup butter (salted)
¾ cup dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons half & half
1 tablespoon cinnamon
pinch of salt
pinch of cloves
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Heat butter, brown sugar, half & half, cinnamon, salt and cloves until bubbly and smooth. Add the flour and cook another minute or until thickened. Serve warm.

Cream Cheese Icing4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1¼ cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

Beat together the cream cheese and powdered sugar. Add the lemon juice and vanilla extract, and beat for another few seconds or until the glaze is smooth and creamy.

Planter’s Peanut Butter Cookies

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Living the Gourmet is pleased to introducePlanter’s NUTrition Energy Mix Peanut Butter, a new and delicious product fromour friends over at Planters.  Living the Gourmet was given theopportunity of testing out NUTrition Banana Granola Nut, which takes peanutbutter to a whole new level, with a wholesome blend of bananas and granola inthick roasted peanut butter.  Anexcellent source of energy, it is packed with 7 grams of protein per serving aswell as 11 vitamins and minerals.
To showcase just how tasty this newadventurous taste in peanut butter is I’ve prepared a batch of peanut buttercookies.  Or, of course, you could just eat Nut-rition off the spoon!
The next time you need to make a pantryrun for peanut butter, make sure to pick up NUTrition!
Enjoy with Love,CatherineFor cookies you will need:
1 cup AP flour¾ teaspoon baking soda½ teaspoon baking powder¼ cup oats¼ cup Planter’s NUTrition Energy Mix: Cinnamon RaisinGranola Nut¼ cup Planter’s NUTrition Energy Mix: Banana Granola Nut5 tablespoons unsalted butter¾ cup white sugar¼ cup dark brown sugar1 large egg1/8 cup whole milk1 teaspoon vanilla1 tablespoon currants1 tablespoon orange zest¼ cup dark chocolate chunks
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. and line two baking sheetswith parchment paper.
In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, andbaking powder.  Add oats and set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together peanut buttersand butter until fluffy.  Add the sugarsand beat until smooth.  Add the egg andmix well.  Add the milk, vanilla extract,and orange zest.  Add dry ingredients tothe peanut butter mixture and mix thoroughly. Stir in the dark chocolate chunks.
Drop rounded teaspoonfuls onto prepared baking sheetsleaving a couple inches between each cookie. Bake for 10-12 minutes.  When thecookies are done transfer onto a wire rack and cool completely beforeserving.  Enjoy!
xoxo,Catherine and Tammy

Spaghetti with Zucchini and Anchovies

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Ingredients:
1 lb. of your favorite spaghetti3 zucchini’s – sliced (with or without skin)1 onion – sliced3 vine ripe tomato’s – quartered4 cloves of garlic – chopped2 oz. can of anchovies – in oilHandful of Italian parsley – choppedHandful of fresh basil – chopped1 cup of chicken brothJuice of 1 lemonDashes of salt Dashes of black pepperDashes of red pepper flakesOne cup of croutonsGrated Romano cheese
Prepare the spaghetti as directed.
Heat a large frying pan with a drizzle of olive oil. 
Add the sliced zucchini, onions and garlic.  Sauté until the zucchini slightly golden andthe onion is slightly translucent.  Season the veggies with a few dashes of salt and pepper.
Add the tomatoes, basil and parsley and continue tosauté.  Make room in the middle of thepan and add the anchovies with the oil. Mash with a fork until almost paste like and toss.
Squeeze the juice of the lemon into a cup.  Add the chicken broth to the lemon juice andadd to the pan. 
Place one cup of croutons in a food processor and give a fewgood chops.
Place the spaghetti in a serving bowl.  Drizzle with a little olive oil and seasonwith dashes of red pepper flakes.  GrateRomano cheese and toss.  Top with thecroutons.
This is a perfect Friday night dinner.
Enjoy with Love,
Catherine xoIt is a delight to direct you to my friend, Lucia, who produces a delicious blog, "So what are you making...". Lucia cooked a recipe from, Living the Gourmet, Roast Pork Shoulder.She is has delicious home cooked recipes. The kind of recipes that remind you of growing up in simpler times with fond memories. They are the recipes that take time and love to cook. Please visit Lucia. She is a wonderful cook. Blessings my dears. Catherine xo