Foodmomiac

Foodmomiac's Macaroni Salad

I have never been a huge fan of macaroni salad. It's usually gloppy and overly sweet, and just... blah. But, there's something really appealing about a macaroni salad. I love elbow macaroni, and I love mayo-based salads, so I always knew that I could probably rescue this dish.

After doing some online research and some in-kitchen tinkering, I think we have a winner. This is based off of a recipe I found on All Recipes, but the additions and changes make it my own. Enjoy! (Note: this makes 10 VERY generous servings, so make sure you have plenty of guests, or are ready to eat macaroni salad every day for a week.)

Foodmomiac's Macaroni Salad

1 box elbow macaroni
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup turbinado sugar
2-1/2 tablespoons yellow mustard
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 sweet white onion, cut into 3-4 big chunks
2 stalks celery, cut into 3-4 big chunks
2 carrots, cut into 3-4 big chunks (you can use a handful of baby carrots if that's all you have on hand)
3 hard boiled eggs, diced
2 dill pickles, diced

Cook macaroni for eight minutes. Drain, rinse in cold water and set aside.

Mix together the mayo, vinegar, sugar, mustard, salt and pepper in a large bowl.

In a food processor, mince the onion, celery and carrots. (You can also just dice these finely on your own, but the food processor does a great job and is super fast.)

Add the veggies to the sauce in the bowl, along with the macaroni, eggs and pickles. Mix to combine, cover, and refrigerate for at least two hours (overnight is fine, and probably preferable!)

Winging it (Chorizo Kale Pasta)

Chorizo Kale Pasta
Originally uploaded by Foodmomiac

We were away all last weekend in Toledo, which was a lot of fun, but we didn't get home until late Sunday night. This translates to no groceries in the house. I DID get our au pair a Trader Joe's gift card, so that she could pick things up for the house while we're at work, but that seems to have translated from English to German into, "Hey, go buy as much mochi as you can find! Hurry! Fill the freezer with mochi!!" So... lots of Japanese ice cream. But, in terms of other food? Not so much. I take full blame for this. Sending an 18-year-old to the grocery store with no list is just not smart. So, anyway... we don't have much food.

Luckily, we did have some fun ingredients left over from last week's trip to the Farmer's Market, including kale and lamb chorizo. I decided to create a pasta dish. I minced one small onion and sauteed it in a tablespoon or two of extra virgin olive oil. Then, I sliced up two links of the chorizo and added those, cooking them until they were nice and brown. I then added a couple of tablespoons of flour to create a roux. I poured in a box of chicken broth, added the cleaned and chopped kale, and covered the pan until the kale was steamed to perfection and the sauce was slightly thickened. (I stirred occasionally to help things along). While I made the sauce, I cooked the pasta. Once it was done, I drained it, added it to the sauce, and tossed the whole concoction with a handful of grated Parmigiano Reggiano.

Yum - it was really good!

P.S. How is everyone doing with the shred? I've missed a few days, but I'm up to Level 3. Was not a huge fan of Level 2.

Fancy Mac & Cheese (with no-cook sauce!)

Hot enough for you guys out there? Chicago has actually been just beautiful this week, but I know that many of us in the US are sweltering in 90+ degrees weather. Ugh. Now that I have air conditioning, this doesn't affect my cooking like it once did (our Toledo home had no A/C), but slaving over a hot stove in the summer isn't much fun for anyone.

The solution? No-cook pasta sauces! There are many ways to do this (one of my favorites is to just chop up a bunch of fresh tomatoes, add garlic, salt, pepper and olive oil and enjoy!). However, the method I'm going to share here is by far my favorite (and most decadent).

The ingredients (this will serve 4 with leftovers):
One box pasta (penne or some other tubular shape is best)
One wedge brie (or a small round, but the wedge is easier)
Bunch of fresh basil, sliced chiffonade-style (stack leaves, roll up lengthwise, then cut into thin strips)
Handful of cherry tomatoes, cut in half
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Cook the pasta al dente. While it's cooking, grab a big pasta bowl for the rest of your ingredients. Remove the white rind from the brie and cut it into 1/2 inch cubes. Place in the bowl along with the basil and tomatoes. Just before you drain the pasta, grab about 1/2 cup of the pasta water and reserve. Drain the pasta and dump it into the pasta bowl, on top of the other ingredients. Toss well, adding pasta water as necessary for great texture. Salt and pepper to taste, and enjoy!

Me? Cooking? Whaddayaknow (Chicken Milanese and Pasta)

Chicken Milanese with Pasta
Originally uploaded by Foodmomiac

I know myself better than to promise anything, but today begins July's NaBloPoMo (posting every day in a month), and the topic is food. I gotta at least try, no?

Last night we had Chicken Milanese. I sliced chicken breasts very thinly, dredged them in egg and panko (seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic powder) and then pan fried them in extra virgin olive oil. Once they were cooked, I popped them into the oven on low to keep them warm. Then, Dylan stepped up to help.

We grabbed a few leaves of basil from the garden along with some cherry tomatoes. These were all thrown into a wooden bowl with some capers and some baby arugula. She chopped everything up and then I added a bit of olive oil. No vinegar was needed due to the capers. I also threw in a bit of shredded cheese (an Italian blend that was lurking in the fridge).

The kids ate the chicken breasts plain. The adults topped them with the arugula mix for a delicious Milanese.

On the side, we had gemelli tossed with raw, chopped cherry tomatoes, black pepper, olive oil and chunks of fresh mozzarella. Such a nice summer meal.

Featured Ingredient: Leftover Corn

I always get so excited when corn is finally in season. Excitement translates to more ears of corn than my family can possibly eat, so it's nice to have some leftover corn recipes in my pocket to avoid being wasteful.

My all-time favorite leftover corn recipe is Ubiquitous Corn Salad. You really can't go wrong with this, and everyone always loves it. In fact, I would have probably made it tonight, but the reason I had leftover corn in the first place was because I made the salad yesterday. It was requested that I bring a bowl of it over to our friend Dave's birthday party. (We had a great time, and loved getting the chance to spend time with our old buddy Howard.)

So, yeah, you can't make corn salad with corn that's leftover from corn salad. But, I made too much corn, and I needed to do something with it. Michael went to a Cubs game tonight, so it was just me and the kids. I wanted something simple, summery and healthy, but I didn't want it to seem so healthy that they'd refuse to eat it.

I am happy to report that this dish was a hit. Proof:

Pasta with Corn, Chickpeas and Cheese

1/2 pound small pasta (I used gemelli, but I think small shells or elbows would be even better)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, sliced thinly
2 ears of leftover cooked corn, scraped off the cob
1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
3 tablespoons butter
1 scallion (white and light green parts), sliced
salt and pepper
3/4 cup of Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
small handful of fresh basil, julienned (cut into thin slices)

Cook pasta according to the package directions.

In the meantime, heat a large skillet over medium heat and add the olive oil. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 seconds (don't let it get too brown). Add the corn and chickpeas and saute for two minutes. Add the butter and scallion and continue to cook for another minute or two. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

When the pasta is done cooking, drain it and add to the pan. Stir to combine and then add the Parmigiano. Stir again. Top with the julienned basil. Enjoy!

Vegetarian Lasagne

I have a beautiful photo of the lasagne I served last night (the one I cooked on Sunday). Sadly, though the photo was beautiful, the lasagne tasted like butt. Moral of the story? When a Bolognese sauce calls for pancetta, it might be a good idea to use pancetta. German proscuitto seasoned with juniper berries will yield a lasagne that tastes like it was soaked in gin. (Yet, the damn thing is still sitting my refrigerator because I just can't bring myself to throw out a giant pan of lasagne.)

Next time I'm going to stick with what I know. And what I know is how to make a fabulous vegetarian lasagne. Bon Appetit:

Vegetarian Lasagne

2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 small package mushrooms, chopped
1/2 bag baby spinach
salt and pepper
1 32 oz. can San Marzano tomatoes (whole or crushed)
1 16 oz. tub ricotta
2 eggs
4 cups shredded mozzarella, divided
grated Parmigiano Reggiano
one box Barilla oven ready lasagne

Heat a large, deep skillet over medium high heat. Add the olive oil. Add the onion and saute until translucent. Add garlic. Saute until fragrant (a few seconds). Add mushrooms and spinach. Season with salt and pepper and cook until the spinach is completely wilted and the mushrooms have released their juices.  Add the tomatoes (if using whole, be sure to crush them up first with a fork, or better yet, your hands). Lower heat to low and let cook for up to an hour.

In a medium bowl, combine ricotta, eggs and half of the mozzarella. You can also add some grated Parmigiano if you like. Set aside.

Cover the bottom of a 9x13 inch Pyrex with about a cup of the sauce. Place four lasagne noodles over the sauce. Evenly spread about half of the ricotta cheese mixture over the noodles. Top the cheese with another cup of sauce. Place another four noodles over the sauce. Spread on the remainder of the ricotta and another cup of sauce. Top with another four noodles, another cup of sauce and about a cup of the mozzarella. Place the final four noodles over the cheese and cover with the remainder of the sauce. Sprinkle with the remaining cup of mozzarella and a healthy grating of Parmigiano.

Baked, covered with foil in a preheated 375 degree oven for about 60 minutes. Remove foil and cook for another five minutes to melt the cheese. Let the lasagne stand outside of the oven for about 15 minutes so that it doesn't fall apart when you cut it.

Notes: I like this type of pasta because it utilizes the entire box. Also, it is flat, which appeals to my aesthetics. It's also important to note that my order of layering is basically random. Your main goal is to use up all of the ingredients. The only set rules are to start with sauce and end with cheese. Finally, please feel free to rif on this recipe. Got some zucchini? Throw it in the sauce! Hate mushrooms? Leave 'em out! It's very flexible.

Enjoy!

(Oh, you can freeze this before and/or after cooking it.)

 

Disclaimer
Barilla is one of my clients which is why I tried this lasagne. BUT, it's amazing stuff, and I would not recommend it if I didn't truly like it.

Easy Pasta Salad

  Trashy Pasta Salad 
  Originally uploaded by Foodmomiac.

I never order Ranch dressing at a restaurant. I get Bleu Cheese, or Vinaigrette, or if I'm feeling wild, Thousand Island. At home, I make my own dressing. We never buy the stuff.

Ranch dressing, though, seems to be the most popular dressing in the US. Whenever I'm out to dinner, I hear people ordering it left and right. Most of my friends at work get Ranch on their salads. But I never do. And, were it not for this pasta salad, I'd even venture to say that I hate the stuff. I certainly would never eat it on a typical lettuce salad.

But, for some reason, this pasta salad is different. It makes Ranch taste great. I have no idea why. And, were it not for Jessica Alexander, back in 8th grade, I'd never know how good it was. She brought it in one day for some sort of class party, and went on and on about how fabulous it was. And, she was right. It was damn good. Stupid easy, but good. I used to use Hidden Valley for the salad, but tried Marzetti's tonight. It was an excellent substitute, and the ingredient list was blessedly short and simple.

Pasta Salad
Cooked and cooled pasta (I love using tri-color rotini)
Bell peppers, multi-colored, cut into small dice
Gherkins or small dill pickles, cut into small dice
Small can of diced ripe olives
Ranch dressing

Add veggies and dressing to pasta, toss and serve. I don't have any measurements here - make as much or as little as you like. If you use Hidden Valley, one bottle is enough for a pound of pasta.

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